Commentary 3: Case studies of study abroad: Making sense of developmental trajectories

Abstract

Second language (L2) speech fluency has mostly been studied from monologues with temporal measures. In the present study, dialogue data are examined with a new framework that links (temporal) fluency analysis to a broader problem-solving perspective, offering a unique approach to examining the resources learners have for maintaining fluent speech despite problems. Dialogues based on a pairwise problem-solving task from 42 Finnish learners of English at two school levels were analyzed quantitatively for temporal fluency, dialogue fluency, stalling mechanisms, and communication strategies (CSs). A complementary qualitative analysis of selected productions was also conducted. The results indicate that temporal and dialogue fluency measures differentiate learners at different school levels, but the relationship between CSs and fluency is complex. While correlations between mid-clause pauses and certain strategies were found, the qualitative analysis indicated that stalling mechanisms and CSs can compensate for local dysfluencies and even contribute to temporal fluency. The results highlight the importance of combining quantitative and qualitative analysis in L2 fluency studies. Conceptually, L2 speech fluency should include collaborative aspects (dialogue fluency) in addition to individual, temporal fluency, and cover resources for maintaining fluency.