The last 10 years have seen the birth of a new field within applied linguistics, embracing all sorts of language acquisition outside the classroom. With the rapid development and spread of new technologies, informal language contact has become commonplace for many L2 learners. While this can take many different forms, online contexts are a major driving force because they present L2 learners with unprecedented opportunities for exposure to and use of target language(s) regardless of their physical location. Research on this topic has emerged concurrently from diverse contexts. As a result, a variety of terms have been used to describe it (including Extramural English, Informal Digital Learning of English or Online Informal Learning of English), each of which emphasises particular aspects of the informal practices studied. Early research tended to focus on English as a target language, but more recently research on other languages is becoming more prominent. The purpose of this symposium, organized by Denyze Toffoli and colleagues, is to bring together researchers working on informal L2 practices to engage in critical dialogue about the scope of this field and to share their diverse theoretical perspectives, methodological approaches and findings. Our featured speakers are Geoffrey Sockett, Mark Dressman and Phil Benson.
Room 1 AILA 2021 aila2021@gcb.nlThe last 10 years have seen the birth of a new field within applied linguistics, embracing all sorts of language acquisition outside the classroom. With the rapid development and spread of new technologies, informal language contact has become commonplace for many L2 learners. While this can take many different forms, online contexts are a major driving force because they present L2 learners with unprecedented opportunities for exposure to and use of target language(s) regardless of their physical location. Research on this topic has emerged concurrently from diverse contexts. As a result, a variety of terms have been used to describe it (including Extramural English, Informal Digital Learning of English or Online Informal Learning of English), each of which emphasises particular aspects of the informal practices studied. Early research tended to focus on English as a target language, but more recently research on other languages is becoming more prominent. The purpose of this symposium, organized by Denyze Toffoli and colleagues, is to bring together researchers working on informal L2 practices to engage in critical dialogue about the scope of this field and to share their diverse theoretical perspectives, methodological approaches and findings. Our featured speakers are Geoffrey Sockett, Mark Dressman and Phil Benson.
Mark Dressman
Alexandra Schurz
Marcus Warnby
Marlene Schwarz
Andrew Moffat
Stefanie Cajka
Nikolay Slavkov
Eva Vetter
