On the Use of Focussing Constructions by Bulgarian Students of English

This paper focusses on the use of specific information packaging constructions, based on data extracted from seven recordings of the speech and debate tournaments that the Bulgarian English Speech and Debate Tournaments Foundation organizes at a high-school level. The main aim is to describe and discuss examples of negative inversions, clefts, passives, existentials, and extrapositions by applying qualitative and quantitative methods. The analysis of the data shows that participation in debates can encourage students to make use of focussing constructions in argumentative discourse and help them showcase their mastery of the English language. Moreover, the study offers valuable insight into the communication patterns used by Bulgarian teenagers as speakers of English as a foreign language.