In this contribution I will present the initial results of a research project whose aim is, on the one hand, to develop teaching materials based on corpora of spoken French and, on the other, to describe the linguistic development of learners of French as a second language (Projet Dicoi, https://centre-plurilinguisme.ch/en/research/Dicoi). The project relates both to research on the use of language corpora as a resource for foreign language teaching (Boulton, 2017) and to research on the assessment of interaction competence (Salaberry & Kunitz, 2019).

The data come from ten mixed classes of speakers with French as their L1 (Francophones with learning difficulties) or as their L2 (migrants with level ±B1). They are all following a dual vocational training programme for manual trades (sanitary assistant, carpenter's assistant, etc.) in French-speaking Switzerland. The pedagogical interventions took place eight times over two years (2021-2023), during general knowledge courses. In order to build up a longitudinal corpus, the participants were each recorded in audio mode during free peer interactions at the very beginning of each intervention.

The results indicate that L2 speakers of French have a good level of interaction overall. For example, they know how to use a variety of structures to ask questions, in proportions that are more similar to those found among L1 speakers than among classroom learners of French. While the level of comprehension and pronunciation increases, there is a certain stagnation in the level of grammar. These results confirm the influence of input on L2 development, and reveal the advantages and disadvantages of exposure to everyday language.

Boulton, A. (2017). Corpora in language teaching and learning. Language Teaching, 50(4), 483–506. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444817000167

Salaberry, M. R., & Kunitz, S. (Eds.). (2019). Teaching and Testing L2 Interactional Competence: Bridging Theory and Practice. Routledge.

Foto: Privat

Anita Thomas completed her doctorate in French linguistics at the University of Lund, where she spent 15 years of her life. Since 2016 she has been a full professor of French as a foreign language at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland. She is also a member of the directorate of the Institut de plurilinguisme and the co-director of the Centre de didactique des langues étrangères - CeDiLE, an online platform. Her research focuses mainly on the issue of input in foreign language teaching and learning.