L2 Chinese learners’ pragmatic developmental patterns in data-driven instruction and computer-mediated communication (CMC)

This study examined second language (L2) Chinese learners’ developmental patterns of pragmatic competence in two computer-mediated communication (CMC) conditions: (1) CMC with data-driven instruction embedded in the course of CMC and (2) CMC without data-driven instruction. Learners’ pragmatic competence was operationalized as their ability to use a Chinese sentence final particle (SFP)neduring CMC with a native speaker partner. The study investigated: (1) whether learners (as a group) developed their use ofneover time in the two CMC conditions, and (2) how individual learners changed their use ofne(if any) in the two conditions. The quantitative analysis (token and type frequency ofne) revealed that CMC itself did not promote learners’ use ofne. However, it promoted learners’ production ofnewhen data-driven instruction was incorporated into CMC. Supporting the quantitative findings, the qualitative analysis showed that one learner in the CMC with data-driven instruction outperformed his counterpart in the CMC without data-driven instruction group in the diverse use ofne.