Conference Agenda

Dialogical Self Theory posits that individuals hold various positions or identities simultaneously in dialogue with each other. This dialogical self engages both internal and external voices to contribute to a sense of identity. DST is especially useful in helping to understand the I-positions adolescents hold that influence their engagement in learning, especially when it comes to learning about language –or grammar.

Prior learning of grammar as “right/wrong” dichotomies, situations that stigmatize certain uses of language, and social constraints to use language in meaningful ways with peers might present conflicting internal dialogues in adolescents, contributing to a reluctance to even take up learning about language or grammar—or, even worse, contribute to an antagonistic attitude: “I hate grammar!” and a mental, if not physical, folding arms across the chest, daring teachers to try to shift language attitudes and I-positions.

In this presentation, a former secondary teacher shares two classroom practices as types of activities that encourage students to engage in both internal and external dialogues to encourage shifts toward more positive I-positions. The first activity explores a written exercise that asks student to entertain a prior personal experience, move it to a position where it can be examined from multiple perspectives and then come to a conclusion that can shift I-positions. The second example looks at analyzing published texts that seem to “break rules,” analyze the purposes of such usages, and consider them as purposeful for the students’ telling of their own stories. The purposeful exploration of contradictions of prior experience then applied to learning to achieve their own purposes puts I-positions in dialogue with one another that students might not have considered before.

Fluency is a main component of the science of reading, but a lack of research about fluency exists at the secondary level–especially the relationship between fluency and reader identity. This presentation explores the relationship between fluency and reader identity using dialogical self theory (DST), focusing on how explicit fluency instruction in the secondary classroom affects a student’s reader identity.

The data examined represents a slice of data from a larger multiple case study of 11th grade students at a US high school. The data reflects the experiences of three students, represented through a series of self-reflections collected throughout the year, each one completed after explicit fluency instruction and practice. The self-reflections were then analyzed using DST as a lens and coded for the various I-positions referenced throughout the students’ work.

The presence of different I-positions identified in each self-reflection reflect shifts in the students’ reader identities throughout the year and show interesting trends that are helpful for educators to be aware of. Specifically, students showed the development and transformation among a range of positive and negative I-positions such as I-as-strategic reader, I-as-reader who feels intimidated by peers, I-as-reader who lacks confidence, and I-as-person who enjoys reading out loud. The I-positions also show what students at the secondary level value when it comes to their reader identity, and provide insight into what educators should be aware of when considering fluency instruction.

This presentation will focus on the value of teaching fluency at the secondary level and the importance of educators being aware of how students’ reader identities are shaped in the classroom. Using DST when evaluating data from the classroom gives educators the vocabulary to clearly discuss and focus on important shifts that are taking place with the reader's identities as a result of fluency instruction.

One of the most recognizable elements of reading instruction is vocabulary. Though many educators and researchers emphasize the value of intentional vocabulary instruction and practice in the classroom, little research examines the role of students’ experiences and positioning when making meaning out of words and texts. This presentation examines the ways students’ lived experiences and funds of knowledge impact their understanding of vocabulary, and ways in which teachers can intentionally tap this existing knowledge and positioning through reflective practices to help prepare students for deeper reading experiences.

This data was collected as a part of a larger case study of 11th and 9th grade US high school students. It includes student and teacher reflections collected at the conclusion of learning stations activities students completed during their study of whole class texts. Using Dialogical Self Theory (DST), these were coded for I-positions and the ways these positions contributed to students’ meaning-making. This analysis showed that I-positions represented pieces of students’ identities formed through their lived experiences that were used to make meaning of the world around them. Sometimes this occurred in the broader practices of studying a text, but also in the more minute practice of unpacking the meaning of a single word. That is, the personal “definition” or meaning ascribed to a word revealed how students pulled meaning from not only the texts they studied, but also their own identities (and the experiences that built those identities).

This presentation emphasizes the value of teaching vocabulary in ways that invite students’ identities and experiences into the classroom to allow for greater meaning-making and overall learning. The DST lens makes it possible for educators to craft experiences for students to tap into their I-positions and draw from their unique perspectives to enhance vocabulary instruction beyond the standard word-and-definition” model they often utilize.