Over-framing: interrogating sentence frames as pedagogical support vs. language restriction

Abstract

Sentence frames are a frequently used form of pedagogical scaffolding in language education. Yet there is debate around whether sentence frames offer the opportunity for analysis and internalisation of authentic language use, or simply facilitate rote, ‘plug and play’ language use. This paper takes a linguistic ethnography approach informed by case study methodology to explore the use of sentence frames in a dual language bilingual education (DLBE) setting. Data were collected across 78 h of field observations and 15 h of interviews conducted over one school year. Classroom observations and interviews were conducted in both Spanish and English. Findings point to the frequency with which the use of sentence frames can perpetuate a phenomenon we describe as over-framing. Specifically, our findings demonstrate tensions between a teacher’s introduction of sentence frames as a ‘fill in the blank’ format, as opposed to an opportunity to develop language awareness through breaking down and exploring frames with students collaboratively. We provide recommendations for shifting the field’s approach to the use of sentence frames in future research and practice.