PAC7 at JALT2008 Proceedings Article Data

Article title, keywords, abstract, and writer profiles

Title:
Desperate Housewives in an EFL classroom

Keywords:
television drama, pragmatics, speaker-implied meaning, classroom methodology, lesson materials

Abstract:
This article will discuss the use of a popular American drama, Desperate Housewives, as a vehicle for the teaching and learning of pragmatics in a Japanese university English as a Foreign Language classroom. The TV program was successfully used to raise learners' awareness of ways that speakers communicate their messages to hearers even though speakers do not always say exactly what they mean. Classroom methodology, lesson materials, and future course revisions will also be explained.

Writer profiles:
Sybil Armstrong is an assistant professor of English as a Foreign Language at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka. She is a member of the JALT Pragmatics SIG. She feels that the teaching and learning of pragmatics in classrooms is an exciting and enjoyable way to spend an hour or so.

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