Initiating and delivering news of the day: Interactional competence as joint-development

Abstract

Abstract Co-members of a family (or similar group) often initiate news-of-the-day tellings, such as How was your day? , to discuss events that have happened to them during the period they have been apart. Sequentially, such tellings involve a specific form of topic initiation, a type-suited response, and possible post-expansion sequences. Focusing on dinner-table talk recorded on four separate occasions, this longitudinal Conversation Analytic study explores how one family group socializes a guest L2 English speaker into their version of this interactional practice. In each case a member of the family initiates the news-of-the-day sequence. In the earlier recordings, the L2 speaker s responses are brief and contain only basic narratives, leading the family to initiate post-expansion sequences that prompt him to extend the topic. Over time, his responses become fuller, smoother and are formulated more recognizably as a narrative. The paper argues this change in participant framework demonstrates his growing familiarity with this interactional routine. The analysis also outlines changes in how the expert speakers adapt their practices for the novice as he becomes more familiar with the interactional routine. The study contributes to burgeoning longitudinal CA-SLA research into the joint development of interactional competence in study abroad contexts, particularly with regard to speakers growing ability to initiate and design news-tellings in a recognizable interactional context.