Developing Interactional Competence in a Japanese Study Abroad Context

By (author) Naoko Taguchi

Publication date:

02 June 2015

Publisher

Multilingual Matters

Dimensions:

234x156mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9781783093724

In the process of second language acquisition, the ability to interact effectively is critical. But what does it mean to be interactively competent? This book addresses this question by presenting research on the development of interactional competence among learners of Japanese as a second language. Qualitative data collected on learners studying abroad in Japan is evaluated to explain changes in their interactional competence and provides specific insights into the learning of Japanese. The situated analysis of multiple data sets generates meaningful interpretations of the development of interactional competence in the development of interactional competence and the learner-specific factors that shape developmental trajectories. Moreover, the context of the research provides insights into the types of learning resources and experiences that study abroad provides to assist learners’ in their progress towards becoming a competent speaker in the target community.

Chapter 1 – Interactional Competence in Japanese Study Abroad: An Introduction
Chapter 2 – Linguistic and Interactional Resources in Japanese Conversation: Speech Styles and Incomplete Sentence Endings
Chapter 3 – Context of Study: Study Abroad as a Site for Language Learning
Chapter 4 – Methods of the Study
Chapter 5 – Speech Styles
Chapter 6 – Style Shifting Across Discourse Boundaries
Chapter 7 – Incomplete Sentences in Joint Turn Construction
Chapter 8 – Case Histories of Interactional Development and Study Abroad Experience
Chapter 9 – Conclusion
References
Appendices

Written by a distinguished applied linguist, this book describes the development of interactional competence by learners from a wide variety of backgrounds studying abroad in Japan. These individuals learn not only the forms of a new language but how their new language creates identities of them in social situations, some of which the learners desire and some of which their interlocutors find strangely impolite. Through her innovative study of how interactional competence develops, the author paints an optimistic picture of how language learning develops through language use.