Recent directions in ethnographic study of classroom interaction are surveyed for the help they can give to an analysis of classroom language and conversation. Many studies emphasize that children's responses to school tasks are directly influenced by values learned at home and that these factors add to the complexity of communication in the classroom. Studies of the communication process are reviewed for their contribution to the exploration of the relationships between words, vocal and kinesic systems, and the interpretive procedures of participants in classroom conversation. Particular attention is given to studies of acquired contextualization conventions, that is, non-lexical and non-grammatical signaling of communicative intent, and to the way those conventions lead to interpretive differences in ethnically mixed settings or in interaction between children and adults. An example of an episode in a classroom is given to illustrate these conventions and the misinterpretation that can arise. It is suggested that the factors discussed may begin to provide a solution to the problem of what it is about school and classroom environment that leads some children to learn and others to fall behind. (AMH)