Turn taking in learner conversation

Abstract

One of the goals of foreign/ second language learning is to move the learners towards more advanced levels of fluency in the target language. But fluency is not merely the ability to produce grammatically correct utterances at a rate of speech similar to native speakers. Fluency consists in part of the concept of ‘confluency' (McCarthy, 2010) which refers to the production of utterances in a way that aligns, in terms of timing and content, with the utterances of other participants, utterances both prior to the current utterance and subsequent to it. Learners must orient to a naturalistic system of turn-taking (Sacks, Schegloff, & Jefferson, 1974). This paper outlines the underlying systematics of turn-taking, with reference to the literature and then goes on to examine turn taking in the language of a Japanese ESL university student, in student to student interaction, referring to video data made over the course of an academic year. The data shows that in the initial stages although the learner was able to take a turn more or less promptly, the turn onset was usually characterized by non-lexical utterances followed by extended pausing. The turn, thus begun, was continued with repeated pauses and L1 utterances and was often minimalized in terms of content. Perturbations in the turn-taking system were common and impeded progressivity. After extensive practice of spontaneous interactions over the course of a year the speaker's conversation was again recorded and analyzed. Although the student's utterances were still replete with lexical and grammatical infelicities, onset pausing was reduced, as were Li utterances. There was increased orientation towards turn transition matters by such means as use of L2 discourse markers and three part lists. The overall result was of more progressivity in turns and fewer perturbations to the turn-taking system.