Speech Acts on Nigerian Classroom Discourse: A Discourse Analysis Approach

Anana Mariam

doi:10.31849/elsya.v6i1.15280

Anana Mariam Mountain Top University, Prayer, Nigeria https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7484-7103

DOI: https://doi.org/10.31849/elsya.v6i1.15280

Keywords: Classroom interactions, Discourse exchange, Discourse participants, Simple words, Overloaded representatives

Abstract

A lot of speech acts have been misused by many classroom discourse participants and as a result of this, discourse exchanges are characterized by the use of disjointed and unplanned acts, interference, overloaded acts, incessant slot fillers and the like. Again, wrong applications of speech acts by the instructors are indirectly transferred to the students, who imitate them in the course of learning. Also, if the misinformed discourse participants write, their malfunctioned written speech acts may be shown in their scripts. This study therefore investigated how discourse participants apply the speech acts in technical classrooms. Data were randomly selected from lessons taught in selected technical classrooms in Lagos State, Nigeria, and the instrument for data collection was participant observation. The Speech Act Theory and Pragmatics were the theoretical frameworks for this research. One of the major findings showed that discourse participants, specifically the instructors, applied overloaded representatives that originated from retroactive interference of L1 to L2 and that resulted in the learners’ inability to understand the instructors’ teaching. I recommend that discourse participants (especially the instructors) should carefully select simple words that fit the class that they teach. They should also study their students and apply words in a direct way to assist students to comprehend easily as they learn.

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Author Biography

Anana Mariam, Mountain Top University, Prayer, Nigeria

Dr. Anana Mariam is a Senior lecturer in the Department of Languages, Mountain Top University, Ogun State, Nigeria. She is the current Head of Department of Languages. She specializes in Discourse Analysis, Sociolinguistics and Phonetics and Phonology. She teaches these courses and other English language courses at undergraduate and post-graduate levels; and has over 15 years of lecturing at tertiary institutions in Nigeria. She has supervised both undergraduate and post-graduate students. Anana has published both in local and international journals of high reputes. She is a fellow and member of academic organisations.

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