The Investigation of Politeness Strategies in Teacher-Student Interactions: The Use of the Michigan Corpus of Academic Spoken English

Abstract

This research aimed to explore the usage of politeness strategies in teacher-student interactions in the teaching and learning process. The spoken data from the Michigan Corpus of Academic Spoken English (MICASE) were collected using a corpus-based approach. The question was whether the four politeness strategies in the findings were used by both teachers and students or either one. Fourteen transcriptions of academic interactions between teachers and students were analyzed through Brown and Levinson’s politeness strategies (1987). Qualitative analysis of the data was used to describe the usage of politeness strategies. Quantitative analysis of the data was used to calculate the frequency and percentage of the politeness strategies. The data revealed that in the classroom interactions, four kinds of politeness strategies – bald on record, positive politeness, negative politeness, and off record were used. In teacher- student classroom interactions, positive politeness strategies were the most frequently used. Clear instructions were given to students by using bald on record; a close relationship between teachers and students was maintained by using positive politeness; the direct expressions to students were softened by using negative politeness, and off record was used to give hints to get expected answers from students. The effect of using politeness strategies in teacher-student interactions can engage students in classroom activities, inspire students’ learning interests, establish a respectful relationship between teachers and students, and create an enjoyable classroom atmosphere.