Researching and Teaching Speech Acts with Young L2 Learners

Unique focus on young learner pragmatics which has been largely neglected in previous research 

This book introduces the main concepts and research findings of second language pragmatics in relation to young language learners. It also explores issues in teaching pragmatics and conducting pragmatics research with children, demonstrating how participant-centred data elicitation methods can complement traditional methods.

This book introduces the main concepts of pragmatics as they relate to the young English language learner classroom and research with young second language learners (YLLs). It considers the speech acts which are particularly relevant to YLLs and presents research findings on learners’ development of speech act perception and production. It provides pre- and in-service second language (L2) teachers, teacher educators and researchers with an understanding of young learners’ pragmatic development and with ideas for research-based approaches and specific classroom activities to help foster speech act development in the YLL classroom. Moving beyond the research methods traditionally employed in L2 pragmatics research, it also demonstrates how participant-centred data elicitation methods can be effective when conducting research with children. This book will appeal to researchers, advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students in applied linguistics and TESOL, as well as pre- and in-service primary school L2 teachers and teacher educators.