Classroom Discourse and Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge Development: An Initiation-Response-Feedback Analysis

Classroom discourse plays a crucial role in shaping learning opportunities, but the relationship between discourse structures, especially the IRF (Initiation-Response-Feedback) pattern introduced by Sinclair and Coulthard (۱۹۷۵), and teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) remained untouched in EFL contexts. This study addresses this gap by investigating how frequently different IRF components and PCK dimensions appear in an EFL classroom discourse and how reflective analysis of these interactions can support PCK development. Applying Grossman’s (۱۹۹۰) model which considers PCK as knowledge of instructional strategies, curriculum, and learners, eight classroom sessions were audio-recorded, transcribed using Jefferson’s (۲۰۰۴) system, and coded in MAXQDA. Coding categories included type of questions, responses, feedback, and these PCK dimensions. Frequency counts and co-occurrence patterns were provided to examine how discourse steps aligned with PCK. Findings show teacher-centered interactional pattern. Convergent questions were the most frequent initiations, student responses were mostly short, and feedback was mainly evaluative. PCK coding revealed that instructional-strategy knowledge was the most noticeable component, and knowledge of students’ understanding was least frequent. Co-occurrence results showed a strong relationship between questioning and instructional strategies, and between elaborative feedback and curricular knowledge. Generally, the findings indicate an imbalance in the teacher’s PCK, with emphasis on guiding and checking content rather than determining students’ thinking. The study highlights the value of using classroom discourse analysis, especially IRF for exploring and developing teacher’s PCK. Further research can explore diverse contexts, employ longitudinal designs, and increase understanding of how IRF analysis enhances PCK.

کلیدواژه ها:

pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) ، the initiation-response-feedback (IRF) pattern ، classroom discourse analysis