The idea of transitivity: Relations and collaborations Tim Moore, Language and Learning Lab,...
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Transcript of The idea of transitivity: Relations and collaborations Tim Moore, Language and Learning Lab,...
The idea of transitivity: Relations and collaborations
Tim Moore, Language and Learning Lab, Swinburne University
Glenda Ballantyne, Sociology, Swinburne University
Halliday’s transitivity: a very brief introduction
Grammatical transitivity - concerned with the relations between elements in a clause
I walked INTRANSITIVE CLAUSE
I walked the dog TRANSITIVE CLAUSE
Halliday’s transitivity: a very brief introduction
In traditional grammar:
I walked the dog SUBJECT VERB OBJECT
In systemic functional grammar:
I walked the dog PARTICIPANT PROCESS PARTICIPANT
Halliday’s transitivity: a very brief introduction
In systemic functional grammar:
I walked the dog
PARTICIPANT PROCESS PARTICIPANT
(ACTOR) (MATERIAL P) (GOAL)
The student wrote the essay(ACTOR) (MATERIAL P) (GOAL)
Halliday’s transitivity: a very brief introduction
Other examples, other processes
The student wrote the essay(ACTOR) (MATERIAL P) (GOAL)
The student argued the case that ….(SAYER) (VERBAL P) (VERBIAGE)
The lecturer appreciated the essay (SENSER) (MENTAL P) (PHENOMENON)
*The essay impresssed the lecturer(PHENOMENON) (MENTAL P) (SENSER)
Halliday’s transitivity: a very brief introduction
The student wrote the essayThe student argued the case that ….The lecturer appreciated the essay
PARTICIPANT PARTICIPANT
PROCESS
Material
Verbal
Mental etc.
Halliday: The system of transitivity in language is concerned with representing patterns of experience, “of goings on” and “happenings” in the world….It construes the world into a manageable set of PROCESS types and of PARTICIPANTS.
Principal transitivity relations: Student text
Monet used a blush of atmospheric colour
The extremities of the painting were added later [by Monet]
Monet explained the finer details of the scene
Principal transitivity relations: Task
How readily does one begin dividing the composition into three level
Do we see the place as homely
Does the perspective make us feel cut off from the water
PARTICIPANT? PARTICIPANT?PROCESS?
Two ways to understand some of the problems in student writing
• Students don’t understand fundamentally the transitivity relations (“pattern of experience”) they are meant to be exploring in a piece of writing
• These relations are not explored in any substantive way
The use of transitivity in academic skills advising: A recent example from sociology
Major assessment: case study (condensed version)
The various developments that have shaped modern life have emerged at different times and in different locations. As we have discussed, these include the processes of industrialization, urbanization, secularization, democratization, gender equality, the rise of consumption, the rise of individualism.
In this case study, your task Is to illustrate the impact of two or three of these processes on the daily life of a member of your family. In order to gather first hand material, you will need to interview a family member (or other person) who has experienced significant change over the course of their life.
The use of transitivity in academic skills advising: A recent example from sociology
Major assessment: case study (cont’d)
In the first part of the case study you should outline the impact of the 2 or 3 processes you have selected. You should describe the main impacts each of these features of modernity have had on social life, as well as outlining major arguments or debates arising in the sociological literature.
In the other main part of the case study, you should discuss the findings of your interview in the light of the literature you have reviewed. How has the personal life and experiences of your interviewee been affected by these processes? How much do their experiences fit with what the literature has described?
Major assessment: case study (condensed version)
The various developments that have shaped modern life …
What transitivity relations are involved in this opening clause? ie. What reality is being constructed here?
shaped various developments
eg. industrialization, urbanization etc.
modern life
Transitivity relations in case study task
Major assessment: case study (condensed version)
The various developments that have shaped modern life … (ie. industrialization, urbanization etc.)
[You should] describe the main impacts each of these features of modernity have had on social life
… illustrate the impact of two or three of these processes on the daily life of a member of your family
How has the personal life and experiences of your interviewee been affected by these processes?
Other clause examples
impacting onaffecting shapingprocesses
developmentsfeatures of modernity
eg. industrialisation, gender equality consumerism etc.
modern life/social life
daily life of family member/personal experiences
Transitivity relations in case study task
impacting onaffecting shapingprocesses
developmentsfeatures
eg. industrialisation, gender equality consumerism etc.
modern life/social life
daily life of family member/personal experience
Transitivity relations in case study task
How much do the experiences [of your interviewees] fit with what the
literature has described?
impacting onaffecting shapingprocesses
developmentsfeatures of modernity
eg. industrialisation, gender equality consumerism etc.
modern life/social life
daily life of family member/personal experiences
Transitivity relations in case study task
negotiating resisting?
Some reflections: Lecturer
GLENDA: I still have only a basic idea of what transitivity means, but since our discussion of it, I have been writing written lectures … in a complex theoretical field, and so have been very aware of trying to convey the ideas in meaningful, non-jargonised way. This has required quite a bit of reflexivity on my part. I think the principle of making the transitive relations between elements clear has been an important part of that.
Some reflections: Lecturer
GLENDA: I can’t think how to characterise the collaboration just at the moment, except to say it has transformed and expanded my understanding of what language and academic skills professionals can contribute (guilty of ill-informed prejudices common to academics previously), and that I see this work having a major impact on my teaching. This is particularly so in relation to structuring and content of assessments
Some reflections: ALL practitioner
TIM: The collaboration for me has been academically a very rewarding one. It has been interesting reading some of your sociology material (the book), and to find out how some of your sociological interests and concerns have found expression in your teaching practices. For example, your interest in the ideas of ‘agency’ and ‘creativity’ as sociological concepts.
About this, you explained how it was important in the work you set for students for them not to be engaged with material in some detached, and abstract way. Rather what’s important is for students always to be able to draw on personal or family experience in some way – though always in an informed way – so as to make the issues and concepts relevant, and also to help shed light on students’ own experience. It was interesting to see just how strongly this notion informed the design of the assignment – this is an idea I will certainly take with me to my work with other academics.
supporting
teaching ALL specialist students in their
learning
Transitivity relations in ALL practice #1 (as adjunct teacher/facilitator)
(seeking to)
supportinghaving an impact onaffectingshaping
ALL specialist teaching practices of academics in the disciplines
Transitivity relations in ALL practice #2 (as academic developer/agent of change?)