Event

Opportunities for learning L2 pragmatics: The Roles of Input and Interaction & Individual Differences in Learning L2 Pragmatics

Wednesday, November 27th, 2002, 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Speaker: Gabriele Kasper, University of Hawaii Manoa

• Opportunities for learning L2 pragmatics: The roles of input and interaction.
  In order to learn a second or foreign language, learners need access to target language input. Research evidence in second language acquisition shows that the most effective way for learners to access input is to participate in interactions conducted in the target language. This talk examines some of the variables and settings that have been shown to influence learners' input and interaction opportunities in interlanguage pragmatic development. Is length of stay in the target community a decisive factor? Are some environments, such as interactions with native speakers outside of the classroom, more valuable for L2 pragmatic learning than classroom settings? Does study abroad provide a superior context for L2 pragmatic development compared with foreign language classes at home? What tentative conclusions that can be drawn from data-based studies and what questions are waiting to be explored?
• Individual differences in learning L2 pragmatics.
  Individual differences among L2 learners are a major research concern in second language acquisition. As pragmatics is inherently context-sensitive, and "context" includes the learner as social actor herself, one might expect this concern to prevail all the more strongly in interlanguage pragmatics. However, the extensive research literature on L2 use and acquisition does not have much to say about individual differences in the ways that L2 learners perform communicative action and develop pragmatic ability. This talk will review what can be gleaned from the available research literature about individual differences in interlanguage pragmatics. I will focus on motivation, social and psychological distance, and social identity because research on these factors illustrates particularly well how very different theoretical orientations help elucidate the relationship between individual difference factors and L2 pragmatic learning.

Gabriele Kasper is Professor of Applied Linguistics in the Department of Second Language Studies University of Hawai'i at Manoa.

Organization: Kansai University

Cost: free

Venue: Kansai University, Shobunkan Room 502. 3-3-35 Yamate-cho, Suita-shi, Osaka 564-8680. (5 minute walk from Kandai-mae Station on the Hankyu Senri Line)

Location: Suita City, Osaka Prefecture, Japan

Contact Kansai University

Institute of Foreign Language Education & Research

Work phone: 06-6368-0961

Yuriko Kite

Work phone: 06-6368-1121, ext 5059