Complexity: Activity 4
The language of inference and justification
Analyze the expressions used by the learners to express opinions in the Comparison Task. Read the transcripts and watch the video as you do so since opinions may also be expressed nonverbally. Use the table below to fill in your answers.
Speaker |
Inference |
Signals for inference |
Justification |
Signals for justification |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Sebastian |
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Maximus |
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Sebastian and Maximus |
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3. Transcripts and translation
A complete transcript for the Comparison Task can be found here
Please type your answers to the questions in the box below.
When you have finished typing your answer, click to compare your response with the Learner Language staff response.
| Speaker | Inference |
Signals for inference |
Justification |
Signals for justification |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Sebastian
|
多分、ちょっと金持ちですね。 |
多分(maybe) |
車があるから |
〜から(because/since) |
多分、お母さんは、あの、働かないでしょう。 |
多分(maybe)〜でしょう(will/would) |
でも、おもしろいです。あの、車は、あの、車の一つだけです。 |
-- |
|
Maximus
|
多分力仕事する人の家かな。 |
多分(maybe)…かな(I wonder/I guess) |
汚いじゃないから |
〜から(because/since) |
１６歳の高校生がいるかもしれない。 |
〜かもしれない(may/might) |
何かこの車はアメリカの高校生か大学生の車みたい。 |
-- |
|
Sebastian and Maximus |
M：おばあさんかおじいさんの家。何か、人があんまり掃除できない、とか掃除するのが大変。 |
-- |
S: フェンスは全部白くありませんから、 |
〜から(because/since) |
Both Sebastian and Maximus use different combinations of the adverb ‘多分 (maybe),’ and auxiliary verbs such as ‘でしょう (will/would),’ ‘かな (I wonder/I guess),’ ‘かもしれない (may/might)’to indicate their inferences. Both sometimes may use the conjunctive particle ‘から (because/since)’ to signal their justification. Both of them, but particularly Sebastian, include both inference and justification in a single sentence. Since they are already able to state an inference and the facts to justify that inference in a single sentence, a teacher may decide to focus more on their accuracy (e.g., Sebastian’s ‘働いていないでしょう (may not be working)’ instead of “働かないでしょう (may not work)” ) or introduce alternative expressions such as ‘と思います(I think),’ ‘おそらく(probably),’ ‘もしかすると／もしかしたら(maybe/possibly)’ to expand variety in their vocabulary.
