An Analysis of Repair in the Basic Content-Based Language Class

Abstract

This article analyzes a classroom data of a first year junior college content-based English class focusing on how "repair" occurs. Repair in a discourse refers to how the participants try to make communication happen when a problem arises. The data shows how the first year students who are new to the method trudge through an English only class discussing serious topics such as environmental protection or bioethics. The recording includes several self-repairs and student-initiated repairs. Through the analysis of repairs in the first year content-based class this project attempts to present how the method contributes to learners' achieving communicative competence in the target language.