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In the so-called minimally verbal, a negligible degree of expressing communication behavior is diagnosed, which significantly reduces participation in interaction and reduces the effectiveness of communication. The minimal-verbal communication behaviors of preschool children in interaction are characterized by: sub-competence and transitional competence. With a shortage of linguistic resources, the child has specific communication behaviors, i.e. strategies that involve participation in interaction, the process of receiving and decoding meanings, and to a large extent the production and transmission of a message that is as understandable to the environment as possible. With limited language tools, children entering preschool education either withdraw from communicating or look for any possible means of interaction –both strategies can be observed in both natural and simulated pedagogical situations. The minimum verbosity of pre-school children does not exclude the possibility of interaction with other communication partners. The gradual transition from the level of sub-competency and transitional competence to a higher level requires early therapeutic and pedagogical activities, incentives to use achievement strategies more often, and to build bridges between communicative, linguistic and cultural competences. Without therapy, the strategies used may lead to fossilization, i.e. inhibit communication and the development of linguistic competence., In the so-called minimally verbal, a negligible degree of expressing communication behavior is diagnosed, which significantly reduces participation in interaction and reduces the effectiveness of communication. The minimal-verbal communication behaviors of preschool children in interaction are characterized by: sub-competence and transitional competence. With a shortage of linguistic resources, the child has specific communication behaviors, i.e. strategies that involve participation in interaction, the process of receiving and decoding meanings, and to a large extent the production and transmission of a message that is as understandable to the environment as possible. With limited language tools, children entering preschool education either withdraw from communicating or look for any possible means of interaction –both strategies can be observed in both natural and simulated pedagogical situations. The minimum verbosity of pre-school children does not exclude the possibility of interaction with other communication partners. The gradual transition from the level of sub-competency and transitional competence to a higher level requires early therapeutic and pedagogical activities, incentives to use achievement strategies more often, and to build bridges between communicative, linguistic and cultural competences. Without therapy, the strategies used may lead to fossilization, i.e. inhibit communication and the development of linguistic competence.

Although the ability to speak is usually seen as a key manifestation of learners’ ability in the target language they are attempting to master, research has not given ample attention to strategies that can be employed to enhance this skill. In fact, the bulk of such empirical investigations has mainly focused on communication strategies that are reactive devices, predominantly used to overcome difficulties in successful conveyance of meanings and messages, and even this line of inquiry has been neglected in recent years. The study reported in this paper aims to partially bridge this gap by examining the speaking strategies that advanced learners of English used in the performance of two communicative tasks, differing in the extent to which the participants were required to make a contribution to their successful completion. The data collected by means of open-ended questionnaires that were administered immediately after the completion of the two tasks yielded crucial insights into the nature of the speaking strategies and the ways in which the communicative goals inherent in task type influenced the choice of speaking strategies.

This article focuses on the potential conditions which are conducive to harmonious communication and the factors hampering desirable contact. It is presented in the context of selected models of communication, the dimensions of the communication process and communication strategies. Communication is interpreted here as comprehensive and omnipresent content (information, emotions etc.). It can be associated with the following characteristics: interactivity, orientation to the other party, entering into a dialogue, intentionality etc. An attempt at identifying conditions conductive to the desirable contact will be presented in the context of the selected models, the dimensions of the communication process and communication strategies., Przedmiotem opisu jest ukazanie potencjalnych uwarunkowań sprzyjających harmonijnemu porozumiewaniu się oraz czynników utrudniających fortunną komunikację. Próba ta została przedstawiona w kontekście wybranych modeli komunikacji, wymiarów procesu komunikowania oraz strategii komunikacyjnych. Komunikacji rozumianej jako całościowy i wszechobecny przekaz treści (informacji, emocji itp.) można przypisać następujące cechy: interakcyjność, nastawienie na drugą stronę, dialogowość, intencjonalność itp.

Przedmiotem opisu jest ukazanie potencjalnych uwarunkowań sprzyjających harmonijnemu porozumiewaniu się oraz czynników utrudniających fortunną komunikację. Próba ta została przedstawiona w kontekście wybranych modeli komunikacji, wymiarów procesu komunikowania oraz strategii komunikacyjnych. Komunikacji rozumianej jako całościowy i wszechobecny przekaz treści (informacji, emocji itp.) można przypisać następujące cechy: interakcyjność, nastawienie na drugą stronę, dialogowość, intencjonalność itp., This article focuses on the potential conditions which are conducive to harmonious communication and the factors hampering desirable contact. It is presented in the context of selected models of communication, the dimensions of the communication process and communication strategies. Communication is interpreted here as comprehensive and omnipresent content (information, emotions etc.). It can be associated with the following characteristics: interactivity, orientation to the other party, entering into a dialogue, intentionality etc. An attempt at identifying conditions conductive to the desirable contact will be presented in the context of the selected models, the dimensions of the communication process and communication strategies.

One of the pedagogical implications of the research on the Willingness to Communicate (WTC) might be to propose practical ways of making language learners more willing to communicate in the classroom. This study investigated the impact of teaching communication strategies (CSs) on Iranian EFL learners’ WTC. To this end, 8 intact classes were included as the experimental and control groups. The control group underwent regular language instruction, while the experimental group received the treatment (i.e., communication strategy training). The self-report measurement of WTC (MacIntyre, Baker, Clément, & Conrad, 2001) was done before (pre-test) and after the treatment (post-test). The results of the independent-samples t test showed that the degree of WTC of the treatment group was significantly higher compared with that of the control group. It was concluded that teaching CSs helps learners become more willing to communicate in the classroom.

In recent years, a number of studies have been conducted with regard to communication strategy training and performance on communicative tasks (Lam, 2009; Nakatani, 2010; Naughton, 2006). This study aims to add to the literature by examining how two strategies, clarifying/confirming and extending a conversation, and two methods of teaching the strategies, affected the interactional sequences and overall group discussion performance of EFL students at a university in Japan. Pre and posttreatment small-group discussions were recorded for assessment, and a stimulated recall interview was administered to determine the participants’ perceptions of their learning and language use. Posttest results reveal that the experimental groups that were taught predetermined phrases aimed at clarifying/confirming and extending a conversation employed such phrases more frequently than the control group. However, this employment of phrases did not lead to higher gains in group discussion skills as the control group enjoyed the largest gains from pre to posttest. The researchers consider the findings in light of previous research, and conclude with recommendations for future research on the topic with special regard to research design.

This article aims to explore whether well-attested findings in the fields of World Englishes (WE) and of English as a lingua franca (ELF) have determined a shift in perspective in the overall approach to English language teaching (ELT), and how far this shift has permeated teaching materials and coursebooks. The research study was carried out in Italy, a country where ELT coursebooks have often played a relevant role in introducing innovations in language teaching methodology. The research design included a corpus of ten coursebooks that have been published and adopted in Italian secondary schools in the last 6 years. The coursebooks were evaluated in terms of the presence or absence of references to WE and/or ELF, of awareness-raising activities, of the promotion of using English outside the school environment and of the use of effective English communication and intercultural strategies among nonnative speakers. Findings show that there have been no significant changes in the inclusion of WE- and ELForiented materials and related tasks, apart from the area of promotion of cultural and intercultural awareness.