Culture & SLA - Week 10 - Social Contexts of SLA

Introduction: Hello and welcome to Week 10 of the course Culture and Second Language Aquisition. In this class we will follow up on the topic of pragmatics that you saw in many of your reading group articles last week in order to look at the social contexts the shape the second language acquisition process. We will also share a short version of your Moxie and begin preparing for your culture lesson plan.

Today's Goals:

• Analyze cultural differences in communication styles and pragmatics. 
• Share a brief "elevator pitch" of the main thesis of your Moxie paper.
• Discuss the ways that social contexts can influence the process of SLA.

Guiding Questions:

• How do social factors influence the second language acquisition process?

Task 1: Analyzing Pragmatic Considerations

As you know, becoming communicatively competent involves more thant just linguistic knowledge. Pragmatic and interactional competence are essential to ensure smooth social interactions among cultures. Click the link below to read a brief handout adapted from Stringer and Cassiday (2009). 

• Digital Handout: CLICK HERE

Task 2: Moxie Elevator Pitch

This week you submitted your Moxie papers. Let's take a moment to share the highlights with your partners by completing this elevator pitch. You will have 5 minutes to prepare your pitch and 90 seconds to deliver it. Click your link below and begin outlining what you will say. The presentation is just a place for you to take notes. You don't have to share it.

• Group 1: CLICK HERE
• Group 2: CLICK HERE
• Group 3: CLICK HERE
• Group 4: CLICK HERE
• Group 5: CLICK HERE
• Group 6: CLICK HERE

Make sure someone in the group uses these timers to keep track of your 5 minute preparation time and 90 second presentation time.

Task 3: Social Context of SLA

For homework you focused on the socalled "Macrosocial Factors" that affect the out comes of the SLA process. Let's take a moment to focus more on each of these factors in a class discussion. Click the link below.

• Discussion Task: CLICK HERE

Task 4: Prepare for Your Culture Lesson Plan

Your homework for the week is to submit your culture lesson plan based on the Four Cultural Knowings and the Experiential Learning Cycle. A few weeks ago, you participated in a demo lesson on the topic of tipping in US culture that followed the same cyle. Take a moment to brainstorm some possible cultural topics you would like to explore in your lesson plan.

The final chapter in in Moran's book can be very helpful for thinking of possible activity types, question prompts, outcomes, and teacher roles in the four stages of the plan.

Click to see full size image.

Click to see full size image. 

Feel free to also take a look at the lesson plan for the Demo class as inspiration.

• Demo Lesson Plan: CLICK HERE

References:

Moran, P. (2001). Teaching Culture: Perspectives in Practice. Heinle Cengage Learning.

Savile-Troike, M. (2012). Introducing Second Language Acquisition. (2nd Ed.) Cambridge University Press.

Stringer, D. & Cassiday, P. (2009). 52 Activities for Improving Cross-Cultural Communication. Intercultural Press.