Flow, Discourse Maxims, and Studying Southern Min in the Dyadic Language Learning

Context at a Private Language School in Taiwan

Timothy R. Erb

Advisor: Robert Emil Johanson

Department of Applied Foreign Languages.

National Taiwan University of Science & Technology June 10, 2009

1. Instructor: Goa chiok huan-hi koa tiu li. Li gin-a-jit ho bo?[16:03:25] (I am very happy to see you. How are you today?)

2. Participant: Ho. Ho. Goa gin-a-jit fei-hsiung ho![16:03:37] (Good. Good. I am really well today!)

3. Instructor: [3-second pause ] Pai-sei, ho, it dieng ai gong “hui-hsiung” ho. Goa ka li kong, “fei-hsiung” si kok-gi.[16:03:43] (I’m sorry, um, you should say “hui-hsiung” good. Let me tell you, “fei-hsiung” is Chinese.)

4. Participant: A ne oh. “fei-hsiung” shi kok-gi. Pai-sei. Goa it-dieng ai gong “hui-hsiung” ho. Dio-bo?[16:03:58] (Oh, so that’s how it is. “Fei-hsiung” is Chinese. I’m sorry. I really should say “hui-hsiung” good. Right?)

5. Instructor: [4-second pause] Dio, dio! Li gin a jit bei bai.[16:04:20] (Correct, correct! You’re in good form today.)

Introductory Data Sample

"My heart begins to sync with the rhythm "My heart begins to sync with the rhythm [physiological] of the class and it's like a [physiological] of the class and it's like a language tango with the teacher. My body is language tango with the teacher. My body is into it and I feel myself feeling interested into it and I feel myself feeling interested about something again and I move around about something again and I move around and get theatrical and act things out."and get theatrical and act things out."

The instructor opens class effectively allowing the focal participant to achieve flow

This is probably due to her pausing (wait time) and positive reinforcement

The participant’s comment regarding this class.

Introduction Csikszentmihalyi’s Concept of Flow Flow SLA Applications

Purpose of the Study Research Questions Dyadic Language Learning Context Grice’s Discourse Maxim’s The Study

Research Site Focal Participant Pilot Study

Data Analysis Results/Findings Limitations Discussion Pedagogical Implications

Presentation OverviewPresentation Overview

IntroductionIntroduction

Csikszentmihalyi’s Concept of Flow

(A metaphor for the learning process which includes full concentration on an activity to the point that one loses all sense of space and time.)

Challenge/skills congruence Merging of action and awareness Clear proximal goals Intense concentration on the task Perceived sense of control Loss of reflective self-consciousness Time distortion Autotelic experience

Components of Flow

Flow SLA Applications

Schmidt & Savage (1992): Thai EFL students comparing English learning with other activities

Schmidt, Boraie, and Kassagby (1996) on Egyptian EFL learners exploring the participants’ flow experiences in the classroom language learning context

Snyder & Tardy (2001): Turkish University EFL teachers’ in-class flow experiences

Egbert (2003): Spanish FL classroom language

learning tasks to investigate flow occurrences

Mitigate the dearth of studies conducted in dyadic LL context

Apply concept of flow to LL context

Address gap in the SLA research relating flow to infrequently studied languages, Asian languages, or languages at risk such as the Southern Min Language (SML)

Purpose of the Study

I. To what extent (if at all) did the focal participant achieve flow?

II. What are the indicators (if any) that the focal participant achieved flow?

III. Which factors (if any) prevented the focal participant from achieving flow?

IV. How did the focal participant react in situations in which flow did not occur?

V. What pedagogical and practical implications can be derived from this study?

Research Questions

Vastly different than large group learning settings

A “balancing act among potentially conflicting forces” (Wolff, 2000, p. 44, as cited in Thonus)

Classroom discourse takes on characteristics different than other forms of spoken language (Atkins, 2001)

“(C)ontact zones” (Pratt, 1991) where two cultures meet

Sites of interactional dominance can arise (Thonus, 2004)

Teacher as mediator between two cultures (Gibbons, 2006).

Dyadic Language Learning Context

GriceGrice’’s Discourse Maxims Discourse Maxim’’ssGrice divided normal discourse between two or more Grice divided normal discourse between two or more

parties into the following four parties into the following four maximsmaxims:: 1. Quantity1. Quantity: An individual: An individual’’s contribution to discourse s contribution to discourse

should be adequately should be adequately informativeinformative and not be over and not be over informative;informative;

2. Quality2. Quality: Contributions within discourse should be : Contributions within discourse should be

based on evidence, should be truthful;based on evidence, should be truthful; 3. Relation3. Relation: Contributions should be relevant;: Contributions should be relevant; 4. 4. MannerManner: Ambiguity, unnecessary prolixity, and : Ambiguity, unnecessary prolixity, and

obscurity of expression should be avoided and order obscurity of expression should be avoided and order should be maintained. should be maintained.

Evolved from conversations between the researcher and the focal participant regarding the importance of learning SML to decrease social distance (Schuman & Johnson, 1976) and increase intrinsic motivation (Gardner, 1985)

The focal participant enrolled in SML courses

The researcher set out to conduct a case study of the focal participant ‘s SML learning experience

The Study

To establish the research site and ensure “prolonged engagement”, the researcher also enrolled in SML lessons at the research site with the focal participant’s instructor

The researcher entered the study and research site without a specific research agenda

The researcher did not initially intend to investigate instances of flow in the focal participant’s SML learning

After many discussions of what the focal participant reported concerning his SML learning the concept of flow was decided to be representative of what he was experiencing in class

A city in northern Taiwan

Views itself as leader in the teaching and learning in Chinese and SML language education in Taiwan

The Research Site

North American forty-odd years young

Had lived in Taiwan for seven years

First came to Taiwan in 1989

Ten years prior, had studied one year of intensive SML in Taichung, Taiwan

Was studying SML for autotelic reasons

The Focal Participant

Shaped in advance of the main study as the chief haped in advance of the main study as the chief researcher endeavored to set its parameters and researcher endeavored to set its parameters and examine in detail the relevance of the researchexamine in detail the relevance of the research

Began as the chief researcher’s self study of his own egan as the chief researcher’s self study of his own learning of SML and was conducted over a three week learning of SML and was conducted over a three week periodperiod

Data consisted of class recordings, the chief ata consisted of class recordings, the chief researcher/participant’s class notes, the chief researcher/participant’s class notes, the chief researcher/participant’s reflective journal, and his daily researcher/participant’s reflective journal, and his daily log of his SML learning and acquisition experiencelog of his SML learning and acquisition experience

Pilot Study

Data Gathering Instruments(structured and semi-structured) interviews; the participant’s reflective journal;audio-recordings of class meetings; class notes; non-participant observation; personal communication; and stimulated recall sessions of

aforementioned data sources

Data Analysis

Strauss and Corbin’s (1990) grounded theoretical recursive coding procedures (open, axial and selective)

Upon completion of the open coding the researcher looked for salient features in the data

Next, the researcher selectively separated the most salient features in the data from which the findings emerged

Triangulation implemented by comparing salient features that emerged from the several data gathering instruments

Flow experience both physiological and mental

Focal participant appeared to be addicted to the “flow state”

Focal participant frustrated with himself (e.g., for wasting the time and money) and the instructor (e.g., for not letting him converse freely during class)

Results/Findings

If instructor proffered scaffolded review within the first 5 to 7 minutes of class participant reached flow

This ‘flow window’ set the tone for the remainder of the 50 minute class period

If participant entered flow at the beginning of class he was able to engage in discourse throughout the class period and have an autolelic experience

His immense enjoyment of the autotelic experience prompted the researcher to term this as an “autotelic buzz”

When unable to achieve flow, however, the focal participant experienced extreme discomfort

"Can’t believe I’m spending so much [flow impedance] money on “listening class”. I should be prepping for my teaching classes. Waste of time." (online chat interview) “Today things were over my head, great to listen to her accent, but can’t understand many things…I politely tried to slow her down, [flow impedance] but didn’t' know how to do it, [desire to prolong autotelic buzz] and was overwhelmed" (discussion interview)

The focal participant found this ‘autotelic buzz’ to be addictive

He often sought means of ensuring that he would reach the flow state He drafted a ‘top fifteen’ list of previously-covered terms to usurp control of the class to regain his autotelic “fix”

Method kept the teacher on-track ensuring that scaffolded review occurred at the beginning of class, facilitating flow and allowing the participant to have an autotelic experience

A problem in the area of interactive dominance emerged

The teacher challenged his attempts to slow down the pace of her instruction

Instructor often thwarted his efforts at controlling class content

The participant did not reach flow when beginning of class scaffolding did not occur

He “jonesed” for flow achievement and was unable to enter flow at a later point during class

He then encountered a ‘flow downer’ as the result of his apparent addiction of sorts to the in-class autotelic subcategory of flow while learning SML

Participant was distraught and experienced negative physiological symptoms when instructor impeded his flow experience

The focal participant reportedly achieved flow on several occasions, and his reaching of the flow state was a physical and mental state that appeared to have addictive qualities

He reported that these ‘flow downers’ led to his abandonment of the study of the language

Chief researcher is primary research instrument in QR

Focal participant studied several languages previously

Findings herein not generalizable to other languages

LIMITATIONS

Flow defies quantification (like Krashen’s SLL Hypotheses)

Others might have interpreted things differently

Investigation of flow in dyadic student-teacher language learning important

Nature of student-teacher interaction might influence a learner’s chances of entering flow

This study argues for a more aggressive stance to be taken on what it means to “enable” or “disable” a learner from achieving flow

When flow is viewed from this perspective, it might gain the credibility it deserves as an accurate depiction of the give and take that exists in the dyadic one-on-one language-learning and teaching environment

DISCUSSION

Participant experienced an ‘autotelic buzz’ when able to converse freely with the instructor

This echoes Well’s (1992) notion that "(T)he prevailing tone of discourse emphasizes the dialogic co-construction of meaning rather than the teacher's authoritative transmission of information” (p. 22)

When the focal participant was unable to reach flow, it was evident that the instructor was completely ignorant of the need for an advance organizer (Ausubel, 1968) to assist in guiding the learner into the lesson

The instructor not being aware that the tone of in-class teacher-student discourse influences the dialogic co-construction of meaning impeded flow entry on a number of occasions and the participant’s fluency in SML was impeded (Wells, 1992).

The instructor often impeded the focal participants flow entry by failing to adhere to three of Grice’s four Discourse Maxims (1975),

When the instructor spoke in detail about private matters in her life she the instructor spoke in detail about private matters in her life she violated the first maxim of Quantity, as her contributions were overly violated the first maxim of Quantity, as her contributions were overly informativeinformative

The instructor’s violation of the third maxim of Relevance, was closely The instructor’s violation of the third maxim of Relevance, was closely related to her excesses when not adhering to the parameters of the first related to her excesses when not adhering to the parameters of the first maxim in that her contributions were over-informative and completely maxim in that her contributions were over-informative and completely irrelevant to the participant’s SML studies.irrelevant to the participant’s SML studies.

Finally the instructor violated Grice’s fourth maxim of Manner, by Finally the instructor violated Grice’s fourth maxim of Manner, by exercising a complete lack of order, spoke ambiguously and obscurely, exercising a complete lack of order, spoke ambiguously and obscurely, and during class time was and during class time was unable to avoid unnecessary prolixity

Dyadic L2-context instructors should prepare advance organizers (Ausubel, 1968)

Teachers should offer scaffolded review at the beginning of class and allow balanced turn-taking in the classroom

Flow should be considered as a teaching goal rather than merely a passive state

PEDAGOGICAL IMPLICATIONS

REFERENCES

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Gardner, R. C. (1985). Social psychology and motivation. London: Edward Arnold.

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Kam Hsia Lin Kam Hsia Lin (Thank You!)(Thank You!)