Aleksandra Kappenberg from the Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg will be giving a talk titled Multimodal Initiations and Reactions of Second Language Learners in Shared Picture Book Reading Interactions (abstract below).

Abstract:

Initiating conversations and responding to initiations of others via nonverbal (gestural) and verbal means are prerequisites for participating in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) interactions. However, research to date has not addressed the multimodal initiations and responses of young second language learners (SLLs) in natural ECEC settings, who are especially challenged to participate in their new linguistic environment. This study investigated their initiations and responses during shared picture book reading interactions with ECEC practitioners with a focus on modalities, strategies and types of utterances. Participants were 30 SLLs (M_Age = 54.03 months) in German ECEC institutions. Video recordings of shared picture book reading interactions were annotated for nonverbal (gestural), verbal and multimodal initiation as well as response strategies.
Results showed that SLLs responded to the initiations of the practitioners predominantly verbally and initiated interactions mostly multimodally. Furthermore, the children produced more combinations of multi-word utterances and gestures in their initiations than in their responses. These findings complement the body of work demonstrating the varied communicative skills young SLLs use in their interactions as well as by underlining the importance of gestural cues in everyday ECEC interactions.

Organised by: Dr Marta Wesierska

Email for teams link: marta.wesierska@warwick.ac.uk

Forthcoming talks: