STILP Lance Joseph    Department   Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University  Center for Language Education    Position   Tenured Senior Lecturer
Language	English
Publication Date	2014/08
Type	Research paper (Academic/Professional Journal)
Peer Review	Peer reviewed
Title	A Multilingual/Multi-competence Approach to Learning and Interaction in the JFL Classroom
Contribution Type	Single Work
Journal	Japan Journal of Multilingualism and Multiculturalism
Volume, Issue, Page	20(1)
Details	Much is contested about foreign language learners and practices of language use, especially in relation to task-based activities. A close look at student interaction in language classrooms, particularly during task-based activities, can reveal some of the ways they should be viewed as multi-competent. This study uses conversation analysis (CA) to examine how novice learners of Japanese as a foreign language draw on many of the same resources and techniques that multilinguals do in social interaction. Rather than immediately regarding instances of language deviation as evidence of a lack of understanding, it is worth considering instead how learners achieve interactional competence in and through the talk co-constructively despite their limited communicative resources. As such, this study problematizes the monolingual tendencies that still plague many SLA theories and classroom practices, as well as challenges the assumptions behind Target Language Only (TLO) policies. Approaching talk in interaction from a multilingual perspective allows both researchers and teachers to create flexible approaches toward L1 use and other interactional practices in the classroom.