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G R O U N D I N G I N T H E T E A C H I N G A N D L E A R N I N G O F L 2 P R A G M A T I C S
4
Reflections on the findings from this classroom-based exploratory study.
Reflect on the newly gained explicit knowledge or the change brought to 
the practice. Revisit initial beliefs and practice in light of this process.
5
Demonstration of newly gained knowledge. Discuss, write, and possibly
present the findings in and outside of the teachers’ local institutional 
context for dissemination and professional development.
6
Further professional development. Identify another area for inquiry in the
further exploration of ways to improve classroom practice.

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C H A P T E R 3
Collecting data reflecting
the pragmatic use of
language
Noriko Ishihara
Introduction
I
n teaching pragmatic language use in either spoken or written 
discourse, teachers need some language data (e.g., dialogues or
examples of writing) to be used as learners’ input. How should we obtain
authentic data that are reasonably natural and appropriate for classroom
purposes? Teachers also need to investigate learners’ pragmatic use of lan-
guage in natural or elicited discourse in order to provide effective instruc-
tion. In this section, we will discuss several means of obtaining samples of
language data reflecting pragmatic use of language – language use both from
fluent speakers to be used as a model and from L2 learners to be used for
diagnostic purposes. The data sources include:
■
intuition and introspection;
■
discourse completion tasks (DCTs);
■
role-plays;
■
recording of natural conversation; and
■
field observation of natural conversation.
First we will look briefly at these data collection methods along with some
examples of possible instruments. Then, we will study examples of data
obtained by means of such methods. Finally, we will discuss some pros and
cons of the various methods and instruments associated with each method.

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