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Research paper 4

Aljawharah Alkhamis, 442204513

Eng. 504

Dr. Hesham Suleiman Alyousef

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Implementing Halliday’s Transitivity Analysis in Teaching a Foreign/

Second Language

Systemic functional linguistics (SFL) is a burgeoning research field that has

garnered considerable scholarly attention over recent years. One major concern is the

relationship between SFL and second language (L2) learning. SFL provides students

with useful materials that help the students comprehend language choices and ways

that multimodal texts unfold. Of particular interest to researchers is the effectiveness

of SFL transitivity analysis in L2 learning. This is because SFL transitivity analysis

can likely be used as a pedagogical tool in L2 learning.

Several studies have been conducted on the relationship between SFL

transitivity analysis and different language skills. Transitivity analysis improves

English-as-an-L2 (ESL) learners' reading comprehension and introduces new

terminology so that ESL learners can make better choices as they write (Alyousef,

2020). In addition, using text analysis tools in the classroom and learning about idea

transitivity helps ESL students become more critical readers (Velasco, 2021).

Significant research on the use of SFL in ESL/EFL teaching has been

undertaken in many parts of the world such as Australia, China, Vietnam, Sweden and

Indonesia. Derewianka and Jones (2010) outline Australian schools' experiences with

utilizing SFL to teach English for the last three decades. This approach provides

effective tools for determining curriculum priorities, planning pedagogy, and

assessing learners' successes and needs. Furthermore, SFL has formally existed in

Indonesia since 2004, when the government announced an English curriculum for

Indonesian school based on Australian genre pedagogy. Emilia and Hamied (2015)

found that SFL assisted Indonesian students to improve their English writing.
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Some studies have demonstrated that there is a considerable association

between SFL transitivity and improvement in the foreign/second language among

students from different levels. For example, Schleppegrell (2013) demonstrates how

SFL transitivity assists elementary school L2 learners in completing difficult

activities. He notes that these learners are able to write several types of messages

without being provided templates by considering their own language choices for

different types of processes. Furthermore, Schleppegrell indicates that transitivity

helps students comprehend what they are reading and make decisions as they write.

Larbaoui (2021) attempted to adopt the transitivity approach for master's

students at Blida 2 University, and she found that the transitivity technique activated

the learners' critical thinking skills and demystified the reading of three kinds of

literary texts: fiction, poetry, and plays. She suggests that teachers use transitivity

analysis when teaching literature.

In summary, SFL transitivity analysis provides students with valuable skills

for language development in the modern classroom. When the efforts undertaken by

various researchers are pooled, current studies demonstrate the importance of using

SFL transitivity analysis in L2 education. SFL transitivity analysis should thus be

integrated into Second language teaching and should be used by teachers as part of

their routine classroom practice.

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References

Alyousef, H. S. (2020). Grammatics for Ameliorating Reading Comprehension Skills:

A Social Semiotic Approach. In P. Mickan & I. Wallace (Eds.), The

Routledge Handbook of Language Education Curriculum Design (Vol.

Chapter 5, Section 2: Designs across the curriculum, pp. 63-76). Routledge

(Taylor & Francis).

Derewianka, B. & Jones, P. (2010). From traditional grammar to functional grammar:

bridging    the divide. NALDIC Quarterly, 8 (1), pp. 6-17. Retrieved on March

28, 2019 from https://ro.uow.edu.au/sspapers/1001/

Emilia, E., & Hamied, F. A. (2015). Systemic Functional Linguistic Genre Pedagogy

(SFL GP) in a Tertiary EFL Writing Context in Indonesia. TEFLIN Journal -

A Publication on the Teaching and Learning of English, 26(2), 155–182.

https://doi.org/10.15639/teflinjournal.v26i2/155-182

Larbaoui, M. (2021). Implementing Halliday’s Transitivity Analysis in Teaching

Literary Discourse to Trigger Students’ Critical Thinking and Facilitate

Readability in the EFL Context the Case of Master Students of Blida2

University. [Doctoral dissertation, University of Djillali Liabes Sidi Bel

Abbes]. http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/3477

Schleppegrell, MJ 2013, ‘The role of metalanguage in supporting academic language

development’, Language Learning, vol. 63, no. s1, pp. 153–170.

Velasco, E. (2021). Promoting ESL Students’ Critical Thinking Skills Through a

Transitivity Analysis of Authentic Materials. TESL Canada Journal, 38(1).

https://doi.org/10.18806/tesl.v38i1.1350