Effect of Pragmatic Instruction on Sustainable Development of Pragmatic Awareness

Abstract

Effective cross-cultural communication is supposed to require awareness of target language pragmatic features. However, inadequate attention is paid to the development of pragmatic awareness in foreign language classrooms. To examine the actual effect of pragmatic instruction on the development and sustainability of pragmatic awareness in foreign language learners, the current study adopted an experimental design by conducting eight intervention sessions on 60 Iranian senior undergraduate learners of English as a Foreign Language at a university in Iran and three administration of a multiple choice pragmatic awareness test immediately before, immediately after, and two months following the intervention. The results of the repeated measures analysis of variance revealed that pragmatic instruction had a marked effect on the development but not sustainability of pragmatic awareness in English as Foreign Language learners. The pedagogical implications of the findings suggested the inclusion of pragmatic instruction in foreign language classrooms.