Tapping a Hidden Resource in Classrooms: Peer Interactions and Their Role in Language, Literacy, and Disciplinary Literacy Practices Among Adolescent English and Non-English Learners

Author

Jina Byeon, University at Albany, State University of New YorkFollow

ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3276-9231

Date of Award

Spring 2025

Language

English

Embargo Period

4-15-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

Department of Africana, Latin American, Caribbean and Latinx Studies

Program

Curriculum and Instruction

First Advisor

Julie Learned

Committee Members

Brett Levy, Alex Kumi-Yeboah

Keywords

Peer interaction, adolescents, literacy, disciplinary literacy, language learning, English learners

Subject Categories

Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education | Curriculum and Instruction | Language and Literacy Education | Secondary Education

Abstract

This qualitative case study examines how peer interactions among six seventh-grade English Learners (ELs) and non-ELs serve as both a context for and a method of developing adolescents' literacy and disciplinary literacy practices. Data sources include two semi-structured interviews with each student and their four classroom teachers, student and teacher ethnographic interviews, 300 hours of classroom observations (in English Language Arts, Social Studies, Math and Science, English as a New Language Tutorial), and student-generated artifacts (e.g., worksheets).

Through the application of iterative and thematic data analysis, three key themes were identified: 1) adolescents' interactions with their peers fostered a supportive learning context for language development, literacy, and disciplinary literacy; 2) students engaged in peer interactions to participate in language, literacy, and disciplinary literacy practices; and 3) students used copying as literacy and disciplinary literacy practices.

First, adolescent peer interactions fostered a supportive learning context for students’ classroom literacy and disciplinary literacy practices. Frequent sharing and emotional support among students enhanced their interaction with their peers during the learning process. Peer interactions helped students focus on their learning and have fun with their peers. Spontaneous, student-initiated side (off-task) conversations emerged as a vital component of this dynamic. However, teachers and students had divergent perspectives on the relationship between learning and peer socializing. While students skillfully navigated learning and having fun, teachers often focused on teaching the curriculum and suppressed peer interactions that they believed were excessively social.

Second, the students used peer interactions to develop language and literacy practices. Peer interactions, particularly for ELs, fostered risk-taking language practices conducive to developing their English. Students also demonstrated spontaneous, agentic literacy practices while interacting with their peers. However, the study identified some obstacles adolescents experienced while participating in disciplinary literacy practices through peer interaction: students' limited conception of disciplinary literacy as English vocabulary learning, the absence of teachers' explicit instructions on disciplinary language, and the conflation of everyday language and disciplinary language. Despite these obstacles, peer interactions were a means of discovering students' misconceptions of disciplinary concepts, exchanging diverse perspectives, and facilitating experiential learning with disciplinary content.

Finally, copying peers’ answers was the most frequent peer interaction pattern in the study. Although students perceived copying as negative, they used it as literacy and disciplinary literacy practices. As literacy practices, copying enabled ELs and non-ELs to participate in classroom learning activities. In addition, students used copying as a strategic tool to understand, question their peers, and review their understanding. As a disciplinary literacy practice, copying provided a means of accessing information, especially when students faced with unfamiliar disciplinary content, feelings of uncertainty, low confidence, confusion, and a lack of resources to work independently. Moreover, copying provided opportunities for even non-ELs to benefit from the guidance of peers.

These findings demonstrate how educators can empower adolescents by recognizing and utilizing the inherent strengths and initiatives found in peer interactions. This directly challenges the conventional framework that often views ELs through a deficit lens and overlooks the positive dynamics of their interactions with non-EL peers.

License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Byeon, Jina, "Tapping a Hidden Resource in Classrooms: Peer Interactions and Their Role in Language, Literacy, and Disciplinary Literacy Practices Among Adolescent English and Non-English Learners" (2025). Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present). 201.
https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/etd/201