Social organization through teacher-talk: Subteaching, socialization and the normative use of language in a multilingual primary class

The present study explores the ways in which peers take up a teacher-like discourse to enforce normative uses of language in a classroom, effectively socializing one another to the institutional use of English which in turn signals class membership. Such an uptake of teacher-like discourses and practices can be characterized as subteaching (Tholander & Aronsson, 2003). Data are drawn from an ethnographic study spanning the first and second grade for a group of students enrolled in English medium education in Finland, and the analysis centers on transcripts of classroom interaction. Findings indicate that students draw on subteaching actions to negotiate alignments and to sanction others, maintaining social order, and constructing situated identities.

► Subteaching impacts the socialization of norms for language choice in school.
► Subteaching relative to language choice often entails maintaining moral and social order.
► Subteaching roles can be collaboratively constructed among peers.
► The classroom teacher may legitimize subteaching actions.
► Subteaching aids the teacher in monitoring language use in peer-centered interaction.