Foreign language pragmatic development across contexts

Communicative language teaching is the dominant approach adopted today by EFL education departments and teachers alike. An important sub-component of communicative competence is pragmatic competence. Pragmatic competence entails pragmalinguistic knowledge, i.e. knowledge of the linguistic resources necessary to do things with language (e.g., request strategies, routine expressions of gratitude) and also sociopragmatic knowledge, i.e. knowledge of how language use varies depending on situational factors, such as distance, hierarchy, and degree of imposition. Furthermore, an awareness that pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic conventions vary not only across languages, but also across regional and social varieties is also a key component of pragmatic competence.

This long-term project focuses on researching the developmental path which foreign language pragmatic competence takes across a variety of contexts. These contexts include foreign language pragmatic development in the stay abroad context, in the context of tellecollaborative etandem discourse (skype) and in the foreign language classroom using corpora and via textbooks. Data employed include corpora, authentic task-based interactions, questionnaire data (DCT, FDCT) and qualitative retrospective interviews. Focus to date has been on personal pronouns, apologies, expressions of gratitude, offers, refusals, requests, responses to gratitude, pragmatic routines, topic management and back-channelling.

Current empirical research looks at how corpus linguistic methods may be used in the analysis of (the development of) L2 pragmatic competence and how corpora may be employed by learners in the classroom to promote foreign language pragmatic competence.

Publications

General:

Barron, A. (2012). Research timeline: Interlanguage pragmatics: From use to acquisition to second language pedagogy.Language Teaching, 45(1), 44-63.

Barron, A. & Warga, M. (2007). Acquisitional pragmatics: Focus on foreign language learners. Intercultural Pragmatics, 4(2), 113–127.

Barron, A. & Warga, M. (2007), Special issue in acquisitional pragmatics in foreign language learning. Intercultural Pragmatics, 4(2).

Methodological:

Barron, A. (2019). Using corpus-linguistic methods to track longitudinal development: Routine apologies in the study abroad context. Journal of Pragmatics, 146, 87-105.

Barron, A. (2000). For a return to the forgotten formula: 'Data 1 + Data 2 > Data 1': The example of learners' offers and refusals of offers. Zeitschrift für Angewandte Linguistik, 33, 45-68.

Stay abroad:

Barron, A. (forthcoming). Developing pragmatic competence in a study abroad context. In: Schneider, K. P. & Ifantidou, E. (Ed.), Handbook of Pragmatics: Developmental and Clinical Pragmatics. Berlin, NY: De Gruyter.

Barron, A. (Ed.). (2019). Special issue: Pragmatic development and student mobility.
Journal of Pragmatics, 146.

Barron, A. (2019). Pragmatic development and stay abroad. Journal of Pragmatics, 146, 43-53.

Barron, A. (2019). Using corpus-linguistic methods to track longitudinal development: Routine apologies in the study abroad context. Journal of Pragmatics, 146, 87-105.

Barron, A. (2007). "Ah no honestly we’re okay": Learning to upgrade in a study abroad context. Intercultural Pragmatics, 4(2), 129-166.

Barron, A. (2006) Learning to say 'you' in German: The acquisition of sociolinguistic competence in a study abroad context. In: DuFon, M. A. & Churchill, E. (Ed.), Language Learners in Study Abroad Contexts (pp.58-88). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.

Barron, A. (2003). Acquisition in interlanguage pragmatics: Learning how to do things with words in a study abroad context. Amsterdam, Philadelphia: Benjamins.

Barron, A. (2003). 'Nein, ich brauche keine Hilfe': Zum Erwerb pragmatischer Routinen während eines Auslandsaufenthalts. In: Eckerth, J. (Hrsg.), Empirische Arbeiten aus der Fremdsprachenerwerbsforschung. Beiträge des Hamburger Promovierendenkolloquiums Sprachlehrforschung (pp.203-238). Bochum: AKS-Verlag.

Barron, A. (2000). Acquiring 'different strokes'. A longitudinal study of the development of L2 pragmatic competence. German as a Foreign Language, 2, 1-29.

Foreign language classroom: corpora and textbooks

Barron, A. (in press). I'm so sorry: Present and past intensification in American English. In: Vander, V. (Ed.), New Ways in Teaching with Corpora. Tesol Press.

Barron, A. (in press). Thanking and responding to thanks in American English: Collocational patterns and contextual appropriateness. In: Vander, V. (Ed.), New Ways in Teaching With Corpora. Tesol Press.

Barron, Anne (forthcoming). Teaching pragmatic competence with corpora: Intensification in expressions of gratitude across varieties. In: Glaser, K. & Limberg, H. (Eds.),
Pragmatische Kompetenzen im schulischen Fremdsprachenunterricht. Lang.

Barron, A. (2016). Developing pragmatic competence using EFL textbooks: Focus on requests. Literacy Information and Computer Education Journal (LICEJ), 7(1), 2172 – 2179.

Barron, A. (2015). Learning how to request using textbooks: A pragmalinguistic, sociopragmatic and cross-cultural analysis. In: Shoniregun, C. A. & Akmayeva , G. A. (Ed.), Ireland International Conference on Education (IICE-2015) Proceedings, 147-153

Tellecollaboration eTandem:

Black, E. & Barron, A. (2018). Learner pragmatics at the discourse level: Staying “on topic” in a telecollaborative eTandem task. System, 75, 34-47.

Barron, A. & Black, E. (2015). Constructing small talk in learner-native speaker voice-based telecollaboration: A focus on topic management and backchanneling. System, 48, 112-128.

Talks

Talks - Stay abroad:

Barron, A. (2017, July 16-21). Developing pragmatic competence in a study abroad context. Paper presented at the International Pragmatics Conference - IPrA 2017, Belfast, GB.

Barron, A. (2017, July 16-21). Student mobility and pragmatic competence. Themed panel organised at the International Pragmatics Conference - IPrA 2017, Belfast, GB.

Barron, A. (2003, September 29). To 'Siez' or to 'Duz?': Use and development of pronominal address forms in German in a study abroad context. Invited paper, Universität Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany.

Barron, A. (2000, September 28-30). '... but like, you see, I'm the same now as well': A longitudinal study of the development of L2 discourse competence. Invited paper presented at the 31. Jahrestagung der Gesellschaft für Angewandte Linguistik (GAL), Bremen, Germany.

Barron, A. (1999, November 12-13). Pragmatic routines in language learning: 'The road less travelled.' Paper presented at the 26th Annual Research Symposium of the Royal Irish Academy's National Committee for Modern Language Studies, Maynooth, Ireland.

Barron, A. (1999, October 26). A longitudinal study of the effect of the year abroad on L2 pragmatic competence: Research Seminar on Applied Linguistics, Universität Bonn, Germany.

Barron, A. (1999, September 30-October 2). More is best. Triangulation of non-native data. Paper presented at the 30. Jahrestagung, Gesellschaft für Angewandte Linguistik (GAL), Frankfurt a.M, Germany.

Barron, A. (1999, September 12-15). Acquiring 'different strokes': A longitudinal study of the development of L2 pragmatic competence. Paper presented at the 62nd Meeting of the Conference of University Teachers of German in Britain and Ireland (CUTG), Keele, GB.

Barron, A. (1998, July 19-24). Practice makes perfect? Investigating the effect of the year abroad on L2 pragmatic competence. Poster presentation at the 6th International Pragmatics (IPrA) Conference, Reims, France.

Talks – Methodology:

Barron, A. (2016, September 12), Approaching learning technologies - the case of telecollaboration and learner corpora. Workshop presented at the GAL Research School for Methods in Empirical Pragmatics - MeEP 2016, Bonn, Germany.

Talks – Foreign language classroom: Corpora & textbooks:

Barron, A. (2016, October 24-27). Learning How to Request Using Textbooks: A Pragmalinguistic, Sociopragmatic and Cross-cultural Analysis Paper presented at the Ireland International Conference on Edu.cation - IICE 2016, Dublin, Ireland.

Barron, A. (2007, October 3-6). 'Can you take the other bed, please?': A pragmatic perspective on request representation in EFL textbooks. Invited paper presented at the 22. Kongress für Fremdsprachendidaktik der DGFF, Gießen, Germany.

Barron, A. (2007, September 8-11). Intra-language variation and interlanguage pragmatics. Paper presented at the 14th EUROSLA Conference, San Sebastian, Spain.

Barron, A., (2007, May 8). 'Can you play a new CD, please?' Speech act representation in EFL textbooks: An interlanguage pragmatic appraisal. Invited talk, Universität Giessen, Giessen, Germany.

Talks: Telecollaboration:

Barron, A. (2014, October 27-29). Topic selection and development in learner-native speaker voice-based telecollaborative discourse. Paper presented at the Ireland International Conference on Education - IICE 2014, Dublin, Ireland.

Barron, A. (2016, September 12). Approaching learning technologies - the case of telecollaboration and learner corpora. Workshop presented at the GAL Research School for Methods in Empirical Pragmatics - MeEP 2016, Bonn, Germany.

Black, E. &Barron, A. (2014, May 30-June 1). "Oh ok. (.) Yeah, do you have like Christmas exams or anything?": Constructing small talk in learner-native speaker voice-based telecollaboration. Paper presented at the 6th Intercultural Pragmatics and Communication conference - INPRA 2014, University of Malta, Malta.

Barron, A. (2014, May 23-24). Topic development and backchanneling in learner-native speaker voice-based telecollaboration. Plenary address at the Third Bonn Applied English Linguistics Conference 2014 - BAELc3, Bonn, Germany.