La transposition des idées en phrases correctes et complexes est au cœur de la compétence à écrire en contexte scolaire (Saddler, 2019). Cependant, l’enseignement de la syntaxe et de la ponctuation en français pourrait être amélioré pour faciliter le transfert des connaissances grammaticales enseignées en production écrite libre (Nadeau et Fisher, 2011). Dans une étude quasi expérimentale réalisée en milieu défavorisé chez des élèves de 10 à 13 ans, une séquence d’enseignement comprenant une dizaine d’activités de combinaison de phrases libre (Saddler, 2019) a été élaborée (Nadeau, Giguère et al., 2020b), puis expérimentée. Pour mesurer l’effet de la séquence sur le développement de la complexité syntaxique, des textes narratifs et descriptifs ont été recueillis avant et après l'expérimentation dans 11 classes expérimentales et 6 classes contrôles. Les résultats montrent une augmentation de plusieurs indices de complexité syntaxique pour l’un des niveaux scolaires. L’article présente ces résultats et les implications didactiques en découlant.
This paper employs the 'What's the problem represented to be?' (WPR) method to explore language learning and language planning policy in Alberta, Canada through the provincial government's newly published update of a document titled 'French Policy'. Through an analysis of its discourse, along with the political and pedagogical contexts in which the French Policy finds itself, the underlying belief emerges that learning in languages other than English in Alberta should only be reserved to the few who qualify for official minority education obligated by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The argument is made in this paper that the province would actually benefit from the opposite: that an educational turn towards promoting the learning of multiple languages would better achieve the goals of inclusion and social and economic progress for which the government is claiming to be endeavouring in the French Policy and elsewhere.
Cette étude visait à évaluer la cohérence textuelle dans des textes explicatifs écrits par des élèves du troisième secondaire. Pour ce faire, les participants, soit 47 élèves francophones du 3e secondaire d’une école située dans la région de Montréal, étaient invités à rédiger un texte explicatif sur l’effet thérapeutique du rire. Pour évaluer la cohérence du texte, les marques adéquates et des erreurs relatives aux thèmes, aux connecteurs et aux propos ont été compilées. Nos résultats indiquent que les élèves avaient tendance à utiliser la progression à thèmes constants avec un taux élevé d’erreurs de reprise, d’omission des connecteurs essentiels, d’utilisation des connecteurs inadéquats et de propos illogiques. L’interprétation de ces résultats nous permet de dégager les forces et les besoins relatifs à la cohérence textuelle dans une double visée : informer les futures recherches d’intervention portant sur la cohérence et soutenir les milieux de pratique dans leurs efforts d’aider à cet égard les scripteurs du groupe d’âge de nos participants.
L’intégration professionnelle des immigrants économiques dans la société d’accueil ne se déroule pas toujours sans obstacle. Il peut arriver que des employeurs se fient à leur perception pour juger de la compétence langagière des candidats, ce qui peut désavantager ceux s’exprimant avec un accent étranger. Cet article présente les résultats d’une étude menée à Québec, mettant en lumière les compétences professionnelles conférées à quatre groupes linguistiques d’immigrants récents (sinophones, hispanophones, anglophones et persophones) sur la base de leur accent en français. Certaines différences ont été observées dans l’évaluation en fonction des types de stimuli (auditifs vs. auditifs combinés avec photo, voix associées à un groupe linguistique) et des profils des juges (âge, croyances à l’égard de l’immigration). Les résultats montrent que des stéréotypes linguistiques sont intervenus dans l’évaluation, les juges n’ayant pas attribué le même capital symbolique aux quatre groupes.
Les trajectoires de vie et les représentations langagières qu’entretiennent les parents influenceraient la nature des interrelations et des pratiques langagières familiales. Cet article empirique vise à décrire les contextes sociolinguistiques éducatifs et familiaux du sud-est de la province canadienne du Nouveau-Brunswick, pour ensuite dégager des propos de nouveaux parents plurilingues, certains facteurs écosystémiques pouvant structurer leurs choix langagiers familiaux. L’analyse transversale des résumés narratifs issus d’entretiens semi-dirigés avec sept couples de futurs et nouveaux parents d’enfants de moins de 5 ans a montré que le vécu ethnolangagier des parents teinterait leurs comportements et représentations langagières. Ces représentations, combinées à l’accessibilité aux services éducatifs dans une langue minoritaire, elle-même permise grâce aux politiques linguistiques soutenues par le macrosystème, influenceraient le microsystème langagier de l’enfant. Néanmoins, il semble que le sentiment de pouvoir influencer le développement langagier de leurs enfants soit le facteur principal structurant les choix langagiers familiaux des parents.
En milieu francophone minoritaire, la pluralité linguistique n’est pas un phénomène nouveau. Depuis plus de vingt ans, la recherche invite les écoles francophones à être plus inclusives (Bouchamma, 2009 ; Dalley, 2003 ; Gérin-Lajoie, 2004 ; Jacquet et al., 2008). Or, ce qu’on observe, c’est la difficulté de mettre en place des approches didactiques qui reconnaissent, valorisent et mobilisent les répertoires plurilingues des élèves (Dagenais, 2017 ; Fleuret, 2020). Quels seraient donc les freins à la prise en compte de la pluralité linguistique ? Ancrée dans une approche systémique de l’éducation, cette analyse secondaire de données ethnographiques est tirée d’une étude doctorale réalisée dans une école de Vancouver. L’article donne la parole à 12 enseignantes et enseignants pour identifier des facteurs qui pourraient rendre possible l’atteinte des objectifs d’inclusion : les idéologies et représentations linguistiques, la formation et les ressources du personnel, ainsi que le leadership et soutien des équipes-écoles.
Despite the importance of replication research in scientific fields, very few replications are conducted in applied linguistics (AL). To enhance language researchers’ awareness of replications and provide a systematic evaluation of current replications, this study analyzed replication studies published in 92 AL leading journals from 1970 to 2021 based on five themes of replication labels, methodological orientations, research trends, authorship, and citation counts of replicators. The results reveal that replication labels have explicitly been mentioned since 2002, the replication of quantitative studies has predominately been raised, studies on second language acquisition were frequently replicated, collaborative authorship has increased in replications, and influential AL scholars tend to conduct replication research. The study highlights the need for a well-established replication classification and calls for replication research in the areas and methodological orientations marginalized in AL. It is also recommended that prominent figures perform more replication research to consolidate its status in AL.
This study explores the written corrective feedback provided by two university teachers in the academic texts written by their students. Specifically, it focuses on the relationship established between the linguistic and discursive errors identified by the teachers, the forms of feedback provided (direct, indirect, metalinguistic and metadiscursive) and the impact of feedback on a second version of the texts revised by the students. A total of 142 texts (two versions of 71 texts) submitted by two groups of students taking a primary education degree at two Spanish universities (71 students) were analyzed. These were coded according to the errors detected, the form of feedback provided, and the way in which they incorporated the feedback into a second version. The results show that the errors detected in the highest numbers by the teachers were discursive, followed by morpho-syntactic and spelling mistakes. The most common feedback was indirect, followed by metalinguistic, although the two teachers were found to take distinct approaches. Regarding its impact, the students incorporated a high percentage (80%) of the feedback provided.
The importance of revision has been recognised by numerous scholars of the teaching and learning of writing (Abad & Rodríguez-Gonzalo, 2023; Bereiter & Scardamalia, 1987; Camps, 2020; Horning & Becker, 2006), especially if it is understood as a recursive and transversal phase that affects all levels of language (Álvarez Angulo, 2011; Camps, 2020; Marin & Legros, 2006). To test whether group revision is an effective tool in the teaching-learning process of writing in Spanish as a first language, in this paper we analyse large group revision sessions recorded in the natural context of a university classroom in which we implemented a didactic writing sequence (Camps, 2020; Dolz et al., 2001; Rodríguez-Gonzalo & Abad-Beltrán, 2023). The objective of this paper—an instrumental case study (Stake, 2007; Yin, 2009)—is to describe the interactions that take place in this revision process, categorise the aspects of the different linguistic levels to be identified and describe the students' proposed actions aimed at modifying the texts. The results show that approaching the revision phase collectively encourages the development of the students' metalinguistic and meta-rhetorical awareness (Horning, 2006), provided that this phase is not limited to the correction of errors in the final text and is conceived as a complex process that represents growth, progress and discovery (Haar, 2006) in the composition of a piece of writing.
This study examines the professional characteristics attributed to members of four ethnocultural groups established in Qu & eacute;bec City. Thirty-eight female respondents evaluated audio and audiovisual stimuli. Based on a list of professional characteristics commonly found in public service job postings, they selected those they associated with the person they heard, across three analytical dimensions: solidarity, status, and dynamism-communication. The analyses show that respondents attributed higher levels of professional competence to audiovisual stimuli than to audio stimuli. The ethnocultural groups were evaluated differently depending on the speaker's gender and the dimension under evaluation. Finally, among the covariates considered, only respondents' age and their beliefs about immigration had an effect: emerging adults attributed higher professional competence on the solidarity and status dimensions, and individuals favourable to immigration attributed higher professional competence on the dynamism-communication dimension.
Linguistic plurality is not a new phenomenon in Francophone minority environments. For over twenty years, research has been urging Francophone schools to be more inclusive (Bouchamma, 2009; Dalley, 2003; G & eacute;rin-Lajoie, 2004 ; Jacquet et al., 2008). Yet, what we observe is the difficulty of implementing pedagogical approaches that recognize, value, and mobilize students' plurilingual repertoires (Dagenais, 2017; Fleuret, 2020). What are then the obstacles to taking linguistic plurality into account? Rooted in a systemic approach to education, this secondary analysis of ethnographic data is drawn from a doctoral study conducted in a Vancouver school. The article gives voice to 12 teachers in order to identify factors that could help achieve inclusion: linguistic ideologies and representations, staff training and resources, and school-team leadership and support.
Parents' life experiences and language representations influence the nature of family interrelations and language practices. The object of this empirical paper is to describe the educational and family sociolinguistic contexts of the Southeastern Canadian province of New Brunswick, and then identify, from the comments of new plurilingual parents, certain ecosystemic factors that may structure their family language choices. A cross-sectional analysis of narrative summaries obtained from semi-structured interviews with seven couples of future and new parents of children under 5 years of age showed that the parents' ethnolinguistic experience influenced their language behaviours and representations. These representations, combined with the access to educational services in a minority language, which itself is made possible by language policies supported by the macrosystem, would influence the child's language microsystem. Nevertheless, it seems that the belief of being able to influence their children's language development is the main factor structuring parents' family language choices.
This study aimed to evaluate textual coherence in explanatory texts written by third-year secondary school students. To do so, the participants, 47 French-speaking third-year secondary school students from a school located in the Montreal area, were asked to write an explanatory text on the therapeutic effects of laughter. To assess the coherence of these texts, appropriate markers and errors related to themes, connectors, and arguments were compiled. Our results indicate that the students tended to use a constant theme progression with a high rate of errors in thematic recurrence, omission of essential connectors, use of inappropriate connectors, and illogical arguments. The interpretation of these results allows us to identify the strengths and needs related to textual coherence with a dual aim: to inform future intervention research on coherence and to support practitioners in their efforts to help writers in the age group of our participants improve textual coherence in their texts.
As an alternative to standardized testing, English for academic purposes (EAP) programs provide a language development pathway to higher education for students working towards meeting English language proficiency requirements. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these programs moved online; however, the outcomes of that move and the relationship with additional language learning are still to be fully explored. Based on student reflections and recollections, this study identifies key outcomes related to their online EAP program experiences. Nine participants completed an online questionnaire, with three taking part in interviews. Using a qualitative thematic approach, data were coded and gathered into the following themes: academic and interpersonal skills, network creation, language development, and knowledge building. These findings are presented as building blocks in the additional language socialization process and underscore the potential of online teaching and learning along with the importance of holistic and general approaches to EAP curriculum development and program planning.
This paper employs the 'What's the problem represented to be?' (WPR) method to explore language learning and language planning policy in Alberta, Canada through the provincial government's newly published update of a document titled 'French Policy'. Through an analysis of its discourse, along with the political and pedagogical contexts in which the French Policy finds itself, the underlying belief emerges that learning in languages other than English in Alberta should only be reserved to the few who qualify for official minority education obligated by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The argument is made in this paper that the province would actually benefit from the opposite: that an educational turn towards promoting the learning of multiple languages would better achieve the goals of inclusion and social and economic progress for which the government is claiming to be endeavouring in the French Policy and elsewhere.
Transposing ideas into correct, complex sentences is at the heart of writing competence in a school context (Saddler, 2019). However, the teaching of syntax and punctuation in French could be improved to facilitate the transfer of grammatical knowledge taught in class into free writing production (Nadeau & Fisher, 2011). In a quasi-experimental study carried out in an underprivileged environment with students aged 10 to 13, a teaching sequence comprising ten open sentence-combining activities (Saddler, 2019) was developed (Nadeau, Gigu & egrave;re et al., 2020b), then tested. To measure the effect of the sequence on the development of syntactic complexity, narrative and descriptive texts were collected before and after experimentation in 11 experimental and 6 control classes. The results show an increase in several indices of syntactic complexity for one of the grade levels. This article presents these results and the implications for teaching.
An increasing number of studies have explored the effects of collaborative writing on written outcomes; however, few studies have examined the influence of collaborative processing of feedback. This study addresses this gap by focusing on learner engagement. While collaborative writing involves co-authoring a text, which requires negotiation and idea sharing, collaborative processing of feedback focuses on jointly interpreting and responding to feedback. Utilizing a mixed-methods design, this study examined 24 learners of French as a Foreign Language (FFL) over an 8-week period. It compared their engagement with written corrective feedback (WCF) when processed individually versus in pairs. The findings provide insights into how different feedback processing modes influence learner engagement and highlight the potential benefits of collaborative feedback processing. The instructor provided indirect WCF, and learners revised their essays with think-aloud sessions. The study examined cognitive and behavioral engagement through writing analysis and used think-aloud reports examining affective engagement. Results indicated that learners' cognitive engagement varied between individual and collaborative processing, with individuals employing fewer high-depth and low-depth processing strategies. However, affective engagement was found to be independent of task completion mode, and behavioral engagement did not differ between individual and collaborative processing of WCF.
This study examines the impact of written corrective feedback (WCF) timing on the collaborative writing process and writing accuracy development of adult learners of French as a second language. Forty-eight learners were divided into three groups to complete a collaborative writing task in pairs. The first group received immediate WCF via Google Docs while writing, the second group received delayed WCF one week later with 10 minutes allocated for error correction, and the third group performed the writing task without receiving any feedback. All discussions during the collaborative writing were recorded and analyzed for language-related episodes (LREs). Writing accuracy was assessed through pretests, immediate posttests, and delayed posttests using story-retelling tasks. The findings revealed that the delayed feedback group engaged in more extensive discussions about linguistic forms compared to the other two groups. In terms of writing accuracy, the immediate feedback group showed the most significant improvements over time.
