WESTERN MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS

GRADUATE SCHOOL

STUDENT: MS.MARSHA JAZMINE S.DAGALEA

SUBJECT: DISCOURSE ANALYSIS (ESL 231)
PROFESSOR: DR.RODITA SILVA

I. SUBJECT MATTER
 3.4 FUNCTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
 3.5 MICRO-FUNCTIONS AND FUNCTIONAL LANGUAGE TEACHING
 3.6 FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS AND COHERENCE

III. LESSON PROPER

A. 3.4 FUNCTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
 An interesting concept to speculate, if classification is accepted on
the evolution of functions in each human individual.
 Directive function – the crying baby is being expressive, although
her cries are not really language at all, but instinctive reactions to
the environment. When she realizes that by controlling these cries
and producing them different meaning influence the behavior of
her parents.
 Poetic function – also apparent at an early stage: when young
children latch on to a phrase and repeat it endlessly, without
conveying any information.
 Referential function – gains its prominence only at a later stage.
 Metalinguistic function – also comes later; these are the functions
on which considerable amount of attention is lavished at school.

B. 3.5 MICRO-FUNCTIONS AND FUNCTIONAL LANGUAGE TEACHING

 Figure below follows through only one function in each column.
 A diagram which becomes more precise and explicit as it moves
from left to right(with a long list of fairly narrowly defined functions
on the right-hand side.)
 A connection between functional courses and functional
approaches.
 These are the functional approaches ;
questions,orders,requests,pleas and prayers
 There are the sub-categories (request) ; request for action, request
for information, request for help and request for sympathy.
 questions

orders requests for action

requests for information

Directive function requests

pleas requests for help

prayers requests for sympathy

 Functional courses set out to list the purposes for which students
might have important strengths. (We can teach students skills –
courses concentrating on formal features of language often omit;
How to greet people or how to maintain polite contact.)
 Weakness – the more slippery they become the more scope there
is for variation and disagreement.
 Pedagogic problems in following the lists;
i. What order should one follow?
ii. Are some functions more important than others?
iii. How exactly do they relate to grammar and vocabulary?
C. 3.6 FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS AND COHERENCE
 Some stretches of language are coherent and some are not, thus
we can see that the sentence sample “The window is open” can
have many different functions.
 Depending on who says it, to whom and in what situation.
 Said by a husband to a wife in the middle of the night it may
function as an expression of worry.
 Said by a teacher to a pupil it may well function as an order.
 Said by Sherlock Holmes to Dr.Watson at the scene of the murder
it might function as an interpretation.
 The window is open Don’t worry
(Expression of anxiety) (Reassurance)
 Sorry,love. I saw you were home. There’s a cat stuck under the gate…
(Apology) (Explanation) (Request)
 The problem with this procedure, for not all functions can be so
neatly labelled,nor is there always such a neat correspondence
between a single utterance and a single function.
 The important principle has been established, that meaning
varies with context.
 Two types of meaning ;
i. Semantic meaning (The fixed context –free meaning)
ii. Pragmatic meaning (the meaning which the words take
on in a particular context, between particular people).
 The function of utterance must be established pragmatically.
 They are essential tools for discourse analysis and thus for the teacher
and learner