Discourse Performance In Minimal Immersion And Non-Immersion Groups: A Comparative Analysis*

Abstract

In die navorsing wat hier beskryf word, val die hoofklem op die uitwerking van immersie, 'n term wat op die breedste moontlike wyse gebruik word om onderrig deur middel van 'n vreemde taal in selfs een sicoolvak in te sluit—aldus minimale immersie. Die belangrikste doelstelling met die studie was om 'n raamwerk te ontwikkel en toe te pas wat op 'n analitiese manier die uitvoering van n diskoerstaak in die vreemde taal (Engels) kan evalueer. Die teoretiese raamwerk wat ontwikkel is, sluit in aspekte van diskoersanalise wat op taalhandelingsteorie gegrond is en ook navorsing oor spreekbeurtneming. Die proefpersone was Graad 7- studente wie se huistaal Duits was, waarvan sommige in die Schleswig-Holstein eksperimentele immersieprogram deelgeneem het (vgl. bv. Wode 1994). Anders as die twee kontrolegroepe, het die studente in die immersiegroep hulle geskiedenislesse deur middel van Engels ontvang. Die studente se uitings is inter alia in terme van 'n stel diskoershan-delinge (bv. Elisitering; Direktief; Repliek-meedeling; Responsie; Kommentaar; Erkenning) ontleed wat volgens die hoeveelheid inisiatief wat elkeen verteenwoordig, gerangskik word. Die navorsing dui aan dat die immersiegroep in terme van die meeste kriteria beter gevaar het. Dit bevestig evalueerders se holistiese skattings van die prestasievlakke van die verskillende groepe en help ook om daardie skattings te eksplisiteer. Die artikel sluit af met 'n paar opmerkings oor die waarde van hierdie diskoersanalitiese benadering en die relevansie van die studie in die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks.

The main focus of the research reported on in this paper is the results of immersion, this term here being understood in its widest possible sense so as to include foreign-language instruction in just one content subject—a case of minimal immersion. The primary objective of the study was to develop and apply a framework for evaluating analytically the performance of immersion and non-immersion groups on a discourse task in the foreign language (English). The theoretical framework developed employs aspects of speech-act based discourse analysis as well as work on turn-taking. The subjects were German first-language Grade 7 students, some of whom were participating in the Schleswig-Holstein experimental immersion programme (cf. e.g. Wode 1994). Students in the immersion group differed from those in the two control groups in that they received their history lessons through the medium of English rather than German. The subjects' utterances were analysed, amongst others, in terms of a set of discourse acts (e.g. Elicit; Directive; Reply-inform; Respond; Comment; Acknowledge) that were arranged along a cline in accordance with the degree of student initiative each act might be said to reflect. The results of the study showed the immersion group to be superior on most measures, corroborating raters' holistic assessments of the groups' performances and also helping to explicate such assessments. The paper concludes with a few brief remarks on the value of this discourse-analytical approach and the relevance of the study in the South African context.