ERIC Number: ED452736
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1998
Pages: 24
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
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Available Date: N/A
Does Focus on Form Work for Teaching Sociopragmatics?
Fukuya, Yoshinori; Reeve, Melissa; Gisi, Jeniffer; Christianson, Mary
This exploratory study examines the efficacy of Focus on Form (i.e., brief instruction on linguistic forms while learners engage in meaning) at the pragmatic level. Specifically, comparing Focus on FormS (interactions followed by explicit debriefing on pragmatic forms) and Focus on Form (interactions followed by debriefing on meaning), the researchers investigated to what extent these two paradigms of language instruction affected learners' ability to request. Three groups (Focus on FormS {FonFS}, Focus on Form {FonF}; Control) of university level English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students took DCTs for pre- and post-tests. Two groups (FonFS and FonF) received an "interaction enhancement" treatment, which consisted of rehearsal, performance, and debriefing stages. While no significant differences were found among the three treatment groups, these inconclusive findings should not be seen as evidence of the failure of FonF in the realm of second language pragmatics instruction. The brevity of the treatment, combined with the implicit nature of the treatment made statistically significant results unlikely. The study found a trend in "degree of directness" among the three groups and suggests that the treatment was just beginning to "catch." This presents suggestions for future research. (Contains 29 references.) (KFT)
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
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Authoring Institution: N/A
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Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the International Conference on Pragmatics and Language Learning (12th, Urbana, IL, Spring 1998).