Systemic Functional Semiotics and EAP

Abstract

The field of English for academic purposes (EAP) has been described from diverse theoretical perspectives and analytical foci. In this chapter, our informing theory is that of Systemic Functional Semiotics (SFS). The naming implies not only the theorization of language as social semiotic (as Systemic Functional Linguistics, or SFL) but also that of other semiotic modalities relevant to discourses of EAP, including those of image and paralanguage. Recent developments in Systemic Functional theory offer a revised perspective on register and the relationships that hold between the intrinsic functionality of language as ideational, interpersonal, and textual, and the extrinsic functionality of register as resources of field, tenor, and mode. Each variable is introduced as a set of meaning-making resources that function as abstracted beyond language. On this basis, we also have the means to appreciate how semiotic modalities other than language relate to the contextual resources of register. Together, these resources provide a social semiotic toolkit for undertaking research and for informing pedagogy in EAP. The chapter shares a focus on both research and pedagogic practices in EAP and looks at ways they interact, shaping the effectiveness of pedagogic programs and inspiring new directions for research.