9.0 Introduction

In this study we have examined the acquisition of English requests by a Japanese girl over a period of 17 months, beginning at the age of seven years and two months. This period began with the onset of her second language learning experience during her residence in Australia. The principal purpose of the study was to determine what strategies and linguistic devices a second language learning child uses when making requests in English as a second language and what developmental path is followed. The data for this study were collected in Yao's home in Australia during her natural interaction with three types of interlocutor: a peer, a teenager, an adult neighbour; and with the mother, who conducted the research. Yao's interaction with each addressee was audioand videorecorded. These recordings were supplemented by diary data. The coding scheme for the analysis of her request strategies used for this study was based on the CCSARP strategy types (Blum-Kulka et al., 1989a) as modified to reflect more precisely the naturally occurring data gathered during the research.

The data was analysed not only to determine the strategies, the linguistic repertoire, and the modifications made, but also to see how these aspects varied in relation to goals and addressees. This examination of variation made it possible to discover certain developmental patterns in relation to goal and to unravel the complex process of acquisition of requests by a child learning a second language.

In this chapter, the findings from Chapters 4 through 8 are integrated and summarised and conclusions drawn. Then, the questions that arise from these conclusions are discussed. Finally, the implications and the major contribution of the study are presented.

9.1 A Child Second Language Learner's Request Realisation

As seen in Chapters 4 and 5, when we look at Yao's requests as a whole, the following picture emerges. Over the 17 months of data collection, her requests moved from initially formulaic and routinised forms to those progressively more differentiated.