A Speech Act Analysis of Teacher-Student Interactions in Educational Cinema: A Case Study of "Freedom Writers"

Abstract

This study examines the speech acts employed by the protagonist Erin Gruwell in the film "Freedom Writers" to understand the linguistic patterns in teacher-student interactions within challenging educational contexts. Using discourse analysis methodology, the research specifically analyzes illocutionary acts and their pedagogical implications for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teaching situations. The study systematically analyzed 126 utterances from the main character's dialogue, employing Miles and Huberman's interactive model for data analysis. The findings reveal a predominant use of directive speech acts (40.5%), followed by representative acts (33.3%), with minimal deployment of commissive (3.2%) and declarative acts (0.8%). This distribution suggests a teaching approach that balances instructional authority with authentic communication and student engagement. The analysis demonstrates that effective teaching in diverse classroom environments requires strategic integration of different speech act types, with particular emphasis on combining directive and representative acts for optimal pedagogical outcomes. These findings contribute to our understanding of educational linguistics by illuminating how speech act theory can inform practical teaching strategies, particularly in challenging and diverse classroom environments. The research provides valuable insights for teacher training and professional development, especially in preparing educators to work effectively in multicultural educational settings. The conclusions drawn from this study offer practical implications for improving teacher-student communication and enhancing educational outcomes in diverse classroom contexts.