Primeiras Jornadas de Análise do Discurso : JADIS I 12 & 13 de dezembro 2011.

Are you being served? The discourse of service encounters

in Portuguese produced ELT coursebooks.

Nicolas Hurst,

The Department of Anglo-American Studies,

The Faculty of Letters,

The University of Porto.

http://web.letras.up.pt/nrhurst/

Motivation for this study:

“Materials aimed at explicit learning usually contrive examples of language which focus on the feature to be taught. Usually these examples are presented in short, easy texts or dialogues and it is argued that they help the learner by focussing attention on the target feature.”

Tomlinson, B. in Carter, R. & Nunan, D. 2001: 68.

One of the first books I ever used

(in 1982!!)

Paperback: 160 pages

Publisher: Longman (September 1967)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 058252329X

ISBN-13: 978-0582523296

The present study: the Extreme series

The books by Belita Carlo Almeida, Edite Frias & Elisabete Caldas Almeida cover the national programme of English for ‘3º ciclo do ensino básico’ (7º, 8º e 9º anos), published by Porto Editora.

2004 2005 2006

The use of dialogues in the “Extreme” series of coursebooks 7th grade: 2004 8th grade: 2005 9th grade: 2006

p.41 Conversation 2 adults Exchange style: informal exchanges Turns: 9 Topic: gossip about family neighbours L2 work: possessive adjectives Task type: gap filling

pp.30/31 interview with a travel agent Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 16 Topic: Ecotours L2 work: vocabulary + comprehension Task type: crossword + sentence completions

p.15 interview with a doctor Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 14 Topic: acne/growing up L2 work: vocabulary + comprehension Task type: matching pictures and vocabulary

p.71 interview with a student Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 10 Topic: careers and school life L2 work: past simple tense Task type: gap filling

p.61 interview with a street luger Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 17 Topic: radical sports L2 work: listening comprehension + vocabulary Task type: gap filling + definition matching

* p.17 follow-up to the above

3 mini-role plays/dialogues to “act” about teen dilemmas

p.105 Conversation 2 teens Exchange Style: Q&A Turns: 4 Topic: CDs L2 work: possessive pronouns Task type: gap filling

Unit 1 opening “chat” p.14 3 turns on holidays and space travel

Unit 4 opening “chat” p.102 3 turns on eating disorders

p.91 Guided dialogues x 2 Exchange Style: informal exchanges Turns: 9 Topic: unemployment L2 work: exponents of emotions Task type: role play

p.124 service encounter: shop Exchange Style: Q &A + comments Turns: 20 Topic: buying trainers L2 work: mixed functions + Q-tags Task type: text search + gap filling

Unit 2 opening “chat” p.40 3 turns on sports and good health

Unit 5 opening “chat” p.126 3 turns on films and radio

CATEGORIES: Page number + type of dialogue Exchange style Number of turns Topic L2 work Task type

p.130 service encounter: restaurant Exchange Style: Q &A + comments Turns: 24 Topic: choosing/ordering food L2 work: comprehension + some/any/no Task type: sentence completion + gap filling

Unit 3 opening “chat” p.72 5 turns on shopping and fashion victims

Unit 6 opening “chat” p.152 5 turns on gaming and technology

p.140 Conversation 2 adults Topic: holidays Turns: 13 Exchange Style: informal exchanges L2 work: comprehension + vocabulary Task type: chart filling + synonyms

The use of dialogues in the “Extreme” series of coursebooks

7th grade: 2004 8th grade: 2005 9th grade: 2006

p.41 Conversation 2 adults

Exchange style: informal exchanges Turns: 9

Topic: gossip about family neighbours

L2 work: possessive adjectives

Task type: gap filling

pp.30/31 interview with a travel agent

Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 16

Topic: Ecotours

L2 work: vocabulary + comprehension

Task type: crossword + sentence completions

p.15 interview with a doctor

Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 14

Topic: acne/growing up

L2 work: vocabulary + comprehension

Task type: matching pictures and vocabulary

p.71 interview with a student

Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 10

Topic: careers and school life

L2 work: past simple tense

Task type: gap filling

p.61 interview with a street luger

Exchange Style: Q &A Turns: 17

Topic: radical sports

L2 work: listening comprehension + vocabulary

Task type: gap filling + definition matching

* p.17 follow-up to the above

3 mini-role plays/dialogues to “act”

about teen dilemmas

p.105 Conversation 2 teens

Exchange Style: Q&A Turns: 4

Topic: CDs

L2 work: possessive pronouns

Task type: gap filling

Unit 1 opening “chat”

p.14

3 turns on holidays and space

travel

Unit 4 opening “chat”

p.102

3 turns on eating disorders

p.91 Guided dialogues x 2

Exchange Style: informal exchanges Turns: 9

Topic: unemployment

L2 work: exponents of emotions

Task type: role play

p.124 service encounter: shop

Exchange Style: Q &A + comments Turns: 20

Topic: buying trainers

L2 work: mixed functions + Q-tags

Task type: text search + gap filling

Unit 2 opening “chat”

p.40

3 turns on sports and good

health

Unit 5 opening “chat”

p.126

3 turns on films and radio

CATEGORIES:

Page number + type of dialogue

Exchange style

Number of turns

Topic

L2 work

Task type

p.130 service encounter: restaurant

Exchange Style: Q &A + comments Turns: 24

Topic: choosing/ordering food

L2 work: comprehension + some/any/no

Task type: sentence completion + gap filling

Unit 3 opening “chat”

p.72

5 turns on shopping and fashion

victims

Unit 6 opening “chat”

p.152

5 turns on gaming and

technology

p.140 Conversation 2 adults

Topic: holidays Turns: 13

Exchange Style: informal exchanges

L2 work: comprehension + vocabulary

Task type: chart filling + synonyms

Gilmore (2004): nine discourse features of spoken language in service encounters.

1. Length of ‘text’ 2. Lexical density

3. False starts 4. Repetitions

5. Pauses 6. Terminal overlap

7. Latching 8. Hesitation devices

9. Back channels

[article seeking to compare real interactions with dialogues in Japanese coursebooks: ELT Journal 58/4]

1. LENGTH OF TEXT T.1 = 16 turns: 138 words

Average: 8.6 words per turn

Info.Giver: 7.1 words per turn

Info.Getter: 7.4 words per turn

T.2 = 24 turns: 251 words

Average: 10.5 words per turn

Info.Giver: 6.6 words per turn

Info.Getter: 14.3 words per turn

2. LEXICAL DENSITY LD = 100 x Lexical words/Total

T.1

LD = 36.9%

Lower figures consistent with spoken texts

-» Language graded by writers for 7th grade?

-» more explicit language = more concrete lexis?

-» reduced processing load to increase ease of comprehension?

T.2

LD = 32.3%

3. FALSE STARTS

T.1

No examples

T.2

No examples

4. REPETITIONS

T.1

No examples

T.2

Mobiez.3: Are you trying to tell us there’s no pizza??!! …

Waiter.7: I’m sorry but there’s no pizza.

&

Waiter.11: Here are the steaks. Rare, as you asked.

Mobiez.7: Rare? We said well-done. And they’re so small …

5. PAUSES

T.1

No examples

T.2

Waiter.2: Certainly … Here you are.

Mobiez.2: I see … Well, I’m sure there some pizza

6. TERMINAL OVERLAP

T.1

No examples

T.2

No examples

7. LATCHING Difficult to determine, but perhaps:

T.1

Shop Assistant.3: Very well. What size do you take?

Scott.3: Size 8, please.

or

Shop Assistant.4: And what colour would you like?

Scott.4: Black.

T.2

Waiter.3: Are you ready to order?

Scott.2: Yes, we are. We would like …

or

Scott.2: … the tomato soup for a starter and Lasagna Verdi for the main course.

Mobiez.1: And two cokes to drink, please.

8. HESITATION DEVICES

T.1

No examples

T.2

Scott.3: Hum … Could we have Spaghetti Bolognese, then?

Waiter.6: Well …

9 .BACK CHANNELS

T.1

No examples

T.2

No examples

Displaying Gilmore’s features?

1. Length of ‘text’ ARTIFICIAL BUT QUITE ACCURATE

2. Lexical density APPROXIMATE BUT NOT RIGHT

3. False starts NONE

4. Repetitions TWO EXAMPLES ONLY IN 40 TURNS

5. Pauses NONE

6. Terminal overlap NONE

7. Latching DIFFICULT TO IDENTIFY

8. Hesitation devices TWO EXAMPLES IN 40 TURNS

9. Back channels NONE

Discourse derived implications

“The language in some coursebooks represents a ‘can do’ society in which interaction is generally smooth and problem free, … the conversation is neat, tidy and predictable.”

Carter, 1998: 47

“If our goal is to prepare learners for independent language use … we are obliged at some stage to present them with realistic models of discourse, messy and unpredictable as it is”

Gilmore, 2004: 367

Conclusions: “The contrived materials of traditional textbooks have often presented learners with a meagre, and frequently distorted, sample of the target language to work with and have failed to meet many of their communicative needs. Authentic materials, particularly audio-visual ones, offer a much richer source of input for learners and have the potential to be exploited in different ways at different levels to develop the learners’ communicative competence.”

Gilmore, 2007: 103 “… the language used in EFL coursebooks has been based on an idealised native speaker’ model, existing above regional varieties and cultures (Alptekin, 2002). Such a native speaker, though, is a non-existent abstraction. … Unless coursebooks expose learners to real language, it will be impossible to foster communicative and sociolinguistic competence.”

Thanasoulas, 2005:30

Thank you for being here

If you’d like to discuss any of the issues raised in this talk, please contact me,

my e-mail address is:

nrhurst@letras.up.pt