Skip to main content

Part of the book series: Second Language Learning and Teaching ((SLLT))

  • 1823 Accesses

Abstract

This article explores the matter of teaching politeness in the ESL/EFL classroom. Should and can the British politeness model be taught aside from British English grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation? Do future EFL teachers share linguistic and pragmatic competence? Despite the great popularity of the British English standard, pragmatic competence vastly varies among English language teachers around Europe and therefore the pragmatic knowledge they transfer to their learners also varies. Learners are not fully prepared for intercultural communication as they do not have, among others, the awareness of different speech act realisations. The study presented in this article shows what politeness strategies future ESL/EFL teachers from Poland, Slovakia, the Netherlands, Macedonia and the UK have a preference for when apologising within familiar equal and superior-inferior relationships. It then moves on to present the theory of learning and the practice of teaching the speech act of apologising.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Alcón, E. 2002. The relationship between teacher-led versus learners’ interaction and the development of pragmatics in the EFL classroom. International Journal of Educationa1 Research 37: 359–377.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Austin, J. 1962. How to do things with words. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bardovi-Harling, K. 2002. Pragmatics and second language acquisition. In The Oxford handbook of applied linguistics, ed. R. B. Kaplan, 182–192. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bardovi-Harling, K. and B. S. Hartford. 1996. Input in an institutional setting. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 18: 171–188.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beebe, L., T. Takahashi and R. Uliss-Weltz. 1990. Pragmatic transfer in ESL refusals. In Developing communicative competence in a second language, eds. R. Scarcella, E. Anderson and S. D. Krashen, 55–73. New York: Newbury House.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boxer, D. 2003. Critical issues in developmental pragmatics. In Pragmatic competence in foreign language teaching, eds. A. Martinez-Flor, E. Uso-Juan and A. Fernandez, 45–67. Castello: Servei de Publicacions.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chomsky, N. 1980. Rules and representations. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, A. D. 1996. Developing the ability to perform speech acts. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 18: 253–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, A. D. 2005. Strategies for learning and performing L2 speech acts. Intercultural Pragmatics 2: 275–301.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cutting, J. 2002. Pragmatics and discourse: A resource book for students. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crystal, D. 1997. The Cambridge encyclopaedia of language. (second edition). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ellis, R. and C. Roberts. 1987. Two approaches for investigating second language acquisition in context. In Second language acquisition in context, ed. R. Ellis, 3–29. London: Prentice Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Golato, A. 2003. Studying compliment responses: A comparison of DCTs and recordings of naturally occurring talk. Applied Linguistics 24: 90–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gregg, K. R.1986. Reviewed work(s): The input hypothesis: Issues and implications by Stephen D. Krashen. TESOL Quarterly 20: 116–122.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grundy, P. 1995. Doing pragmatics. London: Edward Norton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holtgraves, T. M. 2002. Language as social action: Social psychology and language use. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kasper, G. 2001. Classroom research on interlanguage pragmatics. In Pragmatics in language teaching, eds. K. R. Rose and G. Kasper, 33–60. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Kasper, G. 2004. Speech acts on (inter)action: Repeated questions. Intercultural Pragmatics 1: 125–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kasper, G. and R. Schmidt.1996. Developmental issues in interlanguage pragmatics. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 18: 149–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kondo, S. 2010. Apologies: Raising learners’ cross-cultural awareness. In Speech act performance: Theoretical, empirical and methodological issues, eds. A. Martinez-Flor and E. Uso-Juan, 145–162. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leech, G. 1983. Principles of pragmatics. London: Longman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Levinson, S. C. 1983. Pragmatics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • LoCastro, V. 2003. An introduction to pragmatics: Social action for language teachers. Michigan MI: Michigan Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lowe, V. 1998. “Unhappy” confessions in The Crucible: A pragmatic explanation. In Exploring the language of drama, eds. J. Culpeper, M. Short and P. Verdonk, 128–141. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Martinez-Flor, A and E. Uso-Juan 2010. Pragmatics and speech act performance. In Speech act performance: Theoretical, empirical and methodological issues, eds. A. Martinez-Flor and E. Uso-Juan, 3–20. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nikula, T. 2002. Teacher talk reflecting pragmatic awareness: A look at EFL and content-based classroom settings. Pragmatics 12: 447–467.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ohta, A. S. 1994. Socializing the expression of affect: An overview of affective particle use in the Japanese as a foreign language classroom. Issues in Applied Linguistics 5: 447–467.

    Google Scholar 

  • Robinson, J. D. 2004. The sequential organization of “explicit” apologies in naturally occurring English. Research on Language & Social Interaction 37: 291–330.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Safont, M.P. 2005. Third language learners: Pragmatic production and awareness. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.

    Google Scholar 

  • Savignon, S. 1985. Evaluation of communicative competence: The ACTFL provisional proficiency guidelines. Modern Language Journal 59: 129–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schauer, G. A. 2009. Interlanguage pragmatic development: The study abroad context. London: Continuum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Searle, J. R. 1975. Indirect speech acts. In Syntax and semantics 3: Speech acts, eds. P. Cole and J. L. Morgan, 59–82. New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sifianou, M. 1999. Politeness phenomena in England and Greece. A cross-cultural perspective. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Swain, M. 2000. French immersion research in Canada: Recent contributions to SLA and applied linguistics. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 20: 199–212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tateyama, Y. and G. Kasper. 2008. Talking with a classroom guest: Opportunities for learning Japanese pragmatics. In Investigating pragmatics in foreign language learning, teaching and testing, eds. E. Alcon and A. Martinez-Flor, 45–71. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thomas, J. 1983. Cross-cultural pragmatic failure. Applied Linguistics 4: 91–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thomas, J. 1995. Meaning in interaction. New York: Longman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trosborg, A. 1995. Interlanguage pragmatics. Requests, complaints and apologies. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Washburn, G. N. 2001. Using situation comedies for pragmatic language teaching and learning. TESOL Journal 10: 21–26.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Klimczak, A. (2011). British Politeness in a Polish ESL/EFL Classroom?. In: Extending the Boundaries of Research on Second Language Learning and Teaching. Second Language Learning and Teaching. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20141-7_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics