Proc. Natl. Sci. Counc. ROC(C)
Vol. 11, No. 3, pp. 247-255
247
Intertextual Talk as Collaborative Shared Inquiry in Learning
English as a Foreign Language
FENG-MING CHI
Department of Foreign Languages and Literature
National Chung Cheng University
Minghsiung, Chiayi, Taiwan, R.O.C.
(Received April 29, 2000; Accepted March 6, 2001)
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to investigate how Taiwanese college students employed intertextual talk in the process
of small-group text discussion. Forty-five Taiwanese college students, forming as fifteen small groups, participated in this
study. All of the participants first read English texts individually and then discussed them with their peers. Text discussion
data were audio tape-recorded and transcribed verbatim by two research associates. Topical units were first used to group and
analyze the text discussion data, and then thematic analysis was employed to organize and construct all of the topical units into
three themes of intertextual talks: Re-contextualization, Re-storying, and Reflection. The results indicate that the intertextual
talk helped participants concentrate more on sharing personal stories, asking questions, and thinking about understanding what
they were reading within a broader framework that went beyond merely discussing the story itself. The intertextual talk not
only provided another perspective for participants to reshape a text, but also showed the participants a more sensible and
meaningful way to learn English as a foreign language (EFL). Some pedagogical implications are suggested for English
classroom practice.
Key Words: text discussion, intertextual talk, topical units, thematic analysis, re-contextualization, re-storying, reflection
I. Introduction
Intertextuality is a natural part of reading. It emerges
as a process whenever we as readers connect what we read

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