Page 35 - 6688

35
contractions, little consonant cluster simplification, and so forth. Heavy stress is placed on
important content words, and there is a longer break at syntactic boundaries. The slower rate
not only increases acoustical accuracy but gives the learner more processing time.
The need to repair utterances to make them interpretable shows up in these special
registers - in vocabulary selection and syntactic change as well. There is less slang, fewer
idioms are used, and the vocabulary choices are toward high-frequency items. Definitions are
more explicitly marked either by formulas (e.g., "This means X," "It's a kind of X") or by
intonation (e.g., "a nickle? a five-cent piece?"). Along with a slower speech rate, we find short,
simple syntax, less pronominalization, and simpler noun phrases.
The discourse itself is also simplified in these special registers to make it possible for
learners to carry on conversations. To help learners participate, their conversation partners
may avoid asking questions for which the learner must offer considerable information. They
may use an or-choice or yes-no question. The learner need only make a choice of answers
offered as candidate responses, or simply respond "yes" or "no." Teachers may "fill in the
blank" when learners search for words or expressions. In a helpful conspiracy, they may offer
hints and finally even answer their own questions to make the communication easier for the
learner. This lightens the burden on the learner, and it also supplies a good deal of incidental
instruction.
In addition, questions from native speakers (whether teachers or other conversation
partners) form a temporary "scaffold" or format so that learners can participate in
conversations.
Finally, to make the ongoing conversation clearer, native speakers and teachers may
remodel the output of the learner into a more grammatical form. Teachers or other native
speakers learn to be responsive to each student's contribution, and modeling is a by-product
that can serve an unintentional instructional purpose.
In conclusion we can say that when communication begins to break down, repairs and
adjustments are made. Such repairs are common in all communication. They are even more
common in conversations involving learners. To overcome communication breakdowns when
one partner is not yet proficient in the language or in the content of the material being talked
about, we may use a fill-in-the-blank cooperative completion, rephrase questions so that less
language is demanded of the learner, supply answers, model the learner's response, or model
better forms of answers. All languages have a variety of repair mechanisms that can be used
to reframe messages in more acoustically adequate and interpretable forms.

5. Bracket signals
In all communication, there are signals to show that parts of the message "side
sequences” are not right on-line with the message of the moment. Goffman calls these bracket
signals. The brackets are like instructions for putting the ongoing talk or text on hold (don't
forget about it) so that you can return to it later if you wish. Such phrases as "by the way,"
"incidentally," "well, anyway(s)" serve as a bracket to return to the original topic.
There are, of course, many different signals - both verbal and nonverbal – that can be
used as bracket signals. Intonation and shifts in body position, for example, often mark asides:
One easy way to notice nonverbal bracketing signals is to turn down the sound on your
television set. With the volume off, the nonverbal signals used to show bracketing become
clear.