In this paper, we examine higher education instructor preferences for forms of address from students. We share qualitative and quantitative analysis of data from a large survey of higher education instructors, considered across a range of demographic and contextual factors. Through the lens of Positioning Theory, our work demonstrates the ways in…

This paper argues that the South African postdoctoral fellow system is de-professionalising academic work by constituting postdocs as students who receive training from the university rather than employees who work for it. Ironically, it obscures this de-professionalisation with a discourse of postdoctoral fellowships as 'professional development'…

This research features a discourse analysis of two podcasts: the "Mobb Deep, Shook Ones, Pt. II" episode of "Song Exploder" and the "Rap on Trial" episode of "Hidden Brain." We selected these podcasts through an abductive method of what we call "fortuitous listening" because of how they reveal…

Research in organizational theory takes as a key premise the notion that organizations are "actors." Organizational actorhood, or agency, depends, in part, on how external audiences perceive organizations. In other words, organizational agency requires that external audiences take organizations "to be" agents. Yet little…

Examining rhetoric is important to understanding educational policymaking. This study focuses on rhetoric on one educational policy, performance-based funding (PBF) for higher education. In contrast to previous research on PBF, we analyze rhetoric in both states that implemented the policy and those that opted out. We employ a sequential…

This dissertation provides an in-depth linguistic description and analysis of the discourse in a target domain of digital games, a domain referred to as "single player offline role-playing games." Gaming discourse from this domain is represented by a 4.8-million-word corpus of spoken and written language extracted from the digital files…

This dissertation uses a discourse studies approach to investigate key communicative processes by which digital technology is given situated meanings within the institution of public education, including at the level of official discourse, administrative textsp, and the spoken discourse of professional educators. The discursive processes under…

In this three-paper dissertation project, I explore how 'English' becomes a recognizable object within the context of adult ESOL education. Building on scholarship on named languages (Garcia, 2019; Makoni & Pennycook, 2006), the historical construction of languages (Bonfiglio, 2010; Irvine & Gal, 2000), and raciolinguistic ideologies…

This article explores how the analysis of inter-rater discourse can be used to support collective reflective practice in second language (L2) assessment. To demonstrate, a focused case of the discourse between two experienced language teachers as they negotiate assessment decisions on L2 written texts is presented. Of particular interest was the…

In this paper, we investigate how highly ranked business schools construct their legitimacy claims by analysing their online organisational communication. We argue that in the case of higher education institutions in general, and business schools in particular, the discursive formation of these legitimacy claims is strongly connected to the…

Workplace learning initiatives are influenced by perceptions, and negative perceptions hinder organizational innovation and productivity. This exploratory study presents an argument that messages shared among trainees regarding their training experiences shape such perceptions. The application of Symbolic Convergence Theory reveals two discursive…

Out of school time (OST) STEM opportunities are often presented as ways to support student achievement, understanding, and identity in STEM. Recent work has begun to explore how OST programs function within the STEM Learning Ecosystem, a holistic view of the various STEM learning opportunities available to youth in a given area. In order to…

Understanding how students develop learning opportunities through peer-to-peer interaction is vital for advancing research and practice on collaborative learning environments. This study investigated the discourse practices middle grade students utilized to resolve conflict in ways that promoted or inhibited learning opportunities. Seventy-seven…

With the goal of contributing to ongoing efforts to decolonize ELT, this article addresses the potential of microanalytic research into classroom interaction in disrupting hegemonic forces of coloniality. Microanalytic research provides a step-by-step, minute examination of interactional discourse, and it has the capacity to reveal gaps between…

New Public Management (NPM)-inspired higher education (HE) governance has become increasingly topical in recent years. However, while existing research provides an overall understanding of relevant changes, it does not offer a complete analysis of complex governance and falls prey to deterministic and relatively narrow ideological impositions.…