The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence

System xxx (2014) 1e13

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The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence Zohreh R. Eslami a, *, Azizullah Mirzaei b, Shadi Dini a a

Texas A&M University, College of Education and Human Resource Development, Department of Teaching, Learning, and Culture, College Station, TX 4232-77843, USA b Shahrekord University, Faculty of Letters & Humanities, English Department, Shahrekord, Iran

a b s t r a c t Keywords: Asynchronous computer mediated communication Pragmatic development Explicit/implicit pragmatic instruction English as a foreign language

This study investigates two types of form-focused instruction on the acquisition of requests by Iranian EFL learners to determine the effectiveness of pragmatic instruction through asynchronous computer mediated communication (ACMC). Three groups of EFL learners, a control (n ¼ 27) and two intervention groups, are included in this study. The intervention groups were matched with US-based graduate ESL Education students (as telecollaborative tutors) to undertake either an explicit or an implicit instructional treatment through ACMC for one semester. The explicit group (n ¼ 23) participated in consciousness-raising activities, received explicit metapragmatic explanations and corrections of errors of forms and meanings. The implicit group (n ¼ 24) received enhanced input and implicit feedback. A discourse completion task (DCT) was used to compare control and intervention groups. Furthermore, students' email communications with the graduate students were used to track their language development. Quantitative and qualitative analysis were used to determine the impact of instructional methods on EFL learners' pragmatic competence. Both treatment groups significantly improved, outperforming the control group. However, the explicit group performed significantly better than the implicit group on both the DCT and email communication measures. These findings are discussed with implications for using technology to teach and learn pragmatics. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Research in interlanguage pragmatics (ILP) has documented that pragmatic instruction facilitates learners' awareness of form-function mappings and important contextual variables which may not otherwise be salient enough to be noticed (Kasper & Schmidt, 1996). In the foreign language context, where opportunities for input and interaction outside the classroom are highly limited and formal instruction serves as the main source of L2 knowledge, pragmatic instruction plays a more prominent role (e.g., Eslami-Rasekh, 2005; Rose, 2005). Several researchers in the field of ILP, informed by second language acquisition (SLA) theories, have examined the dif n Soler, 2005; Fordyce, 2013; Jeon & Kaya, 2006; Koike & ferential effects of explicit versus implicit instruction (e.g., Alco n Soler, 2005; Eslami & Eslami-Rasekh, 2008; Pearson, 2005; Taguchi, 2011; Tateyama, 2001). Several studies (e.g., Alco

* Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (Z.R. Eslami), [email protected] (A. Mirzaei), [email protected] (S. Dini). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2014.09.008 0346-251X/© 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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Nguyen, Pham & Pham, 2012) suggest that explicit instruction is more effective for ILP development than implicit instruction. However, as noted by Jeon and Kaya (2006), the above findings should be treated with caution due to the limited number of studies examining implicit instruction, a lack of research rigor and methodological issues with some of the studies. As reported by Taguchi's (in press) comprehensive review of instructional studies in pragmatics, most studies have revealed a clear advantage of explicit over implicit methods, some have revealed no difference between the two methods, and a few have revealed mixed findings. Thus, further research is needed in order to understand the relative effectiveness of these two types of pedagogical interventions. Today's fast-growing technologies offer exciting new possibilities for pragmatic instruction. The affordances provided by different technologies can promote the learning of pragmatics by facilitating learners' interaction with peers and expert language users who are located remotely, thus providing opportunities for natural communication and self-regulated learning (Belz, 2007; Taguchi, 2011; Takamiya & Ishihara, 2012). Despite the affordances provided by technology in promoting pragmatic competence, few studies have examined pragmatic instruction using CMC in a foreign language (FL) context. In this regard, Belz (2007) notes that the potential of telecollaboration for second language (L2) pragmatic development, research, and instruction is still underexplored within FL education circles. Thus the goal of the present study is to examine the use of various forms of CMC (emails, oral and written chats) in promoting L2 pragmatic development. We have used technology to determine whether CMC can serve as a potentially useful channel to deliver pragmatics instruction to EFL learners using methods of explicit and implicit form-focused instruction (FFI). 2. Literature review 2.1. Pragmatic instruction The teaching of pragmatic competence has enjoyed considerable attention due to its recognition as one of the major components of language ability (Bachman, 1990). Instructional pragmatics research has generally focused on the effects of  npragmatic instruction by employing research methodologies mainly grounded in cognitive approaches to SLA (e.g., Alco Soler, 2005; Bardovi-Harlig & Vellenga, 2012; Nguyen et al., 2012). The cognitive approaches to SLA have stressed the role of noticing in language acquisition (Schmidt, 1994, 2001) and different instructional methods (i.e., explicit and implicit) have been used to facilitate students' noticing of the target forms. Researchers have argued that explicit and implicit instructional conditions represent a continuum rather than a dichotomy (Eslami & Eslami-Rasekh, 2008; Jeon & Kaya, 2006; Taguchi, 2011). Additionally, explicit and implicit FFI vary greatly in their methodological options and conceptualizations (Nguyen et al., 2012) and explicit pragmatic instruction may refer to a wide array of FFI activities, from metapragmatic explanations to different input conditions with or without metapragmatic information. According to Norris and Ortega (2000), in FFI the intention is to foster the learner's attention to particular forms within a meaningful context integrated into an otherwise content-based and meaning-oriented syllabus of the L2 classroom. Compared to the findings related to explicit instruction, results regarding the effects of implicit instruction are inconclusive (Fukuya & Martinez-Flor, 2008; Fukuya & Zhang, 2002). Moreover, implicit pragmatic instruction, as compared to explicit pragmatic instruction, has been less adequately described from both conceptual and methodological perspectives (Fukuya & Zhang, 2002; Nguyen et al., 2012). Therefore, further research is needed in order to understand the relative effectiveness of these two types of pedagogical interventions. 2.2. CMC and pragmatic instruction Research on the use of technology for language instruction has provided insights about the potential of technology to expand teaching options and offers information on how technology can provide a solution to existing barriers to formal teaching (Taguchi & Sykes, 2013). Studies of both SCMC (synchronous CMC) and ACMC (asynchronous CMC) suggest the significant potential of text-based interaction in promoting language learning in general and pragmatic learning in particular (Taguchi, 2011). Although it is generally assumed that SCMC has the features of spoken informal communication and ACMC follows the patterns of written discourse, both forms influence the nature of social networks and communication patterns (Fulk & Collins-Jarvis, 2001) in a way which makes the CMC context different from regular spoken and written communications. Such typical features of telecollaborative language learning contexts are influenced by “an intricate inter-relationship of social and institutional affordances and constraints, aspects of individual psycho-biography, as well as language and computer socialization experiences and particular power relationships” (Belz, 2002, p.73). Both SCMC and ACMC can offer an authentic learning environment where learners practice L2 pragmatics while engaged in real-life interactions with expert users of language. Technology-mediated exchanges can also scaffold students' learning by providing online access to L2 language, genuine interactions, and opportunities to compare their own language use with expert language users' data (Belz, 2007). Researchers have used telecollaboration, wiki, video conferencing, online discussions and text and voice chats for teaching pragmatics (e.g., Belz & Vyatkina, 2005; Cunningham & Vyatkina, 2012; Johnson & deHaan 2013; Kakegawa, 2009; Li, 2012; Yus, 2011). Computer technology can create favorable conditions (e.g., input, interaction, simulation) to enhance L2 pragmatic lez-Lloret, 2008; Kakegawa, 2009; Li, 2012; Sykes, 2005). The cadevelopment (e.g., Belz, 2007; Eslami & Liu, 2013; Gonza pacities provided by computer technology include: a) authentic instructional materials, b) exposure of learners to a broader Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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range of pragmatic features and discourse options, c) opportunities for meaningful interactions, d) longitudinal evidence and data of L2 pragmatic development, and e) effectiveness of instructional interventions in L2 pragmatic development (Baar & Gillespie, 2003; Belz, 2007; Kosunen, 2009; Li, 2012; van der Zwaard & Bannink, 2014). Among the contributions of CMC is its potential to record and provide rich learner data for longitudinal pragmatic development studies. Belz (2007) offers a detailed account of the ways in which CMC can contribute to developmental studies with a particular emphasis on the production of individual developmental journey profiles and microgenetic analysis (i.e., local, moment-to-moment learning in social interactions) of pragmatic features. Belz (2007) maintains that microgenetic analysis is possible in telecollaborative contexts because in this kind of discourse the whole history of the interactions is electronically recorded and conveniently retrievable. Belz and Kinginger (2003), and Kinginger and Belz (2005) for example, provide detailed, microgenetic analyses of learners' development of address forms in a telecollaborative partnership. They found that technology mediation in their telecollabrative classrooms provided an opportunity for the learners to receive explicit assistance from their peers, observe the appropriate expert norms in telecollaborative interactions, and improve their L2 pragmatic competence. CMC also makes it possible to individualize instruction and align instructional interventions to learners' actual needs. Belz and Vyatkina's (2005) study is an excellent example of how the use of intended pragmatic features in the learners' corpus can be monitored and then teaching modules designed in response to students' needs. Based on the analysis of learners' corpus, the authors conducted a three-week face-to-face pedagogical intervention that consisted of three instructional modules. Their findings revealed that the pedagogical intervention was effective and the majority of learners' pragmatic performance improved both in terms of frequency and accuracy. Their study is a good example of corpus-enabled as well as electronically mediated interactions between learners and their native-speaker “keypals,” and of the potential for “hyper-noticing” in technology mediated intercultural pragmatic research. Similarly, Kakegawa (2009) examined the effects of pedagogical interventions via email correspondence with Japanese native speakers on the development of American learners of Japanese use of sentence-final particles. The American participants exchanged emails with native speakers of Japanese for 12 weeks and received two face-to-face pedagogical interventions on the use of sentence-final particles. The results indicated that the combination of email exchanges and instructional interventions had a positive impact on students' use of sentence-final particles. As Kakegawa (2009) notes, using emails to connect learners with telecollaborative experts overseas provides authentic materials in a foreign language context and also makes less salient linguistic forms and pragmatic functions more noticeable to learners. Among different mediums of ACMC, emails now play an indispensable part in educational contexts (Biesenbach-Lucas, 2007; Iwasaki, 2008) and have recently been investigated in L2 pragmatics research. Different pragmatic features have been examined in the email exchanges between native and non-native speakers in various contexts (e.g., Biesenbach-Lucas, 2007; Chalak, Eslami-Rasekh, & Eslami-Rasekh, 2010; Chen, 2001; Eslami, 2013; Motallebzadeh, Mohsenzadeh, & Sobhani, 2014; Zhu, 2012). Studies on L2 learners' email practices have mainly focused on how email exchange facilitates second language learning and encourages collaborative writing (e.g., Lapp, 2000; Li, 2000; Liaw, 1998). A number of studies compared how L2 learners' email discourse differed from their oral or offline written discourse (Biesenbach-Lucas & Weasenforth, 2001; Chapman, 1997). Chen (2001) investigated a Taiwanese graduate student's pragmatic development by examining her email practices. Using a critical discourse analysis approach, Chen (2001) shows the complexity of an L2 learner's evolving pragmatic competence and struggle for appropriateness. Research findings reported so far have, by implication, demonstrated certain benefits for pragmatic instruction in CMC contexts. Related research has also shown that ACMC, by default, engenders typical discourse patterns and social behaviors in language learning contexts. Therefore, emails, one of the most frequently used means of communication in academic settings, seem to offer a highly affordable platform through which L2 practitioners can efficiently plan to optimize the teaching, learning, and assessment of L2 pragmatics in foreign contexts (Kakegawa, 2009). Unlike inauthentic language classroom activities that lack social consequences (Kasper & Rose, 2002), CMC provides learners with a variety of discourse options and speech functions, and offers opportunities for the practice and use of L2 pragmatics in meaningful interactions. Moreover, technology-mediated contexts provide venues for learners to engage in pragmatics learning on their own, both inside and outside the classroom (Taguchi & Sykes, 2013). While all the studies discussed above used a hybrid of both face-to-face and online methodologies to deliver pragmatic instruction, Eslami and Liu's (2013) study is one of the few which used online instruction for one group and face-to-face instruction for another group. They compared the relative effectiveness of the instructional modules implemented through CMC with face-to-face instruction for teaching requestive strategies. The results showed that explicit pragmatic instruction had a positive impact on the EFL learners in both the teacher-instructed and CMC groups (compared to the control group) and there was no significant difference between the two experimental groups in the amount of pragmatic gains. Furthermore, Xiao-le (2011) examined the efficiency of explicit and implicit instruction of request strategies in increasing pragmatic appropriateness in the on-line communications of Chinese EFL learners and found that the participants in the explicit group outperformed their peers in the implicit group. Our purpose in the current study is to expand the previous research and explore the effectiveness of two instructional methods (i.e. explicit vs. implicit) delivered mainly through ACMC. Thus, the current study is an attempt to investigate the relative efficacy of explicit and implicit FFI through ACMC on the Iranian EFL learners' requestive behavior in an academic setting. The study contributes to our understanding of the efficacy of using technology in pragmatic instruction. Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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3. Research questions As argued by several SLA researchers (e.g., Belz, 2007; Taguchi & Sykes, 2013; van der Zwaard & Bannink, 2014), FL education circles have yet to fully realize the potential of technology for L2 pragmatic development, research, and instruction. Furthermore, as Jeon and Kaya (2006) and Taguchi (in press) note, it is not yet possible to confidently conclude which type of pragmatic instruction is more effective and it is difficult to make a comprehensive claim about instructional effectiveness without considering the interaction among learner characteristics, treatment methods, and outcome measures (Taguchi, in press). Thus, the current study aims to address the following research questions: 1. What are the effects of explicit and implicit FFI using CMC on EFL learners' performance of requests in English? 2. Which type of instruction is more effective? 4. Materials and methods 4.1. Participants A quasi-experimental, pretest/posttest design with a control group was adopted to address these research questions. Two groups were studied: learners and telecollaborative tutors. The learner group consisted of three upper-intermediate EFL intact classes (n ¼ 74). They were categorized as upper-intermediate based on their performance on the national English-proficiency test for university students. The learners (11 males and 63 females) were in their early 20s studying English language literature/ translation in two state universities in the center and south-west of Iran. They had studied English between 7 and 9 years. None had visited an English speaking country, and all had limited exposure to English outside of the classroom. The classes were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: control (n ¼ 27), explicit (n ¼ 23), and implicit (n ¼ 24). The telecollaborative tutors were 18 native and highly proficient non-native English speakers who were ESL Education graduate students at a U.S. University ranging in age from late 20s to late 30s. The graduate students (tutors) were enrolled in an ESL Methodology course and read papers on pragmatic instruction and assessment, as part of their course requirements. Each was paired with two or three Iranian EFL learners over the treatment period and either used explicit or implicit instructional techniques, depending upon their group assignment. Researchers provided guiding lesson plans throughout the semester, and tutors were asked to modify the lesson plans as required to meet the needs of their students. 4.2. Data-collection instruments We used a highly structured outcome measure, a Discourse Comprehension Task (DCT), and freely constructed responses (emails) as process and outcome measures in this study. The employment of mixed methods enhances the validity of the findings, thus strengthening the claims that can be made. As suggested by Kasper and Dahl (1991), elicited and natural language data both have pros and cons as far as the quantity and quality of data is concerned. Although naturally occurring data are more highly valued (as they authentically reflect pragmatic variability), in practice pragmatics researchers, have shown a preference for DCTs since they can enact more control over the type of speech act elicited, the range of tokens produced, and the contextual variables operationalized in the design of scenarios (Economidou-Kogetsidis, 2013; Kasper & Dahl, 1991). DCTs also facilitate the collection of speech act data from a large sample simultaneously focusing on a wider range of linguistic issues. In the current study, the use of both structured DCTs and freely constructed speech acts (emails) helps to compensate for the drawbacks of each measure used alone. Additionally, previous research has shown that the type of outcome measure might affect the magnitude of instructional effects observed (Jeon & Kaya, 2006; Taguchi, in press). Studies employing only elicited data tend to produce smaller effect sizes than those employing both elicited and natural data (Nguyen et al., 2012). Thus, to maximize our ability to track developmental changes, we collected both elicited and naturalistic data in this study. The elicitation instrument (DCT) contained 12 situations likely to be encountered by the EFL students in academic contexts. They were based on the DCT situations collected through exemplar generation as suggested by Eslami and Mirzaei (2014) and were controlled for the relative power, level of imposition, and the social distance of speakers and hearers. An analytical assessment scale was then used to score learners' request performances on the DCT. The scale consisted of two parts, allowing the assessment of both sociopragmatic appropriateness and linguistic accuracy. Sociopragmatic appropriateness was rated from 1 (very inappropriate) to 5 (very appropriate), and a binary linguistic accuracy scale was used for grammatical and lexical accuracy (1 if grammatically and lexically correct and 0 if grammatically or lexically incorrect). Thus, the total possible score for each situation was thus 6. Therefore, the possible minimum and maximum scores on the (12-item) pragmatics test were 12 and 72, respectively. Scoring procedures were conducted independently and half of the data was cross-checked by two researchers with the agreement rate of 90%. Requestive speech acts were extracted from the email data both at the beginning of the intervention (weeks 1e3) and towards the end (weeks 10e12) and analyzed for evidence of learners' pragmatic development. Using Blum-Kulka, House, and Kasper's (1989) categorization scheme, two researchers coded the email data. Email requests were independently coded into different types of request strategies and modifiers and then carefully cross-checked. Inter-rater procedures were used to estimate the reliability, and found to be 79% after the first trial coding. The differences in coding were discussed until agreement was reached. In the second trial coding, an inter-rater reliability of 95% was reached. Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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4.3. Procedures The EFL learners in the two treatment groups (i.e., explicit and implicit) were matched with the graduate students at a large public university (in the U.S.) for this 12 week intervention. The telecollaborative tutors received a lesson plan every other week, which provided them with ideas on which aspects of requestive speech acts to focus on and how to teach the learners. The tutors in both treatment groups were instructed to exchange four emails with their peers every two working weeks before they received the next lesson plan. They were also instructed to use learners' ongoing discourse in their emails and other forms of CMC to raise their awareness of pragmatically (in)appropriate use of language. This approach draws on the methodologies of contrastive learner corpus analysis and data-driven learning (Belz & Vyatkina, 2005). While the main mode of CMC was (asynchronous) email, a number of the telecollaborative tutors also interacted with their EFL learners in other forms of CMC (e.g., Skype, Facebook, written/oral chats). The use of other CMC modes was not pre-planned into instructional activities because of the challenges of Iran-US time difference, slow internet speeds in Iran, and Iranian students' limited access to the internet. As argued by Taguchi and Sykes (2013), technology-mediated contexts provide venues for learners to engage in pragmatic learning on their own, both inside and outside the classroom. Over the first few weeks, the lesson objectives focused on the main requestive strategies, and learners were exposed to a variety of requestive forms in different contexts along with examples of miscommunication (inappropriate forms). During weeks 4, 5, and 6, the three important (sociopragmatic) variables in requests (i.e. “distance”, “power/social status”, and “imposition”) were introduced and either explicitly discussed for the explicit group or highlighted through input enhancement techniques for the implicit group. Finally, pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic features in requests were reviewed and recycled during the last two weeks. Following Eslami-Rasekh (2005), the explicit group used the following strategies for instruction: a) consciousness-raising (e.g. identifying and providing examples of requests in learners' L1 and L2, recognizing requestive strategies including external and internal modifications, and recognizing directness levels); b) metapragmatic explanation following each consciousness-raising activity; c) discussion of inappropriate requests and the potential causes of their inappropriateness; d) production activities (e.g. responding to situations with requests, and providing reasons for their use of one form vs. another); and e) explicit feedback related to both pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic issues. The implicit group, however, used a different set of instructional activities, including: a) consciousness-raising activities using input enhancement (e.g., boldfaced target structures; comparing their own requests to native speakers' requests); b) discourse completion task production activities; and c) reflection on their own productions based on recasts and implicit feedback. An example of a recast from the data is provided in Table 1. Additionally, the telecollaborative tutors were referred to other teachers' guides and resource books with ready-made lesson plans and teaching tips (Bardovi-Harlig & Mahan-Taylor, 2003; Houck & Tatsuki, 2011; Ishihara & Cohen, 2010; Tatsuki & Houck, 2010). Tutors were asked to use these guides to individualize their instruction by implementing activities appropriate for their learners' pragmatic competence level, progress, and needs. Weekly updates, classroom discussions, as well as reflection journals were checked to ensure adherence to the planned treatment and ensure fidelity of treatment. Learners in the control group completed traditional in-class activities, including the four skills, grammar, and vocabulary practice activities, and they also performed extra-class work to extend their learning beyond the class hour. In summary, the data comprised 1776 DCT-responses, and 94 emails. Quantitative analysis of the groups' DCT pretest and posttest scores and descriptive analysis of the learners' email requests in two time intervals (beginning and end) were carried out in order to address the research questions.

5. Results 5.1. DCT results Quantitative analysis of the groups' DCT pretest and posttest scores was conducted to address the research questions. Descriptive statistics were first calculated to ensure that there was no violation of the preliminary normality assumptions, the results of which are summarized in Table 2. The results showed that the data were normally distributed with skewness and kurtosis values well within the satisfactory range of ±1.5. A one-way between-groups analysis of covariance (or ANCOVA) was conducted to compare the effectiveness of different CMC-oriented and traditional (non-CMC) instructions on students' ability to appropriately produce English requests.

Table 1 Akram (a female student in the implicit group) makes a request to change an appointment with her professor. The utterance is linguistically correct, but is considered too direct and is thus recast by the tutor. Akram's initial email message: Tutor's reformulated request:

I need to change the appointment time because I am sick. Can I meet you tomorrow? “I fell sick and unfortunately cannot make it to the campus today. Is it possible to change the appointment to another day when it's convenient for you?” Keep in mind that you are making this request to your professor. Can you let me know the difference between your request and the one above?

Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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Table 2 Descriptive statistics for pretests and posttests for each group. Group

Test

N

Min

Max

Mean

SD

Skewness

Kurtosis

Control

Pretest Posttest Pretest Posttest Pretest Posttest

27 27 23 23 24 24

17 23 18 36 19 18

44 57 43 72 41 43

31.85 36.85 31.48 59.52 31.67 52.54

6.24 8.35 6.35 9.97 5.74 8.03

.43 .23 .32 1.13 .42 .06

.04 .04 .46 .9 .28 .19

Explicit Implicit

Table 3 ANCOVA results for groups' pragmatic development. Source

Type III sum of squares

df

Mean square

F

Sig.

Partial eta squared

Corrected model Intercept Pretest Group Error Total Corrected total

8667.68a 1394.48 1835.8 7005.36 3647.31 189,891.00 12,314.99

3 1 1 2 70 74 73

2889.22 1394.48 1835.8 3502.68 52.10

55.45 26.76 35.23 67.22

.000 .000 .000 .000

.70 .28 .34 .66

a

R Squared ¼ .704 (Adjusted R Squared ¼ .691).

The independent variable was the type of pedagogical intervention (traditional teacher-fronted, explicit CMC-oriented, and implicit CMC-oriented) named as Group in the analysis, and the dependent variable was students' posttest scores on the DCT. Students' pretest scores were used as the covariate in the analysis to control for pre-existing pragmatic-knowledge differences between the groups. ANCOVA-specific preliminary assumptions such as normality, linearity, and homogeneity of variances were initially checked, and no violation was observed. The ANCOVA results are demonstrated in Table 3. As can be seen, the ANCOVA results revealed a statistically significant main effect for Group, F (2, 70) ¼ 67.22, p < .0005, partial eta squared ¼ .66, which means that there were significant differences among the posttest mean scores of the groups receiving different types of instruction. A partial eta squared value of .66 statistically represents quite a large effect size (Cohen's criterion ¼ .14), which shows that 66 per cent of the variance in the pragmatics posttest means can be explained by the type of instruction. Further inspection of the post hoc (Bonferroni-adjusted) pairwise comparisons (Table 4) demonstrated that both CMC-oriented groups made noticeable interlanguage pragmatic gains compared to the control group. However, the English pragmatic ability of the CMC-based group receiving explicit instruction and feedback from their telecollaborative tutors improved significantly more than the implicit CMC-oriented group. The post hoc pairwise comparison results are shown in Table 4 below. Fig. 1 illustrates the superiority of the pragmatic performance of the experimental groups (over the control group) following their engagement in CMC-based instructional activities with telecollaborative tutors. The differences among the groups' posttest mean scores are particularly noteworthy since all groups demonstrated similar pragmatic performance on the pretest. These results suggest there is an important association between participation in CMC-oriented instructional activities (addressing speech act realization patterns) and L2 learners' development of pragmatic ability over time. Furthermore, explicit communication-focused metapragmatic instruction and feedback (delivered using the interactivity of technology and social media) shows significantly more gains in learners' pragmatic development.

Table 4 Post hoc pairwise comparisons for different groups. (I) Group (J) Group

Mean difference (IeJ)

Std. Error

Sig.a

95% Confidence interval for differencea Upper bound

Lower bound

Explicit Control Implicit Control Explicit Implicit

22.98*

2.05

.000

17.96

28.01

15.84*

2.02

.000

10.88

20.81

2.106

.003

7.137*

1.970

12.303

Based on estimated marginal means. * The mean difference is significant at the .05 level. a Adjustment for multiple comparisons: Bonferroni.

Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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60.00 55.00

7

Group Control Ex-Explicit Ex-Implicit

Means

50.00 45.00 40.00 35.00 30.00 Pretest

Time

Posttest

Fig. 1. Interaction plot for groups' over-time pragmatic development.

5.2. Email data results A corpus of requests used in email communications was compiled over the twelve weeks of the course. The data included 47 emailed requests during the first three weeks of the study (the first data set) and another 47 requests during the last three weeks of the study (the second data set). The type of strategy and modifiers, frequency of use, and accuracy in the first set of emailed requests were compared with those in the second set of email data to examine learners' development in their use of requestive speech acts in their email communications. Requests were analyzed first for the head act, which was coded as direct, conventionally indirect, or hint. Table 5 shows that a direct strategy was used in approximately one third of the emails at the beginning (34.8% by explicit group and 33.3% by implicit group). Conventionally indirect strategies were the most frequently used by both groups (52.2.1% and 58.4). Hints were the least frequently used strategies (13% and 8.3%). What is interesting, however, is that in the second set of email data, both groups decreased their use of direct strategies and increased their use of conventionally indirect strategies. The higher preference for directness among the learners in the first data set fits well with findings in developmental pragmatics in that L2 learners tend to employ far more direct strategies (and fewer internal lexical/syntactic modifiers) than native speakers (Biesenbach-Lucas, 2007; Economidou-Kogetsidis, 2011; Rose, 2000; Trosborg, 1995). Additionally, in the second data set, both the explicit and implicit group opted more frequently for conventionally indirect strategies (62.2 and 70.8, respectively), moving closer to native speaker request strategies (Economidou-Kogetsidis, 2011; Rose, 2000). This finding provides further support for the positive effects of CMC instructional activities provided by telecollaborative tutors on pragmatic development. Hints were the request strategy used the least frequently by both groups, although the implicit group used slightly more in the second set (8.3 vs. 12.5). Research shows that hints appear later in learners' pragmatic development and these findings could be a sign of a nascent development in the implicit group's email communication. However, further longitudinal research with larger data set would be needed to support such a claim. Some examples of direct requests, indirect requests, and hints from the data are given below. (1) Check your email pllllllllllz. I sent you my responses! (L to H, March 1) (2) Do you celebrate Christmas? Would you mind tell me about your region? (S to M, Feb 23) (3) I would like to know more about you and your background. (L to J, on March 27).

5.2.1. Supportive moves In contrast to internal modification which is more formal, external modification is discoursal. It involves providing reasons or preparing interlocutors for the request. Pragmatics research has shown that L2 learners (of English) underuse (external)

Table 5 Requestive strategies (Head act). Strategy

Explicit P1 (%)

Explicit P2 (%)

Implicit P1 (%)

Implicit P2 (%)

Direct Conventionally indirect Indirect (Hint) Total

8 12 3 23

5 15 3 23

8 14 2 24

4 17 3 24

(34.8) (52.2) (13) (100)

(21.7) (65.2) (13.1) (100)

(33.3) (58.4) (8.3) (100)

(16.7) (70.8) (12.5) (100)

Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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Table 6 Supportive moves in two email data set. Supportive move

Explicit P1 (%)

Explicit P2 (%)

Implicit P1 (%)

Implicit P2 (%)

Supportive move þSupportive move Total

15 (65.2) 8 (34.8) 23 (100)

10 (43.5) 13 (56.5) 23 (100)

14 (58.3) 10 (41.7) 24 (100)

11 (45.8) 13 (54.2) 24 (100)

supportive moves compared to native speakers (Biesenbach-Lucas & Weasenforth, 2001; Hartford & Bardovi-Harlig, 1996; Lundell & Erman, 2012; Rose, 2000; Trosborg, 1995). Table 6 shows the frequency of supportive moves used in their first set of emails compared to the second set (after the intervention). As can be seen, there has been a noticeable change in the frequency of supportive moves in both groups. These results suggest that the two treatment groups benefited from the CMC pragmatic instruction. Two examples of supportive moves used by the students are shown below. (4) I am busy this week with an exam we have. Can I do the examples and send it to you next Friday? (M to J, April 7) (5) I like to ask you something? Are you married? (J to J, March 11) Moreover, the natural email data indicates that instruction has been differentially effective in learners' acquisition of request supportive moves. The explicit group, by comparison, took up more supportive moves in the second data set than the implicit group (explicit: 34.8 to 56.5 vs. implicit: 41.7e54.2). 5.2.2. Internal modifiers As argued by Trosborg (1995), the development of internal modification depends on the automaticity in syntactic parsing since adding lexical or phrasal modifiers to a head act is likely to increase formal complexity. Results of the analysis of lexical and syntactic modifiers used in the two email data set are presented in Table 7. Students' use of internal modification increased over time. In the explicit group's first set of emails, 43.47% of the students provided no syntactic modifiers, compared to 26.09% in the second data set. In contrast, these figures were 37.5% vs. 25% for the implicit group. This indicates that the intervention was effective for both groups, though the explicit groups made more progress (17.38) than the implicit group (12.5). However, the number of emails used in this analysis is rather small and thus these findings cannot be considered conclusive. 6. Discussion and conclusion This study found that CMC-oriented pedagogical tasks and activities designed to heighten EFL students' noticing and awareness and delivered by native and highly proficient non-native English speaking telecollaborative tutors can assist students to develop their pragmatic ability. This finding offers evidence that L2 pragmatics can respond well to consciousness-raising interaction and instruction scaffolded by expert users of the target language in a virtual communication environment. More specifically, computer technology and CMC offer instruction and communication affordances that can cater for the needs of L2 learners as they develop their pragmatic competence. The results demonstrated that feedback and instruction, when provided through tailored on-line communication with L2 informants, can promote students' awareness of form-function mappings and pertinent contextual variables which may otherwise be insufficiently salient (Eisenchlas, 2011; Ifantidou, 2013; Nguyen et al., 2012). In other words, mere exposure to the target language or overemphasis of L2 lexico-grammatical aspects, typical of ESL/EFL classrooms, does not necessarily lead to a corresponding development of students' pragmatic competence (Bardovi-Harlig, 2001, 2013; Kasper & Schmidt, 1996). The second important finding of this study is that explicit instruction and feedback in L2 pragmatics appeared to be more effective for the development of learners' pragmatic competence. While both treatment groups outperformed the control group, the group receiving explicit metapragmatic information and explanations benefited more than the implicit group in terms of their posttest achievements on the DCT. Similarly, the longitudinal examination of their email data demonstrated that the explicit group showed more tendencies to employ supportive moves to modify their email requests in the second data set. This findings is supported by SLA literature related to noticing and metalinguistic awareness. As shown by recent SLA Table 7 Internal modifiers used in two email data set. Internal modifiers

Explicit P1 (%)

Explicit P2 (%)

Implicit P1 (%)

Implicit P2 (%)

Syntactic Lexical Both None Total

3 5 5 10 23

7 7 3 6 23

2 7 6 9 24

5 7 6 6 24

(13.05) (21.74) (21.74) (43.47) (100)

(30.44) (30.44) (13.04) (26.08) (100)

(8.33) (29.17) (25.0) (37.5) (100)

(20.83) (29.17) (25.0) (25.0) (100)

Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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literature (e.g., DeKeyser, 2003; Ellis, 2004, 2006; Norris & Ortega, 2001; Schmidt, 1994, 2001), noticing of linguistic forms and functions and metalinguistic awareness play an important role in L2 learning. While implicit learning involves perception or drawing conscious attention to (surface) target features simply by ‘flagging’ target items (DeKeyser, 2003), the explicit learning involves consciousness of the underlying rules governing linguistic behavior through meta-talks over form-meaning mappings. Therefore, although noticing with some degree of awareness is implicated in implicit feedback, such as input enhancement and recasts, it is incumbent upon the learner to infer the rules (Jeon & Kaya, 2006). However, provision of metalinguistic information and explanations, instantiated by a focus on meaning and communication, enables the learner to process both meaning and underlying rules at a deeper level and results in more efficient restructuring of the linguistic knowledge and profound understanding (DeKeyser, 2003; Norris & Ortega, 2001). The current study adds to the growing literature arguing for the significant role of attention and awareness in L2 (pragmatics) learning (Eslami-Rasekh, 2005; Jeon & Kaya, 2006; Norris & Ortega, 2000, 2001; Rose & Kasper, 2001; Schmidt, 2001) n-Soler & Safont Jorda , and the greater effectiveness of explicit instruction on development of pragmatic competence (Alco 2008; Bardovi-Harlig, 2013; Halenko & Jones, 2011; Huth, 2006; Nguyen et al., 2012; Takimoto, 2007). Nevertheless, for implicit feedback to be effective it should become, in Ellis and Sheen's (2006) sense, more focused and intensive (as demonstrated in the explicit group) rather than incidental and extensive (as demonstrated in the implicit group), ensuring deeper processing of pragmalinguisticesociopragmatic mappings and connections of target features. Another contribution made by the present study is the attempt to draw on affordances offered to L2 education by social networking spaces, virtual environments, and computers. The findings show that, judiciously employed, the opportunities for interaction offered by Information Technology (IT) and computers can help promote communication across cultural boundaries and foster form-function-oriented instruction and pragmatic awareness (Bloch, 2002; Kakegawa, 2009; Lee, 2004). The literature on the application of CMC-based input, interaction, and instruction to teaching and learning L2 pragmatics is still fairly limited. Further benefits of IT, such as authentic input, interaction, feedback, and multimedia, have already been probed in L2 research and pedagogy. For example, Lin, Huang, and Liou's (2013) meta-analysis of related research shows that visual synchronous CMC, voice-chats and text-based chat-rooms can foster aspects of SLA, with oral performance receiving the most influence followed by lexical and grammatical aspects (e.g., Abrams, 2003; Blake, 2000; Chen & Eslami, 2013; Loewen & Erlam, 2006; Satar & Ozdener, 2008). The findings of a recent study by van der Zwaard and Bannink (2014), show that the trajectory and outcome of the interaction and whether or not L2 learners engage in negotiated interaction depend on the constraints and affordances of the specific mode of communication. They compared negotiated episodes between learners and native speakers in video call vs. text chat and found that learners seem less inhibited to indicate non-understanding, and hence upstarted to engage in the negotiation of meaning more often and more successfully in text-based chat interactions. However, the use of CMC in this study extends this work by providing for and fostering the construction and management of inter-group (noviceeexpert) partnerships and collaborations. Such initiatives become feasible and cost-effective only when there is institutional agreement or managerial coordination between the EFL learning setting and the cooperating academic context. In light of the importance of pragmatics and appropriate language use for successful intercultural and cross-cultural communication (Taguchi, 2012), L2 practitioners should help to make pragmatic similarities and differences perceptually salient to students through explicit feedback and instruction. Employing explicit consciousness-raising activities and metapragmatic explanation helps learners to analyze and process pragmalinguisticesociopragmatic relations at a deeper perceptual and mental level. Most importantly, explicit awareness-raising activities and instruction in L2 pragmatics are becoming more urgent in educational settings like Iran where EFL learners are largely deprived of direct access to nativespeakers. In these contexts, the affordances provided by technology and systematic goal oriented partnership with expert users of English can be of great benefit to the development of EFL students' pragmatic competence. Due to limited internet access and the duration of the study, the number of emails collected in this study was limited and thus conclusive claims based on the email data cannot be made. Larger-scale studies capable of collecting larger sets of natural data would provide more robust results.

Appendices A. Sample Lesson Plan: (Explicit CMC Instruction Group, Week 7) Goals: 1. To enable the learners to become aware of the use and the distinction between direct vs. indirect requests. (email 1) 2. To help the learners to become familiar with/be able to choose/use appropriate request “strategies” in various contexts with different interlocutors. (email 2) Description: In their first email in week 7, the tutors clarify the distinction between direct and indirect requests, i.e., direct requests are explicit expressions of requests (e.g., orders) while indirect ones implicitly perform the speech act. They further explain to their partners that three variables previously discussed in weeks 4e6, e.g. distance (level of familiarity), power relationship between interlocutors (equal, lower, higher), and the level of the imposition of requests, can influence the directness level of Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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the requests. The tutors also may remind their partners that indirect requests are not necessarily more appropriate in all contexts. Depending on the relationship and contextual variables the level of directness may change. In order to help the tutees to make more pragmatically appropriate requests, the tutors, in their second email, introduce a number of request supportive moves, e.g., giving explanations/reasons/excuses, bringing statements of regret, offering options/alternatives to the interlocutor, etc. Depending on the context (week 3), and based on their interlocutor's distance (week 4) and power/social status (week 5), the speakers may decide to use different levels of directness in their requests and different supportive moves to make a sociopragmatically appropriate request. Also, the degree of imposition (week 6) level in a request is another key factor which influences the directness level of the requests and the type and number of supportive moves used by the speakers. By giving this metapragmatic information to their partners, the tutors enable them to become conscious of the context variables, and to be able to “strategically” make appropriate requests. Activities: These are sample activities for week 7. The tutors should make sure to give metapragmatic feedback in their emails. 1. Give your partner a few samples of direct requests (in an academic context), and ask them if they think the request is appropriate in communication with faculty members, and explain why they think it is appropriate or not. If they believe the request is not appropriate, how would they make the request appropriately? Have them discuss the consequences that an inappropriately direct or a too indirect request might have in different contexts. 2. Ask your partners to write different dialogs in an academic context with different interlocutors. Based on the context/ interlocutors, they should be able to use request strategies and supportive moves appropriately. B. Discourse Completion Test (DCT) Name: ………………… Group: …………..Sex: Male Ο Female Ο Age: Under 20 Ο 21e25 Ο Over 26 Ο Have you ever been/lived to/in an English country? No Ο Yes Ο, If yes, Which Country?........... How long have you been/lived there?........... Instruction: Please respond to each situation as if you were in a conversation with the other speaker. Write what you would ‘naturally’ say in each situation. 1. You are a student and are attending a lecture by a university professor at a conference. You like the presentation and want to learn more. When s/he finishes her/his lecture, you go and ask her/him to email you her presentation. You say: 2. You have selected a topic for your research project. Before you start your project, you need to ask a professor in your department who has expertise in your area of research and does not know you, for an appointment to discuss your research topic and get some input. You say: 3. You are on the bus to campus when you remember you forgot to bring your phone. You decide to borrow a phone from the student next to you to call home. You say:  to quickly get something to eat 4. You have been studying in the library for a few hours and have to go to the library cafe and get back to study again. You do not want to leave your books unattended. You have to ask the student sitting next to you reading a book to watch your stuff. You say: 5. You are a graduate student with a very busy schedule and have to study hard for a very important exam. Two undergraduate roommates have just moved to your room in the dormitory, and are planning a party for the weekend. You want to ask them not to have their party this weekend, which is two days before your exam. You say: 6. You are in the gym running on the treadmill when a classmate with his/her younger sibling comes in. You feel it is getting hot inside and want to ask his/her sibling (sister/brother), whom you have never met before, to open the door.

Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008

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You say: 7. You are applying for a master's degree next semester and you need to have two recommendation letters. You decide to meet with/send an email to your instructor form last semester, who is also your department head, and ask him/her to write you a recommendation letter. You say: 8. You are an undergraduate student and have an assignment due next week. Before you complete your assignment, you have to meet with your professor to discuss some points/ask some questions. You should send him/her an email and ask him/her to schedule an appointment. You say: 9. You are invited to a friend's birthday party. You do not know the address, and you do not have a car. You have to call a friend and ask for a ride. You say: 10. You are teaching as a foreign language teacher in your campus language center. You have to borrow a book for a few hours from a colleague who is teaching in the same center. You say: 11. You are a PhD candidate/a graduate student sharing an apartment with an undergraduate. The utility bill is under your name but you are supposed to split it. You pay the first-month bill and s/he does not pay her/his share. You have to ask her/him to pay her/his part of the bill. You say: 12. You are in your friend's graduation and want to ask his/her younger brother/sister to take a photo of you and your friend. You say: References Abrams, Z. I. (2003). The effect of synchronous and asynchronous CMC on oral performance in German. The Modern Language Journal, 87(2), 157e167.  n Soler, E. (2005). Does instruction work for learning pragmatics in the EFL context? System, 33, 417e435. Alco  n Soler, E., & Safont Jorda , M. P. (2008). Pragmatic awareness in second language acquisition. In J. Cenoz, & N. Hornberger (Eds.), Encyclopedia of language Alco and education (Vol. 6, pp. 193e204). New York: Springer. Baar, D., & Gillespie, J. H. (2003). Creating a computer-based language learning environment. ReCALL, 15(1), 68e78. Bachman, L. F. (1990). Fundamental considerations in language testing. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Bardovi-Harlig, K. (2001). Evaluating the empirical evidence. Grounds for instruction in pragmatics? In K. R. Rose, & G. Kasper (Eds.), Pragmatics in language teaching (pp. 13e32) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Bardovi-Harlig, K. (2013). Developing L2 pragmatics. Language Learning, 63(Suppl. 1), 68e86. Bardovi-Harlig, K., & Mahan-Taylor, R. (2003). Teaching pragmatics. Washington, DC: Office of English Programs, U.S. Department of State. Bardovi-Harlig, K., & Vellenga, H. E. (2012). The effect of instruction on conventional expressions in L2 pragmatics. System, 40, 77e89. Belz, J. A. (2002). Social dimensions of telecollaborative foreign language study. Language Learning & Technology, 6(1), 60e81. Belz, J. (2007). The role of computer mediation in the instruction and development of L2 pragmatic competence. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 27, 45e75. Belz, J., & Kinginger, C. (2003). Discourse options and the development of pragmatic competence by classroom learners of German: the case of address terms. Language Learning, 53, 591e647. Belz, J. A., & Vyatkina, N. (2005). Learner corpus analysis and the development of L2 pragmatic competence in networked intercultural language study: the case of German modal particles. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 62, 17e48. Biesenbach-Lucas, S. (2007). Students writing e-mails to faculty: an examination of e-politeness among native and non-native speakers of English. Language Learning and Technology, 11(2), 59e81. Biesenbach-Lucas, S., & Weasenforth, D. (2001). E-mail and word processing in the ESL classroom: how the medium affects the message. Language, Learning & Technology, 5, 133e165. Blake, R. (2000). Computer-mediated communication: a window on L2 Spanish interlanguage. Language Learning & Technology, 4(1), 120e136. Bloch, J. (2002). Student/teacher interaction via email: the social context of internet discourse. Journal of Second Language Writing, 11(2), 117e134. Blum-Kulka, S., House, J., & Kasper, G. (1989). Cross-cultural pragmatics: Requests and apologies. Norwood, NJ: Ablex. Chalak, A., Eslami-Rasekh, Z., & Eslami-Rasekh, A. (2010). Communication strategies and topics in email interactions between Iranian EFL student and their instructors. International Journal of Language Studies, 4(4), 129e147. Chapman, D. (1997). A comparison of oral and e-mail discourse in Japanese as a second language. On-Call, 11, 31e39. Chen, C.-F. E. (2001). Making e-mail requests to professors: Taiwanese vs. American students. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Applied Linguistics, St. Louis, MO. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 461 299.).

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Please cite this article in press as: Eslami, Z. R., et al., The role of asynchronous computer mediated communication in the instruction and development of EFL learners' pragmatic competence, System (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.system.2014.09.008