Most of the talk in courses is about content, but there is also talk about noncontent matters. We may try to create a sense of community in the course; we may try to motivate students, before or after exams; we may try to explain why we're using certain teaching strategies; we may talk about how our discipline studies things; and we may offer professional advice. And even though talk about content is the focus of the course, most of us recognize that this other noncontent talk is an important part of student learning.
