How to ask questions in conference discussion sessions: A typological and genre-based perspective
Dr. Xiaoyu Xu
Department of English
City University of Hong Kong
Abstract:
Raising questions in conference discussion sessions can be a challenging encounter for novice academics. Discussants are often not only interested in seeking answers and exchanging ideas with the presenter, but also projecting a positive image of themselves by asking the ‘right’ questions. Therefore, novice academics and EFL speakers often fear looking foolish, unprofessional and non-academic by posing lengthy, unfocused, convoluted questions or comments. However, little help has been provided because of the scant attention given to this discourse and a shortage of pedagogical materials. This study, therefore, attempts to fill the gap by investigating the question types and genre-based moves of 268 turns taken by discussants in 80 computer science conference discussion sessions. Two turn types, five question types and seven genre-based moves were found. The comprehensive findings can be incorporated into instructional materials for computer science PhD students. Extending these findings into the classroom can help students understand the communicative context as well as develop the skills to professionally formulate contextually situated questions and manage interpersonal relationships.
Bio:
Xiaoyu Xu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English at City University of Hong Kong. Her interests include English for Academic Purposes (EAP), English for Specific Purposes (ESP), corpus linguistics, discourse Analysis, Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL), and intercultural communication. She has a particular interest in using corpus methods and discourse analysis to explore argumentation in all kinds of discourse. Her previous research focuses on stance and generic moves in EAP writing. Her current projects investigate discursive practices in EAP genres such as conference discussion sessions and MOOC lectures and ESP genres such as webchat exchanges for online customer service.
