2005 Chapters (Layout Features)

Take 1, Take 2, Take 3: A suggested three-stage approach to exploratory practice

Fanselow, John; Barnard, Roger

In 2004, three of Richard Allwright's students who had worked with him at the University of Lancaster decided to produce a collection of writings from those in the field who had learned from Allwright's writings on exploratory practice and classroom observation. I was in New Zealand at the time doing some joint teaching with Roger Barnard at the University of Waikato. I suggested to Roger that we submit a jointly written chapter. One reason was that working together would be in tune with Allwright's suggestions through the years about collaboration. Another was that Roger and I had recently discussed the number of articles we had read that presented single interpretations of transcriptions of classroom interaction. We both believed that single interpretations are dangerous since they assume data shows the world in black and white without nuance. In literature single interpretations of characters, themes and plots are unthinkable.

We selected three transcripts that had been interpreted in one way in widely quoted articles to interpret in 3 ways--thus the title: Take 1, Take 2, Take 3.