Chapter 8 - University lectures – macro-structure and micro-features

Summary

Abstract

This chapter presents a different way of examining the macro-structure of university lectures which results in a reconfigured schema for this generic type. The discussion begins with a brief description of the corpus used in the analysis and then outlines the model of analysis. This is followed by a discussion of the different strands of which lectures are composed. After summarizing some of the main features of the strands that contribute to the macro-structure of lectures, the chapter identifies some of the pedagogical implications that result from a re-configuration of the schema of lectures.

The focus in this section is on the reasons why students should be presented with an accurate representation of the formal schema of lectures. The purpose of the research and the new proposed macro-structure for monologic discourse at the tertiary level is to offer teachers of ESL and EFL (and their students) a more realistic representation of the schematic patterning of lectures to facilitate students' processing of information transmitted in this mode.

Introduction

The intention of this chapter is both to describe the macro-structure of university lectures and to identify some of the more prominent micro-features that contribute to this structure. My purpose is to propose a new schema for this generic type based on my analyses of many lectures. My research into this language variety has been motivated by my experience of teaching English as a Second Language to foreign students coming to study in Canadian universities.