INVESTIGATING AREAS OF INTERCULTURAL PRAGMATIC BREAKDOWNS IN EFL LEARNERS’ ONLINE DYADIC COMMUNICATION THE CASE OF SECOND-YEAR STUDENTS AT THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH, UNIVERSITY OF ABBES LAGHOUR-KHENCHELA
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2020
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
UNIVERSITY OF ABBES LAGHROUR-KHENCHELA
Abstract
Abstract
The current study aspires to promulgate the disciplines of culture and pragmatics as the most critical concerns vis-a-vis EFL learners’ intercultural pragmatic competence and to proffer the use of mediated communication in the Algerian syllabi. The fundamental objectives of this dissertation are to investigate areas of intercultural pragmatic breakdowns in EFL learners’ online dyadic communication with native speakers, the main causes of these failures, and the course of actions needed to impede that failure. This inquest is triggered by EFL learners’ deficiencies concerning understanding a foreign language and its culture. This work employed a mixed methods research wherein a content analysis was used to analyse EFL learners’ conversations with native speakers, and an internet questionnaire was administered to 74 second-year English students at the University of Abbes Laghrour, Khenchela to investigate their standpoints regarding those problems. Additionally, an e-interview was conducted with five teachers to gauge their views about those breakdowns and provide suggestions to improve learners’ pragmatic competence. The findings obtained from the implementation of the three research instruments reveal a manifold of problems including pragma-linguistic, sociopragmatic, and pragmastylistic issues. This is due to learners’ low language proficiency and the lack of exposure to authentic materials. Eventually, the researchers offered some suggestions and pedagogical implications to raise teachers’ awareness about considering mediated communication to enhance learners’ intercultural pragmatic competence.