An Intercultural Conversation Analysis and Application of Chinese Distance Teaching

• Main Author: 劉羿彣
• Other Authors: 謝佳玲
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2014
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/64592210194582785925

碩士 === 國立臺灣師範大學 === 華語文教學系 === 102 === Coversation analysis (CA) is often used to examine the speech act in daily life and second language classes. Since it is considered difficult for learners to perform in a manner that is considered polite in the target culture, this study is based on Brown and Levinson’s (1978, 1987) framework known as “face-threatening act” (FTA) to observe the learners’ talk in class. Recent research on CA has found that context, culture, and social factors are the variables for deciding the particular type of interaction. For second language learners, the language transfer of their mother language to the target language and the length of time spent in the target language environment can also influence their language performance in target language. This study attempts to investigate how Chinese learners in synchronous distance instruction use Chinese to dicuss cross-cultural topics. Their language performance was measured through tests judged by Chinese native speakers from Taiwan. The results of this study demonstrate that Chinese language learners tend to use politeness strategies according to their awareness of the social distance and difference in power. However, native Chinese speakers prefer to choose multiple strategies, which indicates that the Chinese learners do not communicate in an authentic and polite manner due to the transfer of their mother language and the lack of language proficiency. It can be argued that the length of stay in a Chinese-speaking country is the cause of this lack of proficiency. However, in this case, it is caused by cultural differences and the context of a synchronous distance environment. As a result, the students use more direct strategies in a synchronous distance environment than in a face-to-face situation, and they tend to use non-linguistic forms such as laughs and pauses to minimize possible intimidation. The main contributions of this study include: 1. Using CA theories to analyze authentic data of Chinese learners. 2. Enhancing our understanding of cross-cultural interaction in Chinese classes by sharing our observations and teaching experience. 3. Helping teachers to enhance students’ awareness of pragmatics and providing instruction on various language forms while also providing guided practice for language learners to communicate successfully.