Listening and Speaking Skill Development in a Tertiary EFL Context (Paperback)

English listening and speaking skill development has been a critical concern in EFL contexts such as Taiwan, where English is generally a language to learn in the classroom but not to have the opportunity to speak outside. Consequently, classroom practice has an indispensable role in EFL learners' skill development trajectory. Through micro-analysis of classroom discourse, this ethnographic study aims to show how a classroom community provided valuable opportunities for learners to engage not only in using English for communication but also in negotiating social relationships. Despite limited English abilities, learners employed different types of participation patterns as they manipulated power-in-interaction in micro contexts. Moreover, this study demonstrates how an EFL classroom can work as a "community of practice," in which novice-expert relations enrich peer interactions and negotiations of meaning. This analysis helps to understand classroom discourse in an EFL context, and provides teachers and practitioners in English education, and anyone interested in teaching in Asia with a social perspective into EFL learners' language development.