Using Groups Strategically — Negotiating Textual Meanings through Group Work

Abstract

Chapter Seven further develops the ecological theory that provides cohesion to the theoretical framework for language and learning. Language learning is more than actively perceiving linguistic features in the environment. It is the human mind functioning as an integral feature of the environmental context, which affords the learner opportunities for action. The mind is able to recognise those affordances largely through a process of anticipation. Pedagogic anticipatory schemas are important intervention tools to support learning and teaching activity where students are engaged in developing meanings from texts. At times, these schemas can become integrated with similarly staged curriculum genres, maximising student engagement and opportunities for learning.