Enhancing Second-Language Learners' Pragmatic Competence: Underlying the Performance of Speech Acts
Keywords:
Pragmatic competence, EFL learners, performance, speech acts
Abstract
This study draws attention to a growing area of interest in second language acquisition research, especially pragmatic ability. It focuses on a subfield of pragmatics known as speech acts and examines the mechanisms that underpin their execution. The researcher used a test as an instrument for data collection. The results of this test reveal that the respondents’ answers were semi- native patterns close in comparison to those of the native speakers, who also have varied ones. It has been observed that students resort to their own cultural norms because of their imperfect knowledge of the target culture. In other words, they have little knowledge of what expressions to use in what situations. The students need to know how and when politeness strategies are realized appropriately in L2. The findings mentioned above call for an urgent need to reconsider the teaching of speaking skills at the university. If one of the main objectives of any English program is to make learners effective communicators, it is necessary to build up a syllabus. including pragmatic aspects with the aim of developing learners’ pragmatic competence.
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References
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https://doi.org/10.21744/lingcure.v6n1.2197
2. Ahmed, A.O.A. (2018). EFL Teachers' and Students' Approaches in Using Teaching Aids: A Case Study. Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Special Issue on CALL (4), 109- 124. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/call4.8
3. Ahmed, A. O. A. (2020). The effectiveness of the methods in use to promote fluency among EFL learners at foreign languages department, Taif University. European Scientific Journal, 16(11), 1-12. DOI: https://doi.org/10.19044/esj.2020.v16n11p1
4. Alinezhad, A. (2015). The significance of pragmatics in English language teaching. ELT Voices-India’International Journal for Teachers of English, 5(1), 19-24.
5. Bardovi-Harlig, K., Hartford, B. Mahan-Taylor, R. Morgan, M. and Reynolds, D. (1996). Developing awareness: closing the conversation. In power, Pedagogy and Practice, ed. T. hedge and N. Whitney. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
6. Bardovi-Harlig, K. (2017). Acquisition of L2 pragmatics. The Routledge handbook of instructed second language acquisition, 224-245.
7. Barron, A. (2020). Pragmatic competence in EIL. In Pragmatics pedagogy in English as an international language (pp. 19-43). Routledge.
8. Billmyer, K. (1990). " I really like your lifestyle": ESL Learners learning how to compliment. Working Papers in Educational Linguistics (WPEL), 6(2), 3.
9. Boxer, D. and Pickering, L. (1995). Problems in the presentation of speech acts in ELT materials: the case of complaints. ELT Journal 49(1), 44-58. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/49.1.44
10. Cresti, E. (2020). The pragmatic analysis of speech and its illocutionary classification according to the Language into Act Theory. In Search of Basic Units of Spoken Language: A corpus-driven approach, 94, 181-219.
11. Crystal, D. (Ed.). (2003). Cambridge encyclopedia of language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
12. Deda, N. (2013). The role of Pragmatics in English language teaching. Pragmatic competence. Academic Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, 2(4), 63. DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2012.v2n4p63
13. Hashimoto, R. (2000). Retrospective accounts of thought processes in problematic situations experienced by Japanese non-native speakers of English. Indiana University.
14. Holmes, J. (2008). An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Longman Group UK Limited.
15. House, J. (1996). Developing pragmatic fluency in English as a foreign language: Routines and metapragmatic awareness. Studies in second language acquisition, 18(2), 225-252.DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263100014893
16. House, J. & Kasper, G. (1981). Politeness markers in English and German. In Coulmas, ed, 1981, (pp. 157-185). DOI 10.1515/9783110809145.157
17. Howatt, A. (with Widdowson, H.) (2004). A history of English language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
18. Hymes, D. (1971). On communicative competence. In Pride, J. & J. Holmes (eds.), Sociolinguistics, (pp. 269–293). London: Penguin.
19. Kasper, G. (1997). Can pragmatic competence be taught?. http://www. nflrc. hawaii. edu/NetWorks/NW06/. http://www.nflrc.hawaii.edu/NetWorks/NW06/
20. Larsen-Freeman, D. (2003). Teaching language: From grammar to grammaring. Heinle.
21. Leech, G. (1983). Principles of Pragmatics. Longman: London.
22. Mazulfah, M. (2019). The future and challenge of pragmatics in English language teaching. Journal of Pragmatics Research, 1(2), 156-165. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18326/jopr.v1i2.156-165
23. Mey, J. (2007). Pragmatics: An Introduction. Blackwell Publishing, UK.
24. Mohammad, A. Y., & Ahmed, H. A. (2021). Evaluating EFL University Learners’ Pragmatic Competence: Brown and Levinson’s Negative Politeness Strategies as a Model. Academic Journal of Nawroz University, 10(3), 366-381. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25007/ajnu.v10n3a1188
25. Morady Moghaddam, M., Murray, N., & Mirfendereski, Y. (2020). Pragmatic competence as a regulator of foreign language speaking proficiency. Porta Linguarum, 33, 163-182. https://www.ugr.es/~portalin/articulos/PL_issue33%...Myers-
26. Rose, K. and Kasper, G. (2001). Pragmatics in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
27. Swan, M. (1985). A critical look at the communicative approach (2). ELT journal, 39(2), 76-87.
https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/39.1.2
28. Taguchi, N. (2019). Second language acquisition and pragmatics: An overview. The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition and pragmatics, 1-14.
29. Tanka, J., & Baker, L. R. (2014). Interactions 2: listening/speaking. McGraw-Hill.New York.
30. Thomas, J. A. (1985). The language of power: Towards a dynamic pragmatics. Journal of pragmatics, 9(6), 765-783.
Published
2026-01-22
How to Cite
Nadhreen, B. (2026). Enhancing Second-Language Learners’ Pragmatic Competence: Underlying the Performance of Speech Acts. European Scientific Journal, ESJ, 49, 353. Retrieved from https://eujournal.org/index.php/esj/article/view/20556
Section
ESI Preprints
Copyright (c) 2026 Basim Nadhreen
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
