| This study examined the specific component of speech called discourse markers in conversations between different genders of teachers and college students taking part in writing conferences. One male and one female teacher and their forty-nine students participated. The teachers were interviewed at the beginning of the semester but prior to the commencement of their first writing conference and again immediately following their second conference. Their second conferencing conversations were recorded to study the frequency of the following 11 discourse markers when they appeared in the initial position: and, but, or, because, so, oh, well, I mean, you know, now and then. Five of these markers, and, but, so, oh and well, which were found to be the most frequently occurring ones and were selected in order to explore their functions. This study concluded that the functions of discourse markers served functions similar to those used in everyday conversation, but what differentiated discourse markers in conferencing conversations was that their use, including both the frequency and their function was the consequence of many factors such as the nature of the writing conferences, gender performance in talk and the status relationship between teachers and students. The findings support the contextual view of the way discourse markers are used between males and females in gender research and deconstruct the traditional view of the degree of assumption in men's competitiveness and women's cooperation in talk. This study draws attention to the complexity of talk in writing conferences, suggesting that discourse markers carry expressive meaning and influence teachers and students' turn-to-turn interactions. Increased awareness of teacher-student interaction such as the examination of discourse markers in writing conferences may lead to increased cooperation, reducing other contributing factors such as the unequal power relationships between teachers and students or males and females. Recommendations for future research are offered which include exploring discourse markers in other positions beyond the initial position and examining these markers in other contexts. |
