Lexis over grammar in Teresa's
communicative strategies
Ana Maria Ducasse
M.A.
Melbourne University
Lexis over grammar in Teresa's
communicative strategies.
1. Introduction
Learner
strategies can, for argument's sake, be divided up into learning strategies,
producing strategies and communication strategies. Communication strategies
appear interesting in the case in point. On surveying the field, the question
regarding communication strategies which struck a cord in particular was
'...communication strategies aid the acquisition of lexis rather than grammar'
(Ellis 1985:187). This improbable question demanded investigation.
2. Definition and background to communication
strategies.
The term
'communication strategy' was first coined by Sellinker
1972 in a theory to explain processes involved in interlanguage.
It was described as being one of five central processes, the fourth one being
"strategies of second language communication" (Selinker
1972:35)
In this
paper, it is not being used in its original sense because single lexical items
fall outside stages in inter-language once they have become analyzed chunks. The
'lexical item' to express the concept that is required for communication is
either 'there' or not at the moment the speaker requires it. If it is not, then it becomes a communication strategy to overcome
the hurdle.
So,
communication strategies work as devices for compensating for inadequate
resources. These strategies are ways of problem solving for communicative
competence. By instantly putting a band aid on what is a greater problem the
learner changes production strategy or uses extra-linguistic crutches such as
hands, shoulders or facial expression to appeal for assistance or to convey the
meaning. A study of the second language learner's mental phenomena
which underlie her linguistic behaviour, overlap here with discourse analysis.
The comparison with what would happen in similar circumstances in L1 is
inevitable.
Where do
these strategies that second language learners use come from?:.
Ellis expresses this as' Communication strategies are psycholinguistic plans,
which exist as part of the language users communicative competence. They are
potentially conscious and serve as substitutes for production plans which the
learner is unable to implement.' (Ellis 1985:182)
It is
intrinsically how Teresa, the subject of the study, uses her system as opposed to how she acquired it. Precisely in 'using' that system there are strategies,
which only operate in such a way that, they cannot be analyzed. These can be
called production strategies. Production strategies differ from communication
strategies because they do not imply any communication problem. Largely, they
'operate subconsciously by using existing resources automatically'. (Ellis 1985:157). So if Teresa when asked if her
communicative strategies are conscious replies that what appear to be
communication strategies were actually unconscious, does that make them
production strategies?
3. Design of the study.
Methodology
Step
1.
In order
to identify through the data whether lexis over grammar was helped by
communication strategies the data from two conversations with the subject were
transcribed. The first conversation consisted of a quasi-formal interview, with
the researcher in control of the conversation. The second conversation was
between the subject and her friend talking informally about funny experiences
they had had.
Step2
The
transcription is then combed for examples of communication strategies, which in
turn are divided up according to the typology of Faerch
and Kasper 1984.
Step 3
The
subject is asked to validate the typology by making suggestions as to whether
instances in the transcription were conscious or unconscious.
Hypothesis
and research question
The
hypothesis is that L2 learners get 'stuck' for many reasons on the path to
successful communication. Lexical knowledge and gaps for unknown items are like
snakes and ladders to a language learner. Communication strategies must be of more help than just for
single items as suggested by Ellis above.
The
questions are:
1.
Do communication strategies provide more help than just for lexical items? and
2.
Can that be shown through the typology available as it stands?
Background
of the subject.
Teresa is
Chilean by birth with a peninsular heritage. She toured Chile and Latin America
extensively with a 'zarzuela' group performing light opera before coming to
join members of her family already in Australia. She had studied a bit of
Italian in her voice training studies, but three years ago before coming to
Australia she had never studied English. She now lives with her husband who is
Australian, of Anglo-Saxon background and she is in regular contact with her
family.
4. Choice of typology
Introspective
research being theoretical and in this case unproductive as evidence for
supporting whether communication strategies actually did support the
acquisition of lexical items over grammar, the option of analysis of speech is
taken up in the form of a transcription from an animated conversation where the
tape recorder's presence has been forgotten.
The most
expansive typology of communication strategies available to dissect the
transcript is by Faerch and Kasper 1984. This
typology refers to production strategies only: the receptive strategies
involved in the listening end of interaction are not included. The question is
how this particularly detailed typology can help identify processes in the
acquisition of lexis over grammar through communication strategies.
5. Data tables
Based
on Faerch and Kasper 1984.
Type A.Reduction strategies
Explanation
the learner gets around a problem by changing goals.
1. Formal
reduction strategies: These involve the avoidance of L2 rules of which the
learner is not certain or which he cannot readily gain access to.
In
table 1. Below Teresa omits and translates from L1. The
communication problems caused by line 16 made it incomprehensible to Teresa
when she read it back. By translating the Spanish into good English the
researcher clarified for her that she had meant. 'She's got nothing that
teacher'. Which in Spanish becomes: Ella
no tiene nada esta profesora. Is it because the researcher speaks Spanish
and is used to Spanish interl-anguage that the
enormous grammatical inaccuracies of the subject pass unnoticed?
Table 1
9 I will
tell ( )something
32 we have
different( ).
23 he ( )laughing
6 I said( ) my friend
46 my
sister marry
16 she( ) not have no this teacher
54 neighbour came my say
2 functional reduction categories.
These
involve the learner avoiding certain speech acts or discourse functions,
avoiding or abandoning or replacing certain topics, and avoiding modality
markers.
In table 2
below, line 19 shocked the subject, as she never imagined herself to say such
an utterance. Her comment was "when I was telling that story, it was the
first time I had told it in English, but I remember at the time being sure that
I was doing it very correctly! "She was quite
embarrassed.
Table 2
27.
How are going to teach?
How
are understood
19
later hand all dirty
Type B Achievement strategies
Explanation:
These are activated when the learner decides to keep to the original
communicative goal but compensates for insufficient means or makes the effort
to retrieve the required items.
1.
Compensatory strategies:
.
a)
Non-cooperative strategies.
These are
compensatory strategies, which do not call for the assistance of the
interlocutor.
I) L1/L3
based strategies
The
learner makes use of a language other than L2
-code switching
Table3
1.es recording
Teresa did
not believe that she had spoken to the researcher in Spanish. In fact, it could
be that if it had been another word she would have finished the sentence in
Spanish. Because she said 'record' which is technical and a good reason to code
switch she finished off in English. These were the very first words she said as
she entered the room.
-Foreignising
On pointing out to Teresa that these
were false cognates she was very surprised since she thought they were correct.
The word 'anecdote' in the way she meant here, was a funny story that has
happened to you. The word 'mark' instead of brand could also cause confusion.
Table 4
5.
Tell me any anecdote
28.
Which is the mark of the paper
-Literal translation
Again, she was very surprised at the
extent of translating she was doing. She admitted that when she spoke very fast
that she knew Spanish interfered because she was not 'careful'. Could this
'careful' be substituted by not 'conscious' In table
five below the words that have been literally translated have been underlined. In
the other cases the word order is the problem: Spanish noun /adjective word
order has been used.
Table 5
18.
People
9.
Happen things
106
develop the ear (train)
105
she have this facility (ability)
4
I didn't do right question (ask)
33.
Two course Italian.
ii) L2
based strategies.
-Substitution
Table 6
58
you need to do these things
Above in
table 6 there is an example of substitution but it is perfectly correct in L2. Teresa
has used 'things' to explain all the processes one has to go through to pass a
music exam.
-Paraphrase
Her
explanations and paraphrasing are good for getting the message across. One
could suspect it is something she frequently does, but it has not appeared much
in the data. In table 6 below, she is talking about the theory she has to learn
and to be tested on for an Australian Music Board Examination.
Table6
44
the same as this thing I am doing for the examination
47
to learn this ah page until this page.
-Word coinage
I asked
her if over-stressed was something she had invented herself!
Her response was that it seemed to her to be a normal English word, which her
husband used frequently. She was right. Perhaps the added 'on' which can be
translated back into Spanish to mean 'sobre' as in sobre estresada caused the
confusion in my mind.
Table 7
46
I was over stress on.
-Restructuring
In the
examples below Teresa obviously stopped to change the production strategies and
it showed in the communication. When asked if she was aware of monitoring, she
said she didn't realise she ever did it. A very interesting example in line 53,
table 10, shows the transition from translating directly from L1 and saying '
every the people' as in toda la gente to
the correct English word Everybody. She insisted it
was unconscious.
Table 10
1.
Why you interesting, um you are interesting to study language
48
to sing for the, for you wedding
53,
every the, everybody
18
because I want, I try to find a lot of ways how I can find a job
46
I thought I can, I will no able
65 you able to do, to do it.
iii) Non
linguistic strategies
B
Co-operative strategies
I) Direct appeal
Teresa is very engaging to talk to and
for that reason one finds oneself explaining things to her so she can follow
the conversation easily. Nevertheless, there are times when she still has to
ask. The problem with 'major', in table 11 below, is that Teresa had acquired
the technical musical meaning of 'major' scale, which did not fit intothis context. The explanation
Table 11
29
oh could you tell me what does it mean major?
76
Well it mean aural is when...
That it
meant a series of three years consecutive study in a discipline was quite new
to her.
ii) Indirect appeal
By glossing over and leaving out the
word she does not know how to say, she still manages to get her message across.
The researcher had no trouble understanding her waving hands between the
'a...a' in table 12 where she meant a 'course'
Table 12
11.So you did a ...a for teaching
2
Retrieval strategies:
a) Waiting
Teresa does a lot of waiting and
perhaps this is because she does not have the syntax or the grammar to explain herself correctly. The example below shows her rendition of
' In the future I want to teach Spanish'. A surprising effort
on paper because it is so basic and unclear. As she was
Table 13
I
wish to, to do, to teach a future Spanish
10.and and eh
Talking it
did not give any problem. The flow with which she strung the words together
made it sound 'normal'.
b) Using
semantic field
Following from what she asked about a
course, where she couldn't find the word, she tried to explain using the
sentence in table 14 below. In doing so she found the word she needed. It was
by trying to explain herself and using the idea that one studies first, then
second, then third year she found the word required.
Table 14
12
could you tell me which the beginning course, beginning, second...
c) Using
other languages
Although Teresa does speak some
Italian she does not use it as a language strategy.
In summary
of the above, one would have to say that Teresa's language strategies can be described by this typology. There
are two issues. One is how well they
are described and the other how many are missed
because they are not formulated into the typology.
On the
first point, the main problem coding the data was that at each choice there was
the possibility of choosing various descriptions at different levels of the
communication types. The overlaps between reduction, waiting and indirect
appeal are impossible to extricate when happening at once. No doubt using a variety
of strategy types is more helpful in getting meaning across.
On the
second point, in Teresa's case two communication strategies that are not
mentioned are speed and repetition. The speed at which she speaks completely
fools the listener into thinking that she is fluent. In looking for other
evidence to support this in the data it was found that Teresa repeated the same
words in separate phrases in internal scaffolding of her own. see table 15. Thus, never leaving a gap, and appearing to
link what was being said, gave her the security of being fluent and made it
easier on the listener.
Table 15
13
without any serviette any set
17.
He understood, I willI
will
18 like to eat or some people
30
is just the only way, the only word only
42
yes, yes, yes...
43
double meaning everything Everything misunderstood
44
paper eh toilet paper
22
he was waiting and waiting for me
107
very hard to understand, maybe I understand
6. Attempted validation by the subject
When the
subject was asked if she was conscious of trying to repair or alter the
communication path, she said that at times she felt that she would use L1
support to get her out of trouble when she was not aware of it. The table 5
supports this where direct translation is the main strategy. If one of the
conditions for strategies to be 'communication' rather that productive is for
them to be conscious then Teresa's data does not support this.
The issue
of acquiring lexis over grammar in plain English might mean that communication
strategies fill the 'gaps' when one forgets the word in a string. In fact, from
Teresa's data the illocutionary force of some of her strings enabled
comprehension through a combination of communication strategies, described or
not by Faerch and Kasper. How much is due to the
receptive skills of the listener, who is adept in Spanish inter-language, is
not shown.
7. Concluding discussion
Teresa's
data is very interesting because she does not appear at all fluent on paper. Listening
to her on tape or talking to her every day one is aware that the strategies she
uses as resources to communicate go much further than the skeletal grammar or
reduced lexis. She has acquired up till now She
manages to bewitch the listener into believing she is fluent. In their attempt
to describe communicative strategies Faerch and
Kasper fall short when it comes to Teresa. Far too much is left unexplained.
Again the receptive skills of the listener could be a clue.
Regarding
the choice of lexis over grammar being acquired through communication skills
nothing has come to light by using the typology. In fact single words are
omitted more than they are 'searched' for. After three years in
Transcription
of the data
1 TERESA:
Es recording ?
2 AMD: Yes
3 TERESA:
OK
4 DAISY Who will start? you or myself ? You
ask me, um...
5 TERESA : Tell me any anecdote in your life.
6 DAISY: Anecdote
< ambulance >
7 TERESA:
Anecdote
8 DAISY:
oh, um. I can't remember now.
9 TERESA:
Oh, sometimes ah, at home 's happen things or with the
friends. Iwill tell
10
something um ah I have some anecdote ah when I went to
11 brought
chicken and and eh fish and chip,
12 DAISY: Aha,
13 TERESA:
something like this and, and when he came, he came without any serviette
14 any
set,
15 DAISY: Aha
16 TERESA:
and I said my friend oh, just a moment I'll going to bring you uh, paper
17 he
understood I will, I will bring spoon, forks, serviettes things. I thought only
18 paper for
clean the hand because he like to eat- or some people
19
with the hand. And I thought oh, later hand all
dirty. I'll bring some paper. And I
20
couldn't find any serviettes and I brought paper, eh toilet paper,
21 DAISY: mm,mm oh Jesus, yes,
22 TERESA;
but the time to find and he was waiting and waiting for me in the table
23
with our group of friends. When I came with the paper, he
laughing because uh, I
24 wait
all the time for you and you brought, didn't come with the spoon, anything'. I
25 only
want to clean my hand and he laugh. It was very funny.
26 DAISY:
Ha, ha ha...
27
TEREDSA: Because we call it the paper, different name like them. When I said
28 "Confor" which is the mark of the paper,
29 DAISY: Confor !
30 TERESA:Which is just the only way,
the only word only
31 DAISY:
The only mark that you have for toilet paper
32 TERESA:
No we have different, but uh, I mention Just this because it was in my
33 mind. I
will bring "Confor",
34 DAISY: Yes
35 TERESA:
Yes, is a kind of paper. Yes he thought ah, I will bring fork and spoon if,
36 DAISY:
I knew that um, Confort was a, a level of one um,
toilet paper because we
37 have in
my country,
38 TERESA:
Also!
39 DAISY:
Also the same the name but um my son -in law,
40 TERESA:
um,mm
41 DAISY:
he use to say "confort" for toilet papers
42 TERESA:
yees, yes yes. He was
double meaning everything. Everything
43
misunderstood. We are laughing because confort,
44 DAISY:"confort
45 TERESA:
"Confort" he think I will bring everything,
er. And I have very good
46 anecdote, er when my sister marry.
47 DAISY: Mm, mm
48 TERESA:
And I said to her, do you want me to sing for the, for you wedding, And she,
49 she
wasn't happy at all. But finally say OK. I went there when she was marry I was
50 singing
and all my neighbour didn't know I was ah, I was study
singing and I can
51
sing.
52 DAISY:
aha
53 TERESA:
When every the, everybody left the church
all my neighbour came, say
54 Oh I
didn't know you can sing. and start talk to me. And
all my family in the,
55 waiting
in the taxi, to er, inside the taxi back call me. Teresa,
Teresa hurry up!
57 take my
name and telephone number, and for arrange...
58 DAISY:
Yeah, yeah...
59 TERESA:
A future contact, to make business, future. I was so busy and my family
60
couldn't wait any more.
61 DAISY:
aha,
62 TERESA:
And I saw oh, is not the taxi! And I run quick! In
this moment, suddenly
63 my
underwear fall off in the floor! I
nearly drop in the floor. I so so
embarrassed,
64 I took
the underwear and I put inside my handbag. From embarrass I don't know
65
what I do. I was shock and I saw a bus. I took the bus.
I run away, I didn't know
66 where
it go because I heard all the people laughin' oh! I fel'
67 DAISY:
I can imagine
<Laughter>
68 TERESA:
very very embarrassing and ran away and disappear. Well,
I thought,
69 when I
came home -because we are do the reception in our home- when I came
70 there I
thought all my family they were waiting for us, for me sorry, because um,
71
they, before they are waiting for me, but I couldn't see them any more.
When I
72 arrive
at home, nobody there,
73 DAISY: Tut!
74 TERESA:
They didn't know what was happen. They, I thought, everybody was
75
laughing of me and I came. and my parent oh we were
still waiting in the church
76 for you
and I said, oh! You didn't know what was happen? No tell me! So everybody
77 was
laughing so I will never ever forget this we.. moment.
78 DAISY: Yes
79 TERESA:
This wedding
80 DAISY : Your sister got married in
81 TERESA:
In
82 DAISY : In
83 TERESA:
oh, she was married when she was twenty-six.
84 DAISY:
Twenty-six
85 TERESA:
But um I can't believe how old she have got, oh well about thirty..
86
DAISY: You were the younger.
87 TERESA:yes, younger. um, You remember any...?
88 DAISYOh, well not many...
89 TERESA:
Do you know any joke ?
90 DAISY:
Joke, um, joke joke joke joke. Like the joke that Simon was ..
Do you hear
91 the .?
92 TERESA: : oh, I couldn't hear. I couldn't understand him. Could
you tell me?
93 DAISY:
Mm, I just uh, sometimes I just understand some the beginning but ot the
94 end
95 TERESA:Mm
96 DAISY:
because he
97 TERESA : I knew was very good.
98 DAISY:when he talk is uh, he
didn't open his mouth is very close so is very hard, to
99 to to understand it.but um,
100
TERESA: What you understood? because I see everybody
laughing is um
101 DAISY:
I didn't understand
102
TERESA: Well maybe they understand him.
103 DAISY:
A few words not all of them. The teacher oh, she laugh
a lot she understood
104 very well , everything m
105 TERESA : She marvelous uh she ,
she have this facility to understand each
106 student But still I need to improve develop my ear. Cannot
understand
107 DAISY:
for me is very hard to understand when I listen the radio or watch tv.
108 maybe
I understand a 40% but um, talking is more easy to
understand but um,
109 radio
or tv um
110
TERESA: Um , yes
conversation
dies.
9.5
MINUTES
Part 2
TERESA AND AMD( the researcher)
SHORT
INSTRUCTIONS: You ask me questions for five minutes, then
we'll change.
1 TERESA:
Well um, tell me why, why you interesting um you are interesting to study
2 language ?
3 AMD:
Why? Because...
4 TERESA:
Yeah um, but maybe I didn't do right question so, sorry, something. Who
5 motivate
you to go to university go in school to become a teacher?
6 AMD: Oh right ...
7 TERESA:
Oh that's good.
8 AMD: Yeah,
You...
9 TERESA: No no
no. Oh that's good.Ah
so it's in the family.
10 AMD:Yeah I'd..
11 TERESA:
So you did a, a for teaching?. Could you tell me uh,
eh, which the
12
beginning course beginning second
13 AMD:
Sure, Yeah...
14 TERESA:
Oh, wow! Wonderful!
15 AMD:
16 TERESA:
oh wow wonderful! Really congratulation! Tell me how, what you
17
recommend people for uh , for in'ta'
I have a one in espanish an' I wish to uh to
18 do, to
teach a future SpAnish because I want, I try to find
a lot of way how I can
19 find
job.
20 AMD: Right ...
21 TERESA:And I thought well I have,
Mike um, I have .... and Michael told me
22 AMD:
Yes of course...
23 TERESA:.. you can use Spanish
24 AMD:
Certainly,
25 TERESA
Yes, but is important to know how to teach.
26 AMD : Yes
27 TERESA : Because I know Spanish How are going to teach?
28 AMD That's right...
29 TERESA:
Oh could you tell me what does it mean major?
30 AMD:
Yes. When...
31 TERESA:Yes, yes I thought that'.
32 AMD You
thought ...
33 TERESA:Yes, Yes And the same thing
is with Italian because I did twO course Italian
34 oh I
didn't improve too much but i can understand much
more than I can speak.
35 AMD:
You could ...
36 TERESA : Oh that's wonderful! OhI
didn't kow this exist.
37 AMD;
38 TERESA:
Mm, that's fantastic! Mm yeah, I try to find, what can I do because is not
39
easy at the moment to find job.
40 AMD:
Yeah..
41 TERESA:
But, I have to do something.
42 AMD:
Sure
43 TERESA;
But sometimes I have no the, I have no the real information. Oh, the same
44 with
this thing what I am doing this for examination MAMEB?
45 AMD:
AMEB
46 TERESA:
Yes, I was over-stress on. I thought is so, so impossible I can, I will no able
47 because
you know you have to learn this ah page until this page,
48 AMD :yes
49 TERESA:
...the exam will be in September.
50 AMD:
Yes
51 TERESA : And, I say, how I will remember all this thing so
hard,
52 AMD : for music theory
53 TERESA:
Yeah, NO, no. for music practice, that's by memory and I thought will be
54
impossible. And..
55 AMD For what...
56 TERESA:
I think four. Um, I thought is so easy I can make five and six together
57 AMD : Yeah?
58 TERESA:
But I went and she told me you need to do these things
59 AMD:
Bring It..
60 TERESA : I brought to show you I thought in you
61 AMD
Yeah show...
62 TERESA:
So worried
63 AMD:
you need ...
64 TERESA:Yeah I was really very ,
very worried an', one of the teachers say you
65 musn't worry . You able to do, to
do it
66 AMD : Of course...
67 TERESA : But I say how? because How
I can do all these things ? no you only have
68 to
choose one ye
69 AMD Yes
70 TERESA:
but I didn' know that
71 AMD : Yes..
72 TERESA:mm oh And what about they
say aural test ?
73
AMD oral test/Aural test?
74 TERESA :Yes aural sight reading . It mean
I have to buy two book
75 AMD : I don't...
76 TERESA:
Well it mean aural is when
77 AMD : listening
78 TERESA :
Ah listening A - U -
79 AMD :
A-U- R- A- L
80 TERESA :
A-U-
81 AMD: By
ear..
82 TERESA:
You able to use the piano
83 AMD:
She's there...
84 TERESA:
oh, mm, Oh I see. Yeah tha's
very, you see I have a problem because I don't 85 know who can I ask. I ask you
because you did. But I'm really, I have a one teacher 86 but she not have, no
this teacher
87 AMD : She doesn't ...
88 TERESA:
yeah
89 AMD : You should...
90 TERESA ; Ah that's wonderful!
91 AMD:
Thanks Teresa
12 minutes
REFERENCES
Ellis,R.
1985 'Understanding
second language acquisition'
Faerch,C and G,Kasper
1984 Two ways of identifying communication strategies.Language learning 34/1
Selinker,L. 'Interlanguage.' International Review of Applied
Linguistics X:209-30