Change in joint coordination of action during radio transmissions in military observer training: Orientation to emerging competence

In this study, we focus on the recurrent action of transmitting radio messages to examine change in military observer trainees’ joint coordination of actions during a patrolling exercise. We analyze radio communication of one team, including a trainee with no prior experience in radio use. The analysis shows how the change in the participants’ orientation to the ongoing task and the competence of the novice trainee are manifested in their joint coordination of actions. Furthermore, the episodes reveal the following organization of activity: (a) new practices are demonstrated on the first occasion; (b) after that, one is expected to be able to repeat them, (c) unless trouble is flagged. The study illustrates how a micro-longitudinal approach in ethnomethodological conversation analysis (EMCA) can shed light on instructed actions in task-based pedagogical activities and the subtleties of collaborative work, of which we know little. Data are in English as lingua franca.