Emotioncy: A Tool for Promoting Intersubjectivity in Class

Reza Pishghadam, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran; ID LLCE2017-103;        Abstract: Asymmetrical relationships caused by the professional power produce inequities that may hinder intersubjective understanding. Teachers, to achieve intersubjectivity (shared understanding), are required to enter into students` life-worlds. The life-world refers to the experiences that students bring to the class discourse, which can foster the process of learning and teaching. Since life-worlds are tacit, teachers cannot recognize those of their students so easily. The mismatch in life-worlds leads to a loss of understanding and communication between teachers and students. That is why, the aim of this study is to present the newly-developed concept of emotioncy (emotion + frequency) as a new way of promoting intersubjectivity between teachers and students. Emotioncy, ranging from avolvement (null emotioncy) to exvolvement (auditory, visual, & kinesthetic emotioncies), and involvement (inner & arch), refers to the sense-induced emotions that can change cognition. According to the emotioncy literature, based on the senses from which students receive inputs, specific emotions are induced which affect understanding. Due to differences in students` life-worlds and their prior experiences, there is always an emotioncy gap between students and teachers. While one student may be avolved in a concept, the other one can be exvolved or involved in that. In fact, when they commence learning something, they are not at the same level of emo-sensory experiences, leading to weak intersubjectivity. Identifying the emotioncy gaps and trying to bridge them, teachers can achieve a high level of intersubjectivity. In this study, a number of examples will be provided to support the idea of emotioncy as a tool for achieving intersubjective understanding.

Key terms: Emotioncy, Intersubjectivity, Life-world, Student, Teacher