Politeness Strategies in EFL Classroom Interaction: Evidence from an Indonesian Islamic Junior High School

Abstract

This study aims to identify the politeness strategies employed by teachers in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom interaction, analyse their pedagogical functions, and explore their contribution to multilingual classroom interactions. This study employs a qualitative approach using a descriptive case study design. Data were collected through classroom observation, video recording, transcription of teacher-student interactions, and semi-structured interviews with an English teacher at MTs Negeri 2 Magelang. The data were analysed using the Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña interactive model, whilst the classification of politeness strategies drew upon the theory of Brown and Levinson framework. The results indicate that the teacher employed four types of politeness strategies: bald on-record, positive politeness, negative politeness, and off-record. Among these four strategies, positive politeness was the most dominant, manifested through the provision of positive feedback, verbal encouragement, and participatory questions to enhance student engagement. The findings also indicate that politeness strategies not only serve to maintain interpersonal relationships between teachers and students, but also support classroom management, the provision of feedback, and the creation of a supportive learning environment. Furthermore, the flexible use of English and Indonesian demonstrates that politeness strategies operate within the context of multilingual classroom interactions. This study contributes to research on classroom discourse, politeness strategies and multilingual pedagogy in the context of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Indonesia.