Making Use of the Third Turn in Teacher Talk
Step into almost any classroom, and the first thing you’ll hear is the hum of voices – the talk – of teachers and students working together. In fact, one of the most valuable, but overlooked, tools in a teacher’s instructional repertoire IS the talk, because that’s where teachers’ instruction comes to life. As Wilkinson and Son (2011) observe, language provides both “the context and the vehicle for learning,” and effective teachers understand how to make strategic use of that language – the talk – as an instructional tool to shape learning opportunities for their students.
Effective teachers understand how to make strategic use of that language – the talk – as an instructional tool to shape learning opportunities for their students. |
So how does that work? Let’s begin with discussions of content, the most common instructional format at any grade level. Research has shown us that during most discussions, teachers use a predictable question-answer exchange that sounds something like this:
- Teacher: Is it cold today?
- Student: Yes, it’s very cold today.
- Teacher: Yes, it’s quite chilly OR No, it’s actually warm.
In this familiar format, the teacher poses a question, a student answers, and the teacher evaluates or acknowledges the student’s response. This “script” for instructional exchanges, is so common that it’s called the I-R-E, or Initiate-Respond-Evaluate, and is found in classrooms around the world. It’s important to note that there’s nothing wrong with this type of instructional exchange, and it can serve a useful purpose for students to display what they know.
Yet, this pattern also tends to constrain the kinds of responses that students make (and the kinds of thinking that they do); and it limits more widespread student participation by supporting a teacher’s interactions with only one student at a time. As a result, the IRE can limit students’ opportunities to interact with content in new ways or to engage with their classmates’ ideas about content.
But what other options do teachers have? How can teachers leverage their talk as an instructional tool and create more opportunities for students to build new knowledge during instructional discussions?
How can teachers leverage their talk as an instructional tool and create more opportunities for students to build new knowledge during instructional discussions? |
Alternatives to the IRE are plentiful and potentially far more productive for student learning, particularly when teachers realize the power that lies in that “Evaluation,” or third turn, in the instructional interaction. Within those instructional moments, teachers have myriad options to activate students’ learning and take a more dialogic stance. Instead of a simple “Good,” “Right,” or “Not quite,” the teacher can choose from a variety of talk moves that shift the very nature of the discussion.
When teachers practice uptake of students’ ideas, questions, or responses, the third turn becomes an engine for pushing students’ thinking forward and positioning students as agents in the learning process. In many ways, that conversational third turn provides teachers with a superpower that turns up the heat in students’ learning. By identifying the options and understanding how to use some of the “talk moves” available to teachers in that third turn, including different types of questioning, uptake, wait time, and elaborative feedback, teachers make more strategic use of their talk and facilitate more productive discussions in their classrooms.
When teachers practice uptake of students’ ideas, questions, or responses, the third turn becomes an engine for pushing students’ thinking forward and positioning students as agents in the learning process. |
Thinking strategically about how we use our talk in the classroom helps us keep growing our instructional repertoire while continually improving our understanding of our students’ individual learning needs. |
Most importantly, thinking strategically about how we use our talk in the classroom helps us keep growing our instructional repertoire while continually improving our understanding of our students’ individual learning needs.
So what about you? What are some of the talk moves that you’ve found to be most productive for encouraging your students’ thinking and talk?
Want to know more? Join me for my workshop on teacher talk and learn more about how teacher talk can work for you.
About Evelyn Ford-Connors
Evelyn Ford-Connors holds both a master’s degree and doctorate in literacy education with expertise in interventions for struggling literacy learners and in classroom discourse. Evelyn taught for over 20 years at Boston University’s School of Education (now the Wheelock College of Education and Human Development). During that time, she was a Senior Lecturer, program director for Literacy Education, and practicum supervisor for graduate students pursuing licensure as Reading Specialists. She also served as Co-Director of the Donald D. Durrell Reading and Writing Clinic which operated as both a practicum site for graduate students in literacy education and a tutoring center for K-12 students experiencing difficulty with some aspect of their literacy learning. Evelyn’s ongoing research and professional development work center on coaching and supporting teachers with their literacy instruction and on helping teachers make effective use of their classroom talk. She has presented on these topics at numerous national and state conferences and has co-authored over twenty articles and book chapters.
