Paper, IAMTE Paris, June 2013
Situation based teaching and literacy events
Simon Skov Fougt, PhD Fellow, Institute of Education, University of Aarhus & Department of Education and
Learning, Metropolitan University College. sifo@dpu.dk
This paper presents "Situation based teaching" (SBT) (Fougt in press) as a way to recontextualize (Bernstein
1996) literacy events (Barton and Hamilton 2000) in classrooms. SBT refers to the planning, completion and
evaluation of courses, where subject matters are contextualized in socially meaningful situations (Fougt in
press). SBT is based on the assumption that the best way to learn something new is by dealing with a
meaningful problem in a social, so-called authentic situation (Bundsgaard, Misfeldt og Hetmar 2011).
A pilot project showed that most participating teachers in their planning and practice tend to focus on
activities, on isolated parts of the subject, and with an IRE-dominated communication structure: the
teacher initiates a question, a student responds, and the teacher evaluates (Sinclair and Coulthard 1975).
My main interest is how teachers implement complex teaching theories into their classroom practices, and
the main research question is: What happens to the ways in which teachers think and act when introduced
to SBT and the principles of situated learning practices (Lave & Wenger 1991)?
My presentation includes three case studies with teachers and their classes. Based on my introduction to
SBT and in cooperation with me, the teachers planned their lessons, which I observed, and with an ongoing
adjustment of future courses.
Primarily findings suggest that the SBT reduces the IRE-dominated structure and increases the quality of
subject related discussions. SBT also supports literacy events as a natural content of the classroom
communications, but primarily findings also stress the need for the teacher to organize well-structured
lessons in order to obtain student autonomy.
Still, it is not yet possible to draw final conclusions, but I would like to present and discuss selected
observations of literacy events from the classroom.
References
Barton, D., & Hamilton, M. (2000). Literacy practices. In D. Barton, M. Hamilton, & R. Ivanic (Eds.), Situated
literacies: Reading and writing in context (pp. 7-15). New York: Routledge.
Berstein, B. (1996): Pedagogy, Symbolic Control and Identity. Theory, Research, Critique. New York &
Oxford: Roman & Littlefield Publishers
Bundsgaard, J., Misfeldt, M. og Hetmar, V. (2011): ”Hvad skal der ske i skolen? Et bud på en prototypisk
situationsorienteret curriculumlogik”. I: It-didaktisk design. Cursiv nr. 8, 2011: København: Institut for
Uddannelse og Pædagogik, Aarhus Universitet
Fougt, S.S: (in press): “Skrivning, situationsdidaktik og storyline”. In Friss, K. & Madsbjerg S (red.) Skrivelyst i
fagene. Købehavn: Dansk Psykologisk Forlag
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Paper, IAMTE Paris, June 2013
Gee, J.P. (2000). The new literacy Studies: From ‘socially situated’ to the work of the social. In D. Barton, M.
Hamilton, & R. Ivanic (Eds.), Situated literacies: Reading and writing in context (pp. 180-196). New York:
Routledge.
Lave, J. & Wenger, E. (1991): Situated Learning. Legitimate Peripheral Participation. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press
Sinclair, J. & Coulthard, M. (1975): Towards an analysis of discourse: The English used by teachers
and pupils. London: Oxford University Press.
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