In From Communication to Curriculum, Douglas Barnes argues that the kind of personal and conversational interaction that exists between teacher and pupil is a crucial aspect of the learning process. Using transcribed conversations from the classroom, he analyzes the different styles of discourse in use, showing the importance of relatively unstructured conversations in the work of schooling. Barnes rejects the view that some children fail in school because they have difficulty with language, emphasizing instead the inhibiting effects of rigid and formalized methods of teaching which are often in opposition to the natural patterns of inquiry which children develop outside school.
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