English in the real world what classroom pedagogy has not taught

doi: 10.1386/tjtm_00002_1 Keywords informal learning language exchange individual experience social authenticity self-motivation self-directed strategies dat Bao Monash University englis

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Transitions: Journal of Transient Migration

Volume 3 Number 2

© 2019 Intellect Ltd Article English language doi: 10.1386/tjtm_00002_1

Keywords

informal learning language exchange individual experience social authenticity self-motivation self-directed strategies

dat Bao

Monash University

english in the real world:

what classroom pedagogy

has not taught

aBstraCt

This article narrates the experiences of eight Japanese individuals who travelled to

Melbourne, Australia, not to study English in a formal classroom, but to activate

their language skills in a genuine social context Speakers were willing to take risk

in the social process to acquire fluency and develop confidence Based on data

gener-ated from two years’ observation of and interviews with the participants, the author

documented the pleasure and the challenges that occur in their unique experience

The project reveals a range of preferences, strategies and tension in the

language-using environment Educational implications are drawn from several key

charac-teristics of this self-motivated experiential model that may be absent in the current

academic discourse in English-language teaching practice.

How tHe ProJeCt tooK sHaPe

It was in Melbourne, where I have taught TESOL over the past twelve years,

that I observed a phenomenon that stays beyond my academic

experi-ence and that is yet to be documented in the TESOL research literature It

was a spontaneous movement of travellers from Japan to Australia with a

passion for developing English communication skills on their own accord

In the previous educational experiences of these individuals, English simply could not be developed in the classroom and in schools Frustrated by the system, the participants decided to take English into their own hands and build proficiency by themselves Most of these Japanese arrived in Australia alone and independently, neither in a group nor within any programme They neither know about one another; nor do they have clear strategies about how

to build language skills For each of them, developing English seems to be

an unknown adventure of their own choice Inspired by this phenomenon, the project investigated eight Japanese individuals’ experience of building language competence in the social setting of multicultural urban Melbourne

researCH desIGN

The study was developed with a phenomenological and ethnographic design

in mind It was phenomenological in the sense that participants’ experience was portrayed in the first-person point of view It was ethnographic for follow-ing the same group of participants over an extended period of time with an open mind in search of fresh reality Instruments of documentation comprise observation notes in the form of a journal and face-to-face follow-up views in public settings In-depth data analysis is characterized by an inter-pretivist stance through a thematic inquiry process whereby both journal and interview notes merge to bring out leading sub-themes in relation to the topic

FoCUs oF tHe stUdy

The study spotlights individual experiences through a range of learning behaviour including personal resources, choices, conditions strategies, interac-tion styles, self-control, reflecinterac-tion, emointerac-tion, struggle and the kind of support that participants might seek These constructs, however, are not pre-deter-mined but they mainly serve as a flexible checklist to help keep track of vari-ous aspects of communication for target language development

The project pays particular attention to how learners exercise autonomy and demonstrate their quest for new ways of language development that are social-oriented and that bear some features of immersion language learn-ing It also examines the nature of learning experienced by Japanese learners

of English with respect to positive conditions and hindrance in the commu-nication process As far as research on linguistic and cultural immersion is concerned, although there has been tremendous acknowledgement of the social dimension of second-language development, little research has paid attention to how language learners build and acquire skills through the use of public networking (Kurata 2010)

CoNteXt aNd researCH sIte

Although a large proportion of the Japanese population live in a largely mono-lingual society without the urge for English language skills (Yuasa 2010), a humble percentage of Japanese are inclined to look beyond the contented envi-ronment of home (Asaoka and Yano 2009) The visitors’ interest in Australia has

to do not only with the living affordability and proximity to their home but also with the pleasant lifestyle in Melbourne, a city that has become famous world-wide for its livability over the past several years The Working Holiday Program established in 1975 for cultural exchange between British and Australian youth has seen significant expansion and has now included Japan, among several

other countries (Clarke 2004) Apart from the 360,000 Japanese arriving on a

student visa in 2017 (Department of Education and Training 2017), the number

of Japanese visitors to Australia has made up Australia’s fifth largest inbound

market for visitor arrivals (Tourism Australia 2017)

The broad location of the project is the central area of Melbourne city The

study particularly zooms in on particular landmarks where verbal interaction

among participants and their newly acquainted peers actually takes place

Such places, which include cafes, bars and libraries situated in the most

attrac-tive vicinity of the city, serve as informal language-exchange hubs although

they were not originally designed for language purposes Two locations where

I gathered most of my data are Gloria Jeans café and Mangakan How-How

library Once or twice a week, users of English and Japanese would come here

to socialize and converse in these languages

Although there is no accurate documentation with respect to when the

above locations started to attract language exchangers, most participants are

aware that 2008 was the year when many Japanese, international and local

people were getting together on a casual basis to socialize Over time, such

meetings gradually turned into a fixed routine on designated dates as they

went through local advertising channels such as social applications, public

bulletins and by word of mouth The whole idea of such socialization is not so

much about making friends but more importantly, it arose from the pressing

need among many Japanese for exposure to natural English input from native

and international speakers Local and international residents with interest

in learning Japanese then took the opportunity to practise the language in

exchange with their verbal English resources that they can offer

PartICIPaNts

I first had the opportunity to get to know a few Japanese individuals when I

went to a Mangakan How-How library in Melbourne to practise my Japanese

with native-Japanese visitors at this location My recruitment of the

partici-pants came mainly from my personal network with language-exchange

part-ners at the above-mentioned location In this process, I approached individuals

at the language-exchange setting to express my interest in interviewing them

and invite their participation on a voluntary basis Neiko and Eiji, both aged

20, came for one semester as exchange students in an undergraduate study

programme at two different universities Four others, Keiko, Madoka, Tetsushi

and Naoki, aged between 21 and 30 years, took time off from their university

study in Japan to come to Australia for the cultural and linguistic exposure,

simply out of the impulse to see the world The remaining two, Yumi, aged

30, and Toyama, age 50, connected the visit with their careers in tourism and

international relations, respectively, both of which require rather intensive use

of English By the time this study concluded, the participants had stayed in

Australia between six months and two years, an extended time sufficient to

share with me their complex set of experiences with English communication

in the real world

How PartICIPaNts PraCtIse LaNGUaGe

Mangakan How-How library welcomes language-exchange members every

Monday and Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m The designated room that hosts

language-exchange visitors is called Pera-Pera Kai Interaction happens by way

of two or three partners sitting down together to converse for fifteen minutes

in English, followed by the subsequent fifteen minutes in Japanese With the help of a facilitator, every twenty minutes each person is organized to sit with

a new partner so that no one works with anyone for too long This working pattern allows each individual to engage in verbal exchange with a variety

of interlocutors to increase the variety of communication styles, partnerships, proficiencies and interpersonal compatibilities According to Edasawa and Kabata (2007), this form of mutual, open exchange is a type of tandem devel-opment that plays the role of benefiting both learning parties

A second location was Gloria Jeans Café, which receives language-exchange public every Saturday from 5 to 7 p.m However, the café only provides space without organizing any activities, bearing in mind that partici-pants also serve as customers who might order coffee and soft drinks if they wish Due to the lack of arrangement, visitors tend to sit in groups and make their own choices regarding who they team with, how long they stay and how they wish to exchange languages There are no rules whatsoever with respect

to what style of communication is encouraged or discouraged The operating styles, ways of interaction and the climates of these two locations are vastly different, which affects how one learns to develop social and language skills,

as will be discussed in the data analysis Since the project investigates learning that happens in a real social setting, not the formal classroom, by people who improvise their own ways of learning, it will be useful to connect that natural-istic model to the literature of informal, experiential education

dIsCoUrse oN INForMaL LaNGUaGe edUCatIoN

I would like to begin this discussion by clarifying that I do not identify this phenomenon with language-immersion programmes, simply because in such a programme, the dual role of classroom instruction and mentor guid-ance would be essential (Brault 2001; Cheng 2012; Qiang and Siegel 2012) whereas in this case study, these two features are non-existent I also do not connect my case study with what is commonly known as key-pal language exchange as the latter would embrace the choice of digital media for commu-nication for main learning benefits (Bower and Kawaguchi 2011; Edasawa and Kabaya 2007; Schwienhorst 2004) while the nature of the case study happens

on a face-to-face basis Another model that one might think of is a country-based exchange programme, which involves students living with host fami-lies, building social capital with the help of this family network, develop skills through attending classes and being subject to the management of schools (see, e.g., Schmidt-Rinehart and Knight 2004; Portes 2000) The present study, however, does not contain these elements In brief, although this project is about language users helping each other and exchanging such support, it has its own distinctive features that do not reflect the key features of language immersion, key-pal language exchange and in-country exchange programmes, which are commonly recognized models in the discourse

In a word, the nature of language-exchange activities in this project is unique and has not been documented in the literature Having said this, the closest concept that I could relate to, which to some degree might reflect the philosophy of this case study, could be naturalistic learning or informal education Informal learning is self-directed erudition so embedded into our everyday lives that we often do not recognize it as learning and probably underestimate the amount of time that we devote to it (Livingstone 2001)

A second feature of this type of learning is that individuals obtain most of

the second-language knowledge informally through conversation,

observa-tion or trial-and-error A third characteristic has to do with what Livingstone

(2001: 4) observes as ‘any activity involving the pursuit of understanding,

knowledge or skill which occurs without the presence of externally imposed

curricular criteria’ A fourth quality is that this learning is often of an

acci-dental and unpredictable nature, a concept that Kukulska-Hulme (2006: 5)

describes as ‘stumble and learn’ Comas-Quinn and Mardomingo (2009)

add that it is the knowledge and skills that learners have not set out to

acquire but chance upon in conversation, listening to the radio or web

surf-ing, among other activities In short, informal learning has been perceived

as being self-directed, embedded, observational, trial-and-error, externally

imposed, accidental and unpredictable

Informal learning has a self-driven nature According to Elsie (2013),

research has demonstrated that self-initiated learning represents a stronger

route to academic success, which might allow individuals to even outdo their

counterparts with higher IQ or higher marks in schools Such learning has

an element of risk in it, in the sense that learners are willing to try out new

ideas, become involved in new experiences and do not live in fear of making

mistakes, instead drawing lessons from them

By and large, the topic of self-initiated learning in a naturalistic social

setting remains under-researched This is because self-education often bears

such an unpredictable nature that it becomes a challenge to look at the

outcome, while it remains more realistic to examine learner beliefs, attitudes

and experiences One case in point is an ethnographic study conducted by

Edasawa and Kabata (2007) in which language learning is viewed through

bilingual communication as mediated by online technologies The project

was conducted between Japanese university students learning English and

Canadian university students learning Japanese According to Nielson (2011),

there is hardly any empirical research into the outcome of self-learning as far

as computer-assisted modes are concerned This is again due to the

irregular-ity of learners’ success, which depends largely on individual effort and skilful

selection of learning resources

data dIsCUssIoN aNd MaIN FINdINGs

The naturalistic but conscious nature of learning

Although an informal study is often connected with subconsciousness

(Livingstone 2001), participants’ experiences tell a different story It was

observed that most participants did not merely socialize but made mindful

attempts to occasionally take their own notes as a way of keeping track of

their own learning The notes include individual words and clusters of speech

The role of learner attention to salient features of the target language is a

factor that pushes language development (see, e.g., Bialystok 1978; Rutherford

and Sharwood Smith 1985) The role of consciousness versus

subconscious-ness, also known as intentional versus incidental learning, for decades has

been a topic of controversy in the field of second-language acquisition

(Hulstijn 2008; Schmidt 1990) In fact, the Japanese in the study seem

satis-fied with the harmony between informal and intentional learning conditions,

manifested by the social nature of interaction and the academic effort of

note-taking This compromise is not unique to this case study but has been

recog-nized in a document known as Communication of European Commission

in 2001, in which the compromise between formal and informal learning

is referred to as non-formal learning According to Pettenati and Ranieri (2006), non-formal educational experience has a socially implicit nature not assigned as learning and an intentional nature from the learner’s perspec-tive Furthermore, discourse related to second-language acquisition has often highlighted both subconscious and conscious learning modes as the two lanes

of the same route that boost up learners’ language development (Ellis 2012)

The importance of a positive social climate

The current discourse in TESOL does not seem to connect the role of learn-ers’ cultural traits to informal learning Without this recognition, it appears that all learners from all cultural backgrounds who are involved in informal education would tend to behave in the same way In fact, the participants in this project not only express interest in external learning situations but also reflect on their own individual and cultural needs Neko shares her pref-erence towards the learning climate, which denotes the need for a secure speaking zone that many Japanese yearn for: ‘I have been to several other language exchange hubs in Melbourne, such as Japaneasy, Meetup and JASE, but I prefer Pera-Pera, the reason being that we can talk in a small group in Pera-Pera Kai’

Similar views have been expressed by other participants:

When I was staying in Brisbane, there were some language exchange centres, but they are all like JASE – we sit in a pub or cafe, it is too noisy and there are no special rules That’s why I was pleased to discover a new kind of language exchange in Melbourne

(Madoka)

I am a regular client of another language exchange as well Its weak point is that it is difficult to catch what other guests talk about because many people speak at the same time in one room Pera-Pera Kai is differ-ent from that one It features the way of face to face talk I suppose it has

an advantage in developing language skills, especially for beginners

(Toyama) The cultural value that comes into play in this scenario is the fact that the Japanese participants come here to seek a safe, quiet and pleasant climate – unlike other language-exchange settings that often involve multiple activities (drinking, eating, talking, dating), sounds (music, chat, traffic on the main road) and movement (people come and go as they please without logistic arrange-ments such as pairing or grouping) It has been acknowledged that the broader social context often exerts a powerful impact on second-language develop-ment (Walqui 2000), which often refers to the important relationship between classroom learning and the need for such learning to be socially applicable (see, e.g., Herrington et al 2010; Perkins 1999; Pugh and Bergin 2005)

Awareness of social authenticity

It has been emphasized in the current discourse that for second-language learning to be productive, it should be constantly linked to real-world social settings (Herrington et al 2010; Perkins 1999; Pugh and Bergin 2005) A deep sense of authentic communication is recognized when participants feel that

it is unnatural for a Japanese person to speak English to a Japanese partner,

simply because this pattern of pairing does not reflect authentic conversation

Data show that when a homogenous Japanese group is mutually involved in

a conversation in English, that is, among themselves rather than with

non-Japanese partners, several problems arise that are related to hierarchy in L2

proficiency, the cultural silent norm, the need for intensive observation and

the lack of spontaneous talk Such challenges are expressed in the following

quotes:

When I speak English with other Japanese, I have to consider their level

With native speakers, I can use any words and phrases that I’ve learnt,

including difficult ones, but with Japanese, I should consider whether

they can understand me or not That means I sometimes need to speak

in a simpler way than I would like to

(Neko)

I don’t feel comfortable when there are other Japanese in the group

There are often people who stay silent most of the time because they

are shy, nervous or care too much about things Many Japanese prefer to

engage in ningen-kansatsu (which means watching people) They prefer

to observe and listen to what others say, and they never join in This puts

pressure on other people in the group

(Tetsushi)

It may be useful to note that authenticity means more than simply using

authentic materials, but the nature of interaction must also have an

authen-tic quality to it, in the sense that reason or motive for communication must

be natural, reflecting real-world exchange of meaning, rather than purely

pedagogical According to Brown et al (1989a, 1989b), learning is a process

of enculturation where the authentic activity and social interaction are the

central components of learning When socialization is unreal, true

negotia-tion of meaning is unlikely to take place and that would impede development

(Blake 2000; Blake and Zyzik 2003; Kötter 2003)

The reluctance to work with fellow Japanese, however, does not

neces-sarily mean that the participants strongly prefer to speak English with native

speakers Although it is sometimes highlighted in the discourse that linguistic

benefits can be earned from maximizing contact with native speakers (Cadd

2012), alternative views have been recognized in this respect: for instance,

Varonis and Gass (1983) highlight non-native – non-native communication as

the scene where negotiation of meanings takes place in earnest, bringing with

it substantial linguistic and sociocultural benefits Freed (1998) also points out

contact with ethnic minorities and international residents within the target

community as a valuable resource for practising language skills under

real-world conditions

As it turns out, the unfaltering exposure to native English does not seem to

be important to the participants, who feel contented learning from both native

and native speakers Furthermore, some even express the favour for

non-native international partners because in many cases non-non-native accents and

syntax are easier to understand and the power relationship tends to remain

more balanced when participants speak with someone not much more fluent

in English than themselves This understanding is shown through Neko’s

explanation of her comfort in working with a non-native conversational

partner: ‘I am more comfortable speaking with non-native English speakers, because they are usually accepting of my broken English and can guess what I mean when I don’t make sense But this really depends on a person’

This view, however, was not held by most participants in this project For example, Naoki strictly prefers native English speakers as his conversa-tion partners: ‘I would like to speak with only native speakers, because it’s very good practice’ Eiji, likewise, feels that native speakers will enable him

to practise his English in the most effective manner, although he does not mind communicating with non-native speakers: ‘I prefer the people who speak English as their first language, so it will be helpful for me to train my English effectively But of course, it would be fine to speak to other foreigners

in English, too’ Tetsushi, by the same token, reflects: ‘It is difficult for me to talk with native speakers, but I think it is the best way to learn English quickly,

so I prefer to speak with them as much as possible’

These participants prefer to jump straight into the deep end and take on a challenge of conversing with local native speakers Arguably, this is a signifi-cant attempt that means a great deal in the learning process According to Ellis (2012), when learners struggle to push their output beyond their existing abil-ity, language development is highly likely to occur

The two quite different, yet reasonable in their own way, viewpoints on the native/non-native partner preference that have been expressed by Pera-Pera Kai participants can be neatly brought together by considering Dobao’s (2012) research Dobao’s study investigated language learners seeking help from both native and non-native collaborators, and has shown that learners’ own goals and enthusiasm transcend the native-speaker status of their learn-ing partner, with those most eagerly involved in a task produclearn-ing the most collaborative learning climate, irrespective of whether they are paired with a native or a non-native speaker

The logistic aspect of learning

The Japanese library, Pera-Pera Kai, not only offers its space to language exchange to take place but also organizes such communication with polite-ness and hospitality There is a facilitator who provides seats and pairs people up, changing conversation partners every ten minutes to increase fluency practice, putting people in small groups for variety This learning situation takes on the following positive qualities that might not be the case

in a classroom setting:

Social authenticity – the context of conversation is realistic as the two

part-ners exchange real information and talk about their real living world They

do not make up information or try to serve the content of a textbook This

is a natural process that is different from many formal language classrooms where learners are constantly confronted with the need to practice real-world communication skills through the support of authentic materials, such

as restaurant menus, travel adverts, news items and so on Unfortunately, the use of such ‘authentic materials’ does not necessarily make language use authentic

Minimal disruption – the language-exchange situation demonstrates the

most effective use of the time as all kinds of distraction do not exist: there is

no need to worry about teacher control, peer assessment, learning focus, exam requirement, classroom regulation, textbook topic, syllabus implementation and school disciplines, among many other distractions that might interfere

with learning They also do not worry about filling in class time because each

partner has the right to leave the learning scene if he or she is busy and needs

to be somewhere else

Self-directed learning strategies – language-exchange partners invent ways

of learning and using languages as they help each other perform actions such

as self-selecting conversation topics, writing down words, explaining the use,

guessing meaning, asking questions, giving examples, translating,

imitat-ing each other’s pronunciation, drawimitat-ing pictures, makimitat-ing jokes, exchangimitat-ing

cultural knowledge, sharing experiences, expressing enjoyment and relating

content to their real world Such strategies are situation-based,

personal-ized, self-controlled and mutually helpful They are autonomously generated

from the actual learning circumstances, which are different from the strategies

directed by the teacher or by textbook exercises, whereby students need to

conform with classroom pedagogy

Power balance – there is no hierarchy in the language exchange because the

distinction between native versus non-native speakers is not an issue Within

ten minutes of English conversation, the Australian is a native speaker, but in

the subsequent ten minutes of Japanese conversation, the Japanese switches

roles to being native

In short, the characteristics of language-exchange activities in this project

include being authentic, undisrupted, self-directed and power-free Some

participants express their appreciation of such a climate Neko shares her

feel-ing: ‘It is easier to talk to people in Pera-Pera – because I know they came to

Pera-Pera to talk so I don’t need to be afraid People aren’t always nice to us

outside’

I particularly pay attention to the feeling of ‘being nice’, which I believe

is a very important feature of a learning space that sometimes seems to be

absent from both the classroom and the society By making the experience

more positive, we would be able to help learners feel most at ease to

maxi-mize their language skill development As Neko comments: ‘The atmosphere

of Pera-Pera Kai is very comfortable, I feel at home’

This feeling is not only generated by the organizers of Pera-Pera Kai but

also brought together by the participants who come here by choice and share

the same learning interest Their mutual behaviour is often friendly,

accom-modating and courteous, as Neko remarks: ‘People who come to Pera-Pera

are usually social, talkative, and nice Not all people are like that outside’

Kawamori also shares the same feeling: ‘Other Japanese guests complimented

me on my English skills, I feel very pleased about that’

Arguably, the combination between leadership and self-initiated

partici-pation in the Pera-Pera Kai learning model contributes to a vibrant learning

climate in this context In fact, it is highlighted in the relevant discourse that

the role of mediators is of great importance Both management of learning,

such as class management in formal settings, and behavioural management in

informal learning are an indispensable part of education (see, e.g., Armstrong

and Frith 1984; Koziol and Burns 1985) Reflecting on why he does not enjoy

poorly-organized language-exchange settings, Toyama comments on his

previous experience: ‘There were two big tables for chatting, but I thought it

was not well facilitated by the organiser That’s why I stopped going there’

Most participants view the management style at Pera-Pera Kai

as a highly positive aspect of the model in which they feel relaxed in a

formal setting – a combination that is not extremely common in many

language learning contexts In addition, most participants acknowledge