What is it about?
This study examined how Japanese students learning English develop awareness of how people use language appropriately in social situations — for example, when making requests, giving compliments, or apologizing. Over one semester, students in five classrooms received different types of instruction using short video clips that showed everyday conversations. The lessons focused on two areas: the language forms used to perform speech acts (pragmalinguistics) and the social relationships between speakers (sociopragmatics).
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Why is it important?
Using a pre- and post-test design analyzed with mixed-effects models, results showed that students improved most in recognizing linguistic forms, but also gained awareness of social relationships. Interestingly, the most explicit instruction was not always the most effective. The findings suggest that video-based materials help students notice social and linguistic cues, and that teachers should consider both types of pragmatic knowledge when designing lessons and assessments.
Perspectives
In looking at classrooms and the learning research stemming from the endeavours teacher-practitioners engage in I have developed a real respect for the teaching profession and the service learners receive from dedicated instructors. Working with my co-author over this last decade has resulted in my having experienced some of the most rewarding opportunities to learn and grow. He was a wonderful mentor and will be missed. His perspective on the way analytical methods can reveal systematic patterns in the learning process opened my eyes to a great many things. I take things in differently because of what I learned from him.
John Rylander
Kyoto University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Learner gains from pragmatics instruction across contexts, Applied Pragmatics, November 2025, John Benjamins,
DOI: 10.1075/ap.22005.ryl.
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