ERIC Number: EJ1241418
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0159-6306
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Smooth Conversations: Sexuality as a Linguistic Resource in a Secondary Language Classroom
Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, v41 n1 p21-31 2020
In the present article, the interlinking between language and sexuality in a secondary language classroom is explored. The aim of the article is to examine use of performances of sexuality in conversation practices in an English classroom in a Swedish secondary school. The data production method is classroom observations, and the examples analysed are taken from field notes made during three grade eight English lectures in a Swedish secondary school. Using concepts of normativity and performativity, I analyse how sexuality is employed in classroom conversations. The results show that reproduction of heteronormativity seems intrinsic to language education in these cases. The pupils, in various ways, employ sexuality as a common bond that facilitates smooth conversations, for instance by using references to hypothetical heterosexual relationships, thereby positioning themselves as heterosexual, or by drawing on other recognizable performances of, e.g. femininity, masculinity and heterosexuality.
Descriptors: Secondary School Students, Grade 8, Sexuality, Interpersonal Communication, Language Usage, English (Second Language), Swedish, Language of Instruction, Social Bias, Foreign Countries
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education; Elementary Education; Grade 8; Junior High Schools; Middle Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Sweden
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Author Affiliations: N/A