This study seeks for the definition and significance of 'Integrated Discourse', in the first place, which are reflected in diversely shifted aspects of the educational view going after social changes to the current of knowledge & information times...
This study seeks for the definition and significance of 'Integrated Discourse', in the first place, which are reflected in diversely shifted aspects of the educational view going after social changes to the current of knowledge & information times. Knowing the origin and concept of Integrated Discourse represents the right teaching direction to us. Based on this, the ultimate purpose of this study is mainly to materialize the self-directed teaching & learning methodology suitable for the distinctive feature of Integrated Discourse, especially for the middle and high school.
In short, today computer technologies and media are grown to stress on individual creativity and diversity. Moreover, social & cultural changes in this way have had a strong influence on the education and cried for appropriate teaching method's reform to 'the self-directed learning'. In former days, teaching methods have been mostly taken the cramming education which is 'teachers-centered' rather than learners. However, they are now changed that 'learners' are the nucleus of the learning process.
By the way, most existing studies have a limit to define Integrated Discourse depending on the criterion of exams for the college entrance. The consequence is that their focal point for teaching discourse ceases discussing on the problem, 'how to write well', focused on 'the result'. Owing to this, in spite of requiring quite different educational paradigm, discourse class does not yet break from an teaching method by rote and is still buried under the cramming education.
In fact, discourse is based on the premise that it needs a balance between 'how to write' and 'what to write'. A further thing in the Integrated Discourse requiring the synthesized knowledge and thinking is 'what to write'. This is a reason that Integrated Discourse, especially for the middle and high school, is characterized as follows: (1) synthesized thinking, (2) creative communication with heterogeneous subjects, (3) learning process-centered (day to dayness), (4) self-directed (learner-centered). Especially, with this in mind, 'day to dayness' of learning Integrated Discourse is very important because a learner's discourse ability could not grow for once a class only. Thus, we can say that Integrated Discourse not only means 'a writing act or skill' but includes 'total learning process(course)' for the synthesized knowledge and thinking among related subjects. Notwithstanding its distinctive features, many teachers at schools still incline to think that Integrated Discourse is a sort of writing just for the result-oriented.
Consequently, this study is mainly to materialize the self-directed teaching & learning methodology under the notion that Integrated Discourse is characterized as previously stated. With this in mind, the teaching & learning model this study designed is based on the cognitive apprenticeships and put some essential methods of it, like 'modeling', 'scaffolding', 'coaching', 'fading', etc, to the each learning frame transformed corresponding with each purpose by intent. Furthermore, this study testifies the self-directed teaching & learning model of Integrated Discourse, whether it can be realistic or not, with reifying the teaching strategy blended with a medium, especially internet 'blog' and 'cafe'.
This study is significant because it shows the feature of Integrated Discourse for the middle and high school in the current of times, makes out the self-directed teaching & learning model, and gives shape to a model. However, at the same time, it has a limit in that it is not taken an objective method, like quantitative analysis. Therefore, maybe succeeding studies related to the above will be expected to make up for this.