Article Four: Reading as Situated Langauga: A Sociocognitive Perspective

Submitted by: Debbie Bonanza

Gee describes reading as a process embedded within the context of social interactions and culture. He believes that reading and writing can’t be separated from oral language interactions, that it is connected to culture, social interactions, and to society itself.

· The purpose of language is to share information. Traditionally, language was viewed as translating the language into your own words or your own mental images. Gee suggests that today, language is viewed as the experience of and the action or situation in the world to a particular person. Language is stored in the brain as images or videos tied to a perception both of the world and our own being. As our experiences or perceptions change, so do the images or tapes. New experiences are integrated with old experiences; therefore creating a ‘learning ‘ experience that makes sense to us. These images color out experiences and what we use to give meaning to words and sentences. They provide value and perspective. As we listen to language, we customize the context, which is not just words but purpose(s) of action and interaction. We pull what we need to make sense of the context. We build our image in accordance to all the words and environment that surrounds the world.

· The second function of language is that words and grammar exist so that people have different ways to communicate different or contrasting perspectives on experiences. Children learn perspective language by listening to the dialogue of advanced peers and adults. As they develop, they begin to realize others may have different perspectives and internalize them. Later, children can rerun the situation and imitate the perspective to other more advanced peers and adults eventually learning to use symbolic means that others used. Reading must be related to situations outside of the text and instruction must integrate diverse perspectives of real/imagined materials and social words.

· Languages are comprised of more than situations and perspectives. People recognize different social languages through different patterns like styles, registers, syntax, vocabulary, etc. Readers need to be able to map these elements to a specific style of language used in characteristic social activities. This type of mapping has a more detrimental affect on reading failure than poor phonics mapping. To be able to use a specific social language, you have to understand how its design features are combined to carry out the specific social activity (i.e., medicine, law, rap, informal talk w/friends, etc.) Social language can be both oral and written and is always connected to the characteristic social activities, value-laden perspectives and socially situated identities of groups of people or communities of practice.

· Discourses (with a capital D) are being able to produce social languages and genres not just consuming (interpreting) them. Discourses are like an identity tool kit full of specific devices (i.e., way with words, values, actions, interactions, etc.) that you can use for specific identities and activities related to that activity. Discourses can be by themselves, blended together, related by relationships of alignment or tension. Through Discourses, people acquire cultural models or theories about the world socialized in or shared. These models tell others what is normal for that particular Discourse and what is abnormal, therefore being heavily value laden.

· Children’s Discourses are a result of their own cultural models and social interaction, usually their family. There is a significant correlation between early language abilities, early phonological awareness and success in reading. Family, community, and school environments provide cognitively challenging communications that hopefully enhance verbal abilities. All children have language and vocabulary but may be of a different Discourse of cultural model. Children who tend to fail in school may lack the specific verbal abilities tied to specific school-based practices.