Classroom discourse studies have received much emphasis in foreign language  education research  in  China． The emphases of these studies have been largely placed on different ways teachers or advanced learners can scaffold the participation of  students in classroom dialogic activities ，for example ，by questioning ，directing attention to key aspects of the curricular task ， simplifying the task ，appropriating language or other tools ，monitoring ongoing performance ，and providing appropriate feedbacks depending on the students ’level of understanding in classroom interaction． These ，taken together ，in turn ，are explored to have differential effects on learning and cognition ，language development ，and ，generally ，educational achievements． This paper ，first of  all ，identifies and discuss three essential functions of classroom discourse ，and then critically review the recent classroom dis- course research literature done in China accordingly． Finally  some implications and  suggestions  are  made for  further  research  in the localization and globalization of  English language teaching and learning．