In this paper, multimodal CA is used to demonstrate how requests by adult second language (L2) users with emergent literacy are formulated as 'complex multimodal Gestalts', consisting typically of deictic or depictive gestures, in the situations where the participants' shared linguistic resources are limited. The findings contribute to the discussion on second language interaction in different learning environments, needs of adult migrants with emerging literacy in them, and the ways these interactions can be supported in the formal education.
While the number of migrant populations is growing, more research is required on how learners with emergent alphabetic literacy address the challenges of second language use in their new home countries (see Suni & Tammelin-Laine 2020). This study focuses on how adult second language users of Finnish with emergent literacy utilize multimodal resources in the settings of classroom and service encounters to accomplish recognizable requests. The study is based on longitudinal ethnographic fieldwork in the context of Adult Literacy Training in Finland. The interactions of the groups were video recorded for 8 months in classrooms and in service encounters. The data consists of 20 hours of video-recordings from classroom interactions and 30 service encounters.
The method of analysis is multimodal conversation analysis, and the focus is on how L2 users formulate their requests as 'complex multimodal Gestalts' (Mondada 2014), consisting of deictic or depictive gestures used in combination with gaze, situationally relevant materials, and linguistic resources, in the situations where the participants' shared linguistic resources are limited. The analysis shows how request sequences are multimodally co-constructed, and how they typically involve multimodal negotiation in which the co-participants support L2 users to formulate requests that are understandable and that contribute to the progressivity of the interaction.
The findings contribute to understanding of practical request sequences as multimodal, context-sensitive, and collaborative actions, and underline the importance of this perspective from the view of adult L2 users in general and those with emergent literacy. The paper discusses the ways adult L2 literacy learners' omnipresent social actions can be supported in the formal education.
