L’interazione tra parlanti di italiano L1 e L2 nel forum linguistico di LIRA

Using data from the LIRA forum – Lingua/Cultura Italiana in Rete per l’Apprendimento (Italian language and culture for online learning) – this paper focuses on interactions between native and non-native users and the roles they take in different threads. LIRA is a multimedia repository of e-learning materials aiming at recovering, preserving and developing linguistic, pragmatic and cultural competences in Italian and it attaches great importance to community interaction. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the current discussion on the communicative competence of the “native speaker” and his/her role in language teaching and learning. In this perspective, can the role of “expert” (understood as a competent speaker) be taken by both native and non-native speakers depending on the situation?