The Effect of Collaboration on the Cohesion and Coherence of L2 Narrative Discourse between English NS and Korean L2 English Users
Title
The Effect of Collaboration on the Cohesion and Coherence of L2 Narrative Discourse between English NS and Korean L2 English Users
The Effect of Collaboration on the Cohesion and Coherence of L2 Narrative Discourse between English NS and Korean L2 English Users
Keywords: Coherence, Cohesion, Reference, Narratives, Discourse, Korean.
Authors
Peter Crosthwaite
University of Cambridge
prc34@cam.ac.uk
Peter Crosthwaite
University of Cambridge
prc34@cam.ac.uk
Bio Data
Peter Crosthwaite is currently a doctoral student at the Department of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics (DTAL), University of Cambridge. He has also taught English for 7 years in South Korea, teaching at Pukyong and Dong-Seo universities. He is interested in cohesion and coherence of spoken and written discourse and is currently investigating Korean and Chinese L2 English discourse for referential typology and L2 acquisition sequences. He is also interested in language assessment, is a qualified IELTS examiner, and has been director of studies for EF language schools in Cambridge, Clare College.
Abstract
This research looks at differences between how native speakers of English and Korean L2 English learners manage cohesive reference maintenance, as well as the effect of scaffolded interlocutor collaboration on the coherence and cohesion of extended L2 narrative discourse. Scaffolded and unscaffolded narratives were elicited from 10 Korean learners of English as an L2 and were compared against the narratives of 5 native speakers of English, to compare the grammatical means used to maintain coherent reference to discourse referents within and across clauses, as well as to see the effect that any scaffolding had on the L2 participant s ability to maintain coherence during performance. A link was found between the coherence of NS narrative discourse and accurate use of co-referential & distant anaphoric grammatical referential devices, and the presence of scaffolding was found to increase the accuracy of non-native speakers use of these devices. The implication of these results is that scaffolding helps L2 learners to create and hold more accurate reference to discourse referents, and instances of unscaffolded narrative discourse present increased difficulty for the L2 speaker. Finally, as L2 learners have more difficulty managing accurate reference maintenance, the overall coherence of their discourse is reduced.
This research looks at differences between how native speakers of English and Korean L2 English learners manage cohesive reference maintenance, as well as the effect of scaffolded interlocutor collaboration on the coherence and cohesion of extended L2 narrative discourse. Scaffolded and unscaffolded narratives were elicited from 10 Korean learners of English as an L2 and were compared against the narratives of 5 native speakers of English, to compare the grammatical means used to maintain coherent reference to discourse referents within and across clauses, as well as to see the effect that any scaffolding had on the L2 participant s ability to maintain coherence during performance. A link was found between the coherence of NS narrative discourse and accurate use of co-referential & distant anaphoric grammatical referential devices, and the presence of scaffolding was found to increase the accuracy of non-native speakers use of these devices. The implication of these results is that scaffolding helps L2 learners to create and hold more accurate reference to discourse referents, and instances of unscaffolded narrative discourse present increased difficulty for the L2 speaker. Finally, as L2 learners have more difficulty managing accurate reference maintenance, the overall coherence of their discourse is reduced.
[private]
See pages 135-166
[/private]Category: Main Editions, Volume 13 Issue 4
