Language Teachers' Suggestions for Two-way Communication in CMC

The purpose of this study is to investigate the EFL language teachers' suggestions for creating a two-way communication environment in CMC elicited during and after their correspondence with native speakers. It is well-recognized that one of the most important factors that help second or foreign language learners to acquire the target language is active engagement in two-way communication. They, therefore, need to know specifically how to pursue active engagement for effective language learning. The data for this research were gathered through one-to-one interviews, informal group interviews, participants' online dialogues, direct observation of the process of participants' online communication, and my reflective journal entries. Throughout the process, practical suggestions for two-way communication were developed to motivate the native-speaking partners, such as building personal connections, sharing topics and showing interests, sharing friendly and open-minded talk, and sharing real-life issues with partners. Among the various suggestions, three Do-s and Don't-s were suggested as crucial strategies for two-way communication through the process of the Korean participants' CMC correspondences with their native-speaking partners (who also had the same views on the suggestions). These suggestions are valuable because they reflect real CMC experiences, and because they were shared by the native-speakers.