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Article In: Applied Pragmatics: Online-First Articles

Seeing multilingual learner agency and interactional competence in second language classroom interactions

Through a multimodal examination of the humor construction

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Abstract
This study examines complex, dynamic interactional sequences in which multilingual students co-construct improvisational humor when encountering miscommunication in an academic writing classroom at an U.S. university. Combining multimodal conversation analysis with ethnographic information, this study captures (a) the dynamic way that humor emerges among multilingual students and their instructor in classroom interactions and (b) the multiple activities besides humor construction that the students and their instructor engage in while the humorous and/or laughable sequences emerge. The analysis suggests that humor construction can be a powerful resource for enacting language learner agency (e.g., (2019). On language learner agency: A complex dynamic systems theory perspective. The Modern Language Journal, 1031, 61–79. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar) in adapting diverse linguistic and other multimodal elements in the classroom. Such analyses can project multilingual students as competent English users and demonstrate their interactional competence. Furthermore, this study illustrates the intricate ways that learner agency is constantly affected by diverse elements, including teacher instructional management, in the classroom.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Illuminating learner agency and interactional competence through the examination of humor construction in multilingual classroom interactions
    • 2.1Interactional humor among multilinguals: The complex process of humor construction without shared cultures
    • 2.2Understanding language learner agency in relation to humor construction in L2 classroom interactions
  • 3.Data and methods
    • 3.1Participants and data collection
    • 3.2Methodology: Multimodal CA with ethnographic information
  • 4.Analyzing humorous, laughable sequences and learner agency in multilingual classroom interactions: Humor negotiation and multiple engagements
    • 4.1Humor sequences that emerge through misinterpreting the teacher’s request and a student’s humor extension among friends
    • 4.2Humor sequences improvised with a famous slogan and an invitation to co-laugh after failed humor
  • 5.Discussion and conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
References (70)
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