Roger C Nunn | American University of Sharjah (original) (raw)

Papers by Roger C Nunn

Studies in English Literature 1500-1900, Dec 10, 2005

高知大学学術研究報告 人文科学, Dec 25, 1997

大学英語教育学会中国・四国支部研究紀要, Mar 15, 2004

Studies in English Literature, 1999

Abstract Grice’s theory of implicature has been considered ethnocentric, but this paper will argu... more Abstract Grice’s theory of implicature has been considered ethnocentric, but this paper will argue that it is highly relevant to intercultural analysis. The Principle of Cooperation, and its subordinate maxims, focus on the rationality of discourse, but Grice also includes linguistic and nonlinguistic context, conventional meaning and “other items of background knowledge” in the inferential process. This notion of background knowledge is radically refined by Sperber and Wilson. Within a theory of relevance, interlocutors share only some contextual clues in a “mutual cognitive environment”. In intercultural negotiation a high level of awareness of assumptions about what is “mutually manifest” is of central importance to performance. Teachers of intercultural communication skills attempt to establish a balance between providing meaningful practice and a useful rationale for improving theoretical awareness of the inferential process. This paper uses recordings of a classroom simulation involving foreign and Japanese students of intercultural communication taking part in a traffic accident insurance negotiation. Two data extracts are examined in detail, in which the failure by a foreign student to recognize radically different background assumptions had a decisive negative impact on his ability to negotiate, but a positive impact on his ability to analyse his own intercultural performance.

Studies in English Literature 1500-1900, 2004

The difficulty of recording reliable samples of private conversation is rarely disputed. The so-c... more The difficulty of recording reliable samples of private conversation is rarely disputed. The so-called “observer paradox” never applies more pertinently than to intimate conversation. Once it has been recorded in anything like an ethical manner, it can no longer deserve the name of intimate conversation. How does one avoid the influence of an observer or the effect of a microphone or video camera? And yet the most intimate conversations, those that are not available to any but the participants within the smallest of social circles, are among the most common and the most important conversations which we ever take part in. Several reputable linguists still resort to so-called “fabricated examples” which are presented as acceptable samples of real conversation often with minimal information about context. (See for example Hoey, 75) When a novelist makes it a rule to create plausible conversations with the precision and care of a trained participant ethnographer, the observer’s creative role is openly acknowledged and the reader may then evaluate the success or failure of the illusion of authenticity in the staged interaction. In interpreting the “fictional” dialogue in Jane Austen`s novels, it must, of course, be acknowledged that the primary context of communication is the communication between the writer and her readers. The immediate context of the dialogues themselves within the small family circles of upper-middle class Georgian society has to be seen as a secondary contextual level embedded within this primary framework of communication. However, Austen's plots and intrigues are revealed through invitations to interpret spoken interaction. Physical action is rare in the novels. The real 'action' is 'interaction'.

Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 2019

This chapter provides a combination of different narratives from different areas of college manag... more This chapter provides a combination of different narratives from different areas of college management to address the importance of a holistic or systems-thinking approach to innovation management. An approach that considers different parts of the system in relation to each other is outlined and illustrated by an inclusive, interdisciplinary view of a community of practice engaged in innovation that goes beyond narrow departmental specializations. The authors conclude that innovation is not a limited surgical intervention by leadership alone, but rather a process of mutual engagement and social learning that can empower members of the whole institution to contribute to improvement. The metaphor of anatomy from the field of holistic medicine supports this perspective of a novel holistic approach to innovation that is transferable to other contexts.

高知大学学術研究報告 人文科学, Dec 25, 1997

大学英語教育学会中国 四国支部研究紀要, Mar 15, 2004

p.55 in the attached volume My paper will not have a single focus, but the unifying central theme... more p.55 in the attached volume My paper will not have a single focus, but the unifying central theme will be the description of the method actually being enacted in particular contexts (method-in-use) to help us compare unique experiences across contexts. For cross-cultural comparison to be possible at all, we have to assume that there is something in common between even the most divergent teaching contexts. I have therefore selected the two most different situations I could find from my own experience and from my research and then used the same model to compare them. By comparing experiences of unique teaching situations across diverse contexts, we attempt to learn from the local experience of others, help to make sense of local experience for ourselves and help others to make sense of their own experience. After briefly summarizing my model of method-in-use developed and modified from my earlier PhD study (Nunn 1996), I will narrate some of the episodes that could not be included in an examined study or in standard journal articles, but which help support the perception of the need to describe real local experience and to look below the surface of polished academic study. Anecdotal narrated experience would not normally be included in standard academic writing. I use this partly as a counterbalance to more formal writing I have already published on this same subject, but partly because I have come to believe that formal academic writing can take the life and energy out of what is a very dynamic, lived profession and can exclude some highly relevant local data. I do not believe it is possible to understand the context I describe without the anecdotal narrative.

No identity can ever exist by itself and without an array of opposites, negatives, oppositions. (... more No identity can ever exist by itself and without an array of opposites, negatives, oppositions. (Said 1993:52) Ray Williams (1988:87) suggests that "culture is one of the two or three most complicated words in the English language". According to Williams, the study of human culture requires the consideration of three levels of meaning (Williams 1988:90). 1 A general process of intellectual, spiritual and aesthetic development 2 A particular way of life, whether of people, a period, a group, or humanity in general 3 The works and practices of intellectual, and specially artistic activity A key point of William's analysis is the insistence on the view that the isolation of any of these three levels impoverishes scholarship at all three levels, indicating not only that the study of culture cannot ignore the processes of literature, but that the reverse is also true. The complex of senses indicates a complex argument about the relations between general human development an...

The introduction to this volume is intended to be a holistic introduction to international /inter... more The introduction to this volume is intended to be a holistic introduction to international /intercultural communicative competence. In this introduction and part 1, the four chapters on the meaning of EIL competence by four different authors present very different perspectives. We do not wish to attempt to resolve differences of perception, although I will discuss some differences in this introduction. After all, the tolerance of different perspectives is an essential part of the epistemology of EIL. As Moser, (2002, p.17) eloquently suggests in defence of his own epistemology, meta-epistemic instrumentalism, Within the tolerant confines of meta-epistemic instrumentalism, we can welcome even as rational, much of the remarkable divergence we see in contemporary epistemology (p.17). When faced with a broad and divergent body of knowledge, it would have been tempting to simplify the different accounts of knowledge into some kind of coherent whole. This can sometimes take the form of rejecting scholarship that we cannot reconcile within our own paradigm. In our own field, we might want to reconsider whether a common target for rejection (frequently also within this volume), Chomskian linguistics, is indeed really in opposition to holistic views of competence. For Moser (2002, p.6), holism is related to ‘epistemic coherentism’ as it “finds the ultimate source of justification in a system of interconnected beliefs or potential beliefs”. However, Moser does not support the artificial creation of a tidy fixed, impervious system of interconnected beliefs. Moser (p.16) argues instead that to characterize the present state of epistemic scholarship as ‘rational’, a tolerance of conceptual divergence is needed that might not be encompassed in a coherent holistic model (coherentism). Moser coins the phrase ‘meta-epistemic instrumentalism’ (p.16) which “enables us to explain as rational conceptual divergence what initially looks like perennial disagreement.” In Moser’s view, “the diversity hides a deeper rational unity” (p.17). As Sivasubramaniam suggests in this volume, we must therefore view all attempts a creating ‘final’ systems as temporary. The parts may come together in apparent coherence as with a kaleidoscope, but the ‘fixed’ outcome will only be provisional. In the case of Chomskian linguistics, might we not need to acknowledge that EIL specialists have so far struggled to come up with an adequate characterization of linguistic competence? As a result of this conceptual divergence in part 1, there is inevitably some repetition too. On closer examination, however, I have found that similar but very important concepts are contextualized very differently in these chapters. This is perhaps most apparent in Sivasubramaniam’s contribution, which provides a much broader challenge to the concept of competence itself. Sivasubramaniam proposes a pluricentric view of community leading to a notion of competence that is enriched by its dependence on a plurality of contexts. His suggestion that we are actually in search of context-based confirmations rather than objective and context-free affirmations underline the difficulty of providing a meaningful definition of EILcompetence at all. My co-editor therefore provides a different angle on “rational diversity” as he underlines the need to broaden our perspectives, whereas as definitions tend to summarize and reduce. His strongly expressed views of social alignment and sociolinguistic sensitivity have, I hope, helped me avoid reductionism in my own attempt to characterize (rather than definitively or narrowly define) EIL competence in this introduction. I have nonetheless responded to my own perception that the EIL literature has spent a lot of time pointing out what EIL competence is not, but less time suggesting what it is. If readers feel we have made a first step in this regard, we will be delighted.

Language Teacher, 2006

Roger Nunn Petroleum Institute, Abu Dhabi STUDENTS FROM so-called syllable-timed language backgro... more Roger Nunn Petroleum Institute, Abu Dhabi STUDENTS FROM so-called syllable-timed language backgrounds (French, Japanese, and many others) are said to ... skill of fitting colloquial language, such as “I can't get no” into the rhythmical pattern of a simple melody, the music ...

Asian EFL Journal, 2006

Roger Nunn has worked in EFL for over 30 years in seven different countries, including more than ... more Roger Nunn has worked in EFL for over 30 years in seven different countries, including more than 22 years in Asia. He is currently working at the Petroleum Institute, a new University in Abu Dhabi, where he teaches communications and research skills. He has a ...

This book will be of special interest to English teachers and those in professional development i... more This book will be of special interest to English teachers and those in professional development in the region and/or who have classrooms with Asian learners. Paradigms appear to be shifting in Asian L2 learning in a region providing huge growth in English education. This will have an important bearing on the profession, including researchers, worldwide

Studies in English Literature 1500-1900, Dec 10, 2005

高知大学学術研究報告 人文科学, Dec 25, 1997

大学英語教育学会中国・四国支部研究紀要, Mar 15, 2004

Studies in English Literature, 1999

Abstract Grice’s theory of implicature has been considered ethnocentric, but this paper will argu... more Abstract Grice’s theory of implicature has been considered ethnocentric, but this paper will argue that it is highly relevant to intercultural analysis. The Principle of Cooperation, and its subordinate maxims, focus on the rationality of discourse, but Grice also includes linguistic and nonlinguistic context, conventional meaning and “other items of background knowledge” in the inferential process. This notion of background knowledge is radically refined by Sperber and Wilson. Within a theory of relevance, interlocutors share only some contextual clues in a “mutual cognitive environment”. In intercultural negotiation a high level of awareness of assumptions about what is “mutually manifest” is of central importance to performance. Teachers of intercultural communication skills attempt to establish a balance between providing meaningful practice and a useful rationale for improving theoretical awareness of the inferential process. This paper uses recordings of a classroom simulation involving foreign and Japanese students of intercultural communication taking part in a traffic accident insurance negotiation. Two data extracts are examined in detail, in which the failure by a foreign student to recognize radically different background assumptions had a decisive negative impact on his ability to negotiate, but a positive impact on his ability to analyse his own intercultural performance.

Studies in English Literature 1500-1900, 2004

The difficulty of recording reliable samples of private conversation is rarely disputed. The so-c... more The difficulty of recording reliable samples of private conversation is rarely disputed. The so-called “observer paradox” never applies more pertinently than to intimate conversation. Once it has been recorded in anything like an ethical manner, it can no longer deserve the name of intimate conversation. How does one avoid the influence of an observer or the effect of a microphone or video camera? And yet the most intimate conversations, those that are not available to any but the participants within the smallest of social circles, are among the most common and the most important conversations which we ever take part in. Several reputable linguists still resort to so-called “fabricated examples” which are presented as acceptable samples of real conversation often with minimal information about context. (See for example Hoey, 75) When a novelist makes it a rule to create plausible conversations with the precision and care of a trained participant ethnographer, the observer’s creative role is openly acknowledged and the reader may then evaluate the success or failure of the illusion of authenticity in the staged interaction. In interpreting the “fictional” dialogue in Jane Austen`s novels, it must, of course, be acknowledged that the primary context of communication is the communication between the writer and her readers. The immediate context of the dialogues themselves within the small family circles of upper-middle class Georgian society has to be seen as a secondary contextual level embedded within this primary framework of communication. However, Austen's plots and intrigues are revealed through invitations to interpret spoken interaction. Physical action is rare in the novels. The real 'action' is 'interaction'.

Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 2019

This chapter provides a combination of different narratives from different areas of college manag... more This chapter provides a combination of different narratives from different areas of college management to address the importance of a holistic or systems-thinking approach to innovation management. An approach that considers different parts of the system in relation to each other is outlined and illustrated by an inclusive, interdisciplinary view of a community of practice engaged in innovation that goes beyond narrow departmental specializations. The authors conclude that innovation is not a limited surgical intervention by leadership alone, but rather a process of mutual engagement and social learning that can empower members of the whole institution to contribute to improvement. The metaphor of anatomy from the field of holistic medicine supports this perspective of a novel holistic approach to innovation that is transferable to other contexts.

高知大学学術研究報告 人文科学, Dec 25, 1997

大学英語教育学会中国 四国支部研究紀要, Mar 15, 2004

p.55 in the attached volume My paper will not have a single focus, but the unifying central theme... more p.55 in the attached volume My paper will not have a single focus, but the unifying central theme will be the description of the method actually being enacted in particular contexts (method-in-use) to help us compare unique experiences across contexts. For cross-cultural comparison to be possible at all, we have to assume that there is something in common between even the most divergent teaching contexts. I have therefore selected the two most different situations I could find from my own experience and from my research and then used the same model to compare them. By comparing experiences of unique teaching situations across diverse contexts, we attempt to learn from the local experience of others, help to make sense of local experience for ourselves and help others to make sense of their own experience. After briefly summarizing my model of method-in-use developed and modified from my earlier PhD study (Nunn 1996), I will narrate some of the episodes that could not be included in an examined study or in standard journal articles, but which help support the perception of the need to describe real local experience and to look below the surface of polished academic study. Anecdotal narrated experience would not normally be included in standard academic writing. I use this partly as a counterbalance to more formal writing I have already published on this same subject, but partly because I have come to believe that formal academic writing can take the life and energy out of what is a very dynamic, lived profession and can exclude some highly relevant local data. I do not believe it is possible to understand the context I describe without the anecdotal narrative.

No identity can ever exist by itself and without an array of opposites, negatives, oppositions. (... more No identity can ever exist by itself and without an array of opposites, negatives, oppositions. (Said 1993:52) Ray Williams (1988:87) suggests that "culture is one of the two or three most complicated words in the English language". According to Williams, the study of human culture requires the consideration of three levels of meaning (Williams 1988:90). 1 A general process of intellectual, spiritual and aesthetic development 2 A particular way of life, whether of people, a period, a group, or humanity in general 3 The works and practices of intellectual, and specially artistic activity A key point of William's analysis is the insistence on the view that the isolation of any of these three levels impoverishes scholarship at all three levels, indicating not only that the study of culture cannot ignore the processes of literature, but that the reverse is also true. The complex of senses indicates a complex argument about the relations between general human development an...

The introduction to this volume is intended to be a holistic introduction to international /inter... more The introduction to this volume is intended to be a holistic introduction to international /intercultural communicative competence. In this introduction and part 1, the four chapters on the meaning of EIL competence by four different authors present very different perspectives. We do not wish to attempt to resolve differences of perception, although I will discuss some differences in this introduction. After all, the tolerance of different perspectives is an essential part of the epistemology of EIL. As Moser, (2002, p.17) eloquently suggests in defence of his own epistemology, meta-epistemic instrumentalism, Within the tolerant confines of meta-epistemic instrumentalism, we can welcome even as rational, much of the remarkable divergence we see in contemporary epistemology (p.17). When faced with a broad and divergent body of knowledge, it would have been tempting to simplify the different accounts of knowledge into some kind of coherent whole. This can sometimes take the form of rejecting scholarship that we cannot reconcile within our own paradigm. In our own field, we might want to reconsider whether a common target for rejection (frequently also within this volume), Chomskian linguistics, is indeed really in opposition to holistic views of competence. For Moser (2002, p.6), holism is related to ‘epistemic coherentism’ as it “finds the ultimate source of justification in a system of interconnected beliefs or potential beliefs”. However, Moser does not support the artificial creation of a tidy fixed, impervious system of interconnected beliefs. Moser (p.16) argues instead that to characterize the present state of epistemic scholarship as ‘rational’, a tolerance of conceptual divergence is needed that might not be encompassed in a coherent holistic model (coherentism). Moser coins the phrase ‘meta-epistemic instrumentalism’ (p.16) which “enables us to explain as rational conceptual divergence what initially looks like perennial disagreement.” In Moser’s view, “the diversity hides a deeper rational unity” (p.17). As Sivasubramaniam suggests in this volume, we must therefore view all attempts a creating ‘final’ systems as temporary. The parts may come together in apparent coherence as with a kaleidoscope, but the ‘fixed’ outcome will only be provisional. In the case of Chomskian linguistics, might we not need to acknowledge that EIL specialists have so far struggled to come up with an adequate characterization of linguistic competence? As a result of this conceptual divergence in part 1, there is inevitably some repetition too. On closer examination, however, I have found that similar but very important concepts are contextualized very differently in these chapters. This is perhaps most apparent in Sivasubramaniam’s contribution, which provides a much broader challenge to the concept of competence itself. Sivasubramaniam proposes a pluricentric view of community leading to a notion of competence that is enriched by its dependence on a plurality of contexts. His suggestion that we are actually in search of context-based confirmations rather than objective and context-free affirmations underline the difficulty of providing a meaningful definition of EILcompetence at all. My co-editor therefore provides a different angle on “rational diversity” as he underlines the need to broaden our perspectives, whereas as definitions tend to summarize and reduce. His strongly expressed views of social alignment and sociolinguistic sensitivity have, I hope, helped me avoid reductionism in my own attempt to characterize (rather than definitively or narrowly define) EIL competence in this introduction. I have nonetheless responded to my own perception that the EIL literature has spent a lot of time pointing out what EIL competence is not, but less time suggesting what it is. If readers feel we have made a first step in this regard, we will be delighted.

Language Teacher, 2006

Roger Nunn Petroleum Institute, Abu Dhabi STUDENTS FROM so-called syllable-timed language backgro... more Roger Nunn Petroleum Institute, Abu Dhabi STUDENTS FROM so-called syllable-timed language backgrounds (French, Japanese, and many others) are said to ... skill of fitting colloquial language, such as “I can't get no” into the rhythmical pattern of a simple melody, the music ...

Asian EFL Journal, 2006

Roger Nunn has worked in EFL for over 30 years in seven different countries, including more than ... more Roger Nunn has worked in EFL for over 30 years in seven different countries, including more than 22 years in Asia. He is currently working at the Petroleum Institute, a new University in Abu Dhabi, where he teaches communications and research skills. He has a ...

This book will be of special interest to English teachers and those in professional development i... more This book will be of special interest to English teachers and those in professional development in the region and/or who have classrooms with Asian learners. Paradigms appear to be shifting in Asian L2 learning in a region providing huge growth in English education. This will have an important bearing on the profession, including researchers, worldwide

This volume of work is intended as a natural successor to Accepting Alternative Voices in EFL Jou... more This volume of work is intended as a natural successor to Accepting Alternative Voices in EFL Journal Articles (Nunn & Adamson, 2009) in which we looked into the possibilities of challenging the standard evaluation criteria and review procedure for EFL journal submissions to the Asian EFL Journal. Continuing this exploration into issues impacting upon academic publishing in EFL, chapters 2-6 pursue the issue of authorial voice where there seems to be an increasing consensus that a first person voice has a legitimate role beyond the humanities field. In chapters 7 to 9, the focus shifts to the wider perspectives of the journal reviewer or editor as researcher, exploring issues which directly shape their academic world views. This is an essential step in recognizing that research is necessary to both raise awareness of journal staff about authorial voice in publishing, especially those of non-Anglophone scholars, and also about how reviewers and editors construct their own identity, how they perceive their responsibilities and how they position the journals for which they work.

With a wide-ranging selection of papers, all of which celebrate alternative voice as an emerging ... more With a wide-ranging selection of papers, all of which celebrate alternative voice as an emerging issue in academic publishing, this edited volume reconsiders the established principles behind review criteria. Roger Nunn and John Adamson draw on their experience as journal editors to suggest an alternative approach to article reviewing. This volume challenges existing dogma in academic publishing and provides a forum for the different voices resonating throughout our community of scholars in the study of English as a Foreign Language.

This presentation explores an original non-blind peer review process, or Open Review (OR) using t... more This presentation explores an original non-blind peer review process, or Open Review (OR) using the first rounds of English Scholarship beyond Borders (ESBB) reviews (ESBB, 2015, volume 1, Issue 1 and 2016, volume 2, issue 1) as a primary data source. We consider the nature of the interaction in the non-blind review process and attempt to identify characteristics of the interaction between reviewers. We adopted three approaches to examine the process. Firstly a discourse analysis of data was attempted using variations of a priori coding systems from Sinclair and Coulthard’s rank scale model, and those induced from the data. Secondly we conducted a survey of participants in the OR process in an online questionnaire (an Open Forum) where responses could be openly viewed. Finally we acknowledged our own intervention in the process as authors, researchers, editors, reviewers and authors by drafting our own first-person narrative discussions to provide two collaborative auto-ethnographic perspectives. Our results unveiled perceptions of advantages, such as the dialogic nature of the process and the ability to name reviewers in final drafts. At the same time we consider the potentially less positive issue of ‘criticality’ when the reviewers are known to the author.