Abstract
ABSTRACT The current study reports on the U.S.- and U.K.-based learners of Turkish in a short-term study abroad program. It explores the tension of English in interactions with locals and program peers in learners’ pursuit of interactional opportunities in Turkish. Weekly journals are employed to investigate the people and contexts in which learners are using Turkish. The data suggest that in interactions with (a) locals, English generally facilitated sustained interactions despite learners’ frustration with the initial tendency to default to English, and with (b) peers, interactions occurred mostly in English yet supported the emergence of English-Turkish language practices that contributed to Turkish engagement. These findings complicate a traditionally negative perspective on the use of English among Anglophones in study abroad. The article concludes by outlining the implications for reimagining the roles of different interlocutors in supporting target language engagement.
Published Version
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