Abstract

This study examines how classroom discourse symbolically positions girls in the teaching and learning process and how this may potentially in turn lead to higher achievement by girls in education. Particularly, the study investigates teacher, textbook and student discourse used for daily interaction in the classroom. Data was collected from one All Girls, one All Boys and two Co-education Secondary Schools in Zomba, through classroom observations. A total of thirteen lessons were observed, recorded and transcribed. Data was also collected from the books that were used in the preparation and teaching of the lessons. The data was qualitatively and quantitatively analysed. The Critical Discourse Analysis, Symbolic Interactionism and Labelling Theories were used to make sense of the data. It was revealed that the more recent publications have tried to balance the gender issue in the education system, by using discourse that present boys and girls as being at par. The older publications feature more male characters, with few or no female characters. Most teachers tried as much as possible not to treat boys and girls differently through their discourse strategies. On students discourse, it was revealed that there was no hostility between the two sexes or between members of the same sex. This means that the use of discourse that treat girls and boys as being at par and the lack of hostility between the boys and girls may help the girls to feel free to be part of the teaching and learning process, which in turn leads to higher achievement in education by the girls. This is so because classroom discourse symbolically positions boys and girls in the education setting and the society as a whole which in turn affects their educational achievement.

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School	: School of Humanities and Social Sciences
Issued Date	: 2009

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