Privileging of speech in EAP and mainstream university classrooms: A critical evaluation of participation

Abstract

Perceptions of Asian students as silent have been widely debated in the disciplines of applied linguistics and education. These debates have been largely concerned with the extent to which essentialised notions of Japanese culture are in operation and the consequences for teaching and learning. The silences of students and the expectations of their teachers for speech have been viewed as a clash of perceptions and understandings based on intercultural difference. The two studies presented here complexify this view. Drawing on data from interviews with Japanese students and their Australian teachers, we compare and contrast their perceptions of talk and silence in English for academic purpose..