Clause and Clause Complex in Casual Conversation of English Students at Elkatarie Institute
Clause and Clause Complex in Casual Conversation of English Students at Elkatarie Institute
Keywords:
Clause, Clause Complex, Casual Conversation, Systemic Functional Linguistics, English as a Foreign Language, Discourse Grammar, Logico-Semantic Relations, Student InteractionAbstract
This study explores the use of clause and clause complex in casual conversations among English students at Elkatarie Institute by employing the Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) approach. The research adopts a qualitative-descriptive design to analyze spontaneous dialogue data collected through natural conversation recordings among fourth-semester students in informal campus settings. The findings reveal that declarative clauses dominate the speech patterns, reflecting the ideational function of language. Furthermore, students frequently employ clause complexes through parataxis and hypotaxis, with extension (42%) being the most common logico-semantic relation, followed by elaboration (31%) and enhancement (27%).
These patterns demonstrate the students’ developing competence in constructing meaning across clauses, indicating their growing linguistic maturity. The study also highlights the pragmatic strategies used in real-time interaction, including the spontaneous use of coordinating and subordinating conjunctions. Despite occasional structural simplification, the students show an intuitive grasp of how English grammar functions in discourse. The results support the need for context-based grammar instruction that reflects actual language use and suggests the integration of discourse-based materials into the curriculum to improve learners’ communicative and cognitive skills..
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