GE2133 English for Lecturer: Xiaoyu XU

Email: xiaoyuxu@cityu.edu.hk
Work Contexts Department of English
Review

1) What’s the difference between literature studies and

applied linguistic studies
2) The history of applied linguistics
3) What is applied linguistics
• What is/is not linguistics?
• Applied linguistics & real-world issues
• What are the related disciplines?
1. Real-world issues at workplace

Your ideas from last week:

• How to persuade customers to purchase merchandises?
• How to use proper language for job hunting?
• What are the functions of jargons and how do they operate to convey
meaning for their corresponding work industries?
• Why is it so difficult to convey a clear tone in emails without being
too polite or too harsh? How are you supposed to respond properly
to other emails without being too formal or informal?
• How to use your language to write a leaflet to grab your customer's
attention?
• How should lawyers communicate with clients effectively?
• Why there are specific words added in the product description can
effectively boost the sale?
• How can leaders motivate their team?
 1. Real-world issues at workplace

A question from me: How to give an effective online lecturer?

Structure of on-campus lecturers:
1) Pre-reading
2) Review of the last lesson
3) The body of the lesson
Metalanguage (in-class; Aslop & Nesi, 2014)
Housekeeping: talk about academic commitments and events external to the lecture
Humour: use irony, mock-threats, teasing, sarcasm, self-denigration, wordplay and
bawdy, black or playful language for comic effect
Story: discuss personal or work-related matters in the form of anecdotes, examples,
narratives or recounts
4) Summary of the lesson
1. Real-world issues at workplace

Another question from me: how to write a book review?

1. Real-world issues at workplace
1) How to webchat with my customers?
1. Real-world issues at workplace
2) How to do small talk with my colleagues?
1. Real-world issues at workplace

Activity 1 (5min)

What communication issues have you/your friends/your

family members experienced in the workplace?

Share your experience on Canvas

 2. Genre analysis

Activity 2 (5min)

Imagine that you’re a Customer Service Manager at Amazon.

You need to train new staff on how to chat with customers online.

1) How would you prepare the training materials?

2) Brainstorm some ideas and post on Canvas.

2. Genre analysis

1) Collect some webchat texts for analysis.

2) Some basic questions you may want to address:

• What’s the purpose of the webchat exchanges with
customers?
• What kind of customers are we dealing with (audience)?
• What is the usual structure and contents of the webchat
exchanges?
• What is the typical language choices in webchat exchanges?
2. Genre analysis

Genre is a term for texts (e.g., Amazon customer service

webchat exchanges) that represent shared communicative
purposes, intended audience, structure, contents and language
style.

Genre analysis is a process of looking at several samples of

a particular genre (e.g., Amazon customer service webchat
exchanges) to analyse their similarities in terms of their
purposes, audience, structure and language choices.
2. Genre analysis

Activity 3 (5min)

Can you give another three examples of genre?

What is the purpose and who is the audience for each of

them?
2. Genre analysis

A genre can be spoken or written

Spoken genres
e.g., TED Talk, online lecture, business meeting, job interview
Written genres
e.g., lab report, film review, newspaper article, love letter

A genre can be public or occluded

Public – accessible to everyone, often published
e.g., TED Talk, online lecture, film review, newspaper article
Occluded – are ‘closed’, not public in nature, and often difficult
to access examples of
e.g., business meeting, job interview, lab report, love letter
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

Activity 4

As the Customer Service Manager who will provide training

materials to the new staff, read through the two samples of
webchat exchanges, and identify the shared structure.

1) The first move is marked up in both samples. Can you find

a suitable name for it?
2) The moves in the remaining parts are not identified. Can
you identify them and find a suitable name for each move?
3) Share your list of moves on Canvas
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

Activity 4

As the Customer Service Manager who will provide training

materials to new staff, read through the two samples of
webchat exchanges, and identify the shared macrostructure.

1) The first move is marked up in both samples. Can you find

a suitable name for it?

Suggested answer
Salutation: introduction of self
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

Activity 4

As the Customer Service Manager who will provide training

materials to new staff, read through the two samples of
webchat exchanges, and identify the shared macrostructure.

2) The moves in the remaining parts are not identified. Can

you identify them and find a suitable name for each move?

3) Share your list of moves on Canvas (20min)

2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges
Suggested answer:

Sample 1 Sample 2
1-3 Salutation 1-3 Salutation
4-5 Purpose statement 4-9 Purpose statement
6-7 Request time 10-13 Transfer
8-95 Providing a solution 14-17 Request time
96-97Closing 18 Commentary on problem
19-22 Purposes statement
21-24 Request more time
25-40 Providing a solution
41-42 Closing
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges
Suggested answer:

Sample 1 Sample 2
1-3 Salutation 1-3 Salutation
4-5 Purpose statement 4-9 Purpose statement
6-7 Request time 10-13 Transfer
8-95 Providing a solution 14-17 Request time
96-97 Closing 18 Commentary on problem
19-22 Purposes statement
21-24 Request more time
25-40 Providing a solution
41-42 Closing
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

Suggested answer:

Move 1 Salutation
Move 2 Purpose statement
Move 3 Confirming the problem
Move 4 Commentary on problem Circular
Move 5 Request time
Move 6 Transfer
Move 7 Providing a solution
Move 8 Summary of solutions and next steps
Move 9 Closing
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

How to address the following questions:

1) Are the moves mandatory or optional?

Collect more samples and identify the moves shared across all
data

2) What is the shared purpose of customer service webchat

exchanges?
To provide solutions to problems raised by customers

3) Who are the audience?

Customers who encountered problems
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

Activity 5

Can you identify one language feature in each move?

Identify common words/phrases/sentences

2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

Salutation: the use of member’s name

Request time: Let me review your case details so that I can
assist you in a better way. Thank you for patiently waiting.
Commentary on the problem: Sorry to know that the
seller refused to continue with the transaction. I assure you
that we don't tolerate this here on.
Providing a solution: Member, are you still connected? I don’t
mean to rush you.
Closing: If you have any further questions or should you need
our assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us again.
Thank you for using XXX. Take care of yourself.
2. Genre analysis
2.1 Webchat exchanges

Activity 6

What is the communicative issue in the failed webchat

exchange?

Suggested answer:
Pushing a lot of links rather than addressing the customer’s
questions
2. Genre analysis

Process of Generic Analysis

1.Grouping a set of similar texts

2.Defining the social purpose of the texts and labelling the genre
3.Identifying and differentiating moves within a genre
4.Specifying mandatory and optional moves
5.Devising a structural formula
6.Analysing the language features (e.g., frequent words/phrases)
for each move of a genre
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation
How to chat with my colleagues?
Is casual conversation amenable to genre analysis?

Swales (1990): NO

Reason: it is too unpredictable

Eggins and Slade (1997): YES

Reason: there are narrative, anecdote, exemplum,

recount, observation/comment, opinion, joke-telling and
gossip.
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation
Frequency of Text Types in Coffee-Break Conversations
at Work (90s)
Text Type Percentage

Story-telling 43.4%

Observation 19.75%
/Comment
Opinion 16.8%

Gossip 13.8%

Joke-telling 6.3%
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation
Frequency of Text Types in Coffee-Break Conversations
at Work (90s)
Text Type Percentage Group 1: all Group 2: Group 3:
men all women m&w
Story-telling 43.4% 7 20 25

Observation 19.75% 2 10 5
/Comment
Opinion 16.8% 1 3 3

Gossip 13.8% - 7 1

Joke-telling 6.3% 1 - 3
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation
Frequency of Text Types in Coffee-Break Conversations
at Work (90s)
Text Type Percentage Group 1: all Group 2: Group 3:
men all women m&w
Story-telling 43.4% 7 20 25

Observation 19.75% 2 10 5
/Comment
Opinion 16.8% 1 3 3

Gossip 13.8% - 7 1

Joke-telling 6.3% 1 - 3
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation

Activity 7

How did people tell stories in Coffee-Break Conversations at

Work?

1) Collect samples
2) Read through the samples
3) Identify moves and label each move
4) Identify language features

Post on Canvas the structure of one conversation sample

(15min).
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation

Suggested answers:

Conversation 1 Cockroaches
1-6 orientation
7-25 remarkable event
26-29 reaction
30-32 coda
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation

Suggested answers:

Conversation 2 Skiing holiday

1-16 orientation
17-36 remarkable event
37 reaction
38-40 coda
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation

Suggested answers:

Conversation 3 Working for charity

1-3 abstract
4-15 orientation
16-32 remarkable event
33-36 interpretation
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation

Suggested answers:

Conversation 4 and then we became friends

1-5 abstract
6-7 orientation
8-31 record of events
32-35 coda
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation

Suggested answer:

Move 1 Abstract
Move 2 Orientation
Move 3 Event
Move 4 Reaction
Move 5 Interpretation
Move 6 Coda
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation

The texts all centred around temporally sequenced events

and all make some kind of evaluative comment which
marks the significance of the events described.
1) Small Talk – back-channeling (really, mm, is that right?, yeah, do you?, are you?, did you?
Fantastic!, Awesome!), echo, ellipsis (doing some shopping?,), discourse markers (you
know), idioms (give that a go).
2) Conversations – initiate a topic (so where are you from), feedback and intonation (the windy
city!), show interest (that’s interesting!), ask for clarification (so your father used to work in
Japan?), as another question (can you Japanese?), personal recounts (someone nearly ran
into the back of my car on the freeway yesterday), repair misunderstanding (Sorry I meant
that…), close a conversation (anyway, nice talking to you)
 2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation
Activity 7 Can you identify one language feature in each move? Identify common
words/phrases/sentences

• Back-channeling:C1-10 uuhh; C2-3:mm, -12: Yeah; C4-28: oh really?; is that right?,

do you?, are you?, did you? Fantastic!, Awesome!
• Echo: C4-32:-and then we sort of became friends. -became friends
• Ellipsis: C4-19: well we sort of; doing some shopping?
• Idioms: What brought you here? How did you find it?
• Discourse markers: C1-15: you know; by the way,
• Initiate a topic: so where are you from?
• Feedback and intonation: C4-5: oh hysterical!
• Show interest: C2-5: he can have that for me; that’s interesting!
• Ask for clarification: C3-34: why do you reckon why was that do you think?
• Ask another question: C4-9: And what was it like the when you first saw him? Were
you really nervous?
• Repair misunderstanding: C2-23: No no no no further Guthega...; Sorry I meant
that…
• Close a conversation: anyway, nice talking to you
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation
Activity 7 Can you identify one language feature in each
move? Identify common words/phrases/sentences

•hesitations: So erm they go back to school tomorrow?

•Word repetition: it was in fact heading for the the city
•False starts: No I think I don’t know many people who…
•Repairs: the Bureau thought er saw the storm
•Unfinished utterances: they had to move out of the flat
because the whole […]
•Ungrammaticality(in terms of written norms, at least):
expect you and I
2. Genre analysis
2.2 Casual conversation
Language features

Utterance launchers
• and there was the little old lady over the road who.
• it is amazing more people weren't injured
• I'm so glad the kids were not there…
• you mean, general damage?
• I was speaking to erm...
Low Lexical Density:
Another characteristic of spoken language which is
attributable to its spontaneity is the fact that information is
relatively loosely packed. One measure of this density is the
proportion of content words (such as nouns and verbs) per
clause.
 3. Summary

1. Real-world issues at workplace

2. What is genre and what is genre analysis?
1) Genre analysis of customer service webchat exchanges
2) Genre analysis of story-telling in coffee-break conversations
4. Class participation

Business meeting is a ____ and ____ genre.

A. Spoken
B. Written
C. Public
D. Occluded
5. Learning portfolio

Explain the process of genre analysis using the example of

the customer service webchat exchanges in 200 words.
6. Weekly reading

Lockwood, J. (2017). An analysis of web-chat in an

outsourced customer service account in the Philippines.
English for Specific Purposes, 47, 26-39.