Effects of pushed production of single words and multiword patterns on L2 oral fluency: Some evidence from temporal measurements

The contribution of formulaic sequences (FSs) to native speaker fluency is uncontroversial, but their contribution to L2 fluency is often assumed. These units package both meaning and form in an entire unit and facilitate both conceptualization and formulation of speech. These are the 'fluency assumptions' of these FSs. This study asks if the 'fluency assumptions' of FSs can be imitated in classroom settings by pushing learners to use common multiword (MW) patterns to achieve a kind of 'instruction-enhanced L2 fluency'. It also compares the outcome with the teaching of single words (SWs). Learners' (a) temporal fluency and (b) fluency at the levels of conceptualizing and formulating speech were assessed. Towell, R., R. Hawkins & N. Bazergui. 1996. The development of fluency in advanced learners of French. Applied Linguistics 17 (1). 84-119, avant-garde approach to analyzing fluency was drawn on in the discussion of the results. Broadly, instructing MW patterns and SWs sped up formulation processes but made demands on speech conceptualization, and there existed other subtle differences.