The complex nature of Register in L2 Listening

Listening might seem like a natural thing to do, for most of us. We listen for a multitude of things, and do so naturally and subliminally. That is, we don't (always) consciously concentrate on listening. Sounds are around us all the time... sometimes recognisable, sometimes not. But we still hear them and try to place our interpretation on them. Remember the old adage, "If a tree falls in a forest when no one is around, does it still make a sound?". The answer here of course is Yes. There is even a theory that sound from hundreds of years ago is still travelling in our air waves, just so quietly that it is inaudible to the human ear.

So what is Register, and why is it important to listening? Register in language learning deals with the level of complexity and formality at which conversation occurs. "What's up mate?" may be considered very informal, whereas "May I inquire as to your well being?" may being considered of a high level of formality.

When teaching L2, particularly in countries such as Canada, Register is impacted by social constructs. By this I mean, the nature of the diverse society and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms cause challenges to Register in the Canadian classroom. I have personally experienced, as I'm sure you have, moments in my instruction where I have wanted to say something and done a mind check, changing the words I have chosen or the context of what I was about to say. In L2 instruction, the impact of these mind checks can be to change the register of what was about to be taught.

An example of this might be, "How do East Indians do this?" becomes "How to people in East India do this?". The change seems minor, and the implication may be negligible, but the Register has changed, therefore changing the learning, if ever so slightly, in the learners mind. The first question may appear to be discriminatory, as it targets an ethnic group. The second question, which primarily asks for the same information, asks at a non-targeted, population level, and is perceived as a less discriminatory level of inquiry. By changing the subject of the question, we have changed its political and ethnic impact. But, if our goal is to teach the subject of a sentence, we have now altered that target learning.

So, does learning L2 in a politically sensitive country alter the depth to which the learning can occur? Or, does this factor innately incorporate political targets to language learning?