ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a practical overview of conversation analysis (CA). The goal of the chapter is to provide a concise, but useful, introductory account of how CA can be used to study classroom discourse. The chapter first provides an overview of four empirical issues that are associated with CA: turn-taking, turn shape and placement, repair, and interactional competence. The chapter then discusses CA in relation to the five methodological issues presented in Chapter 1: data collection, data presentation, type of analysis, level of analysis, and role of context. The chapter ends with a top ten list of key terms, constructs, and people in CA.
