Parlez-Vous Franglais?: An Examination in French Immersion Student Attitudes and Participation in a

The goal of this Action Research Project aimed to examine the practical uses of Franglais (French and English being interchangeably used in the same context) in an immersion classroom to increase student oral participation. Evidence was gathered using teacher observation and a Google Form which was filled out by students. In observations of one class allowed to use Franglais to participate and one class which only allowed the use of French, the Franglais class participated a lot more with deeper critical reflection than the class limited by just using French. With the Google Form, many students reflected on how Franglais allows for greater fluidity because it removes any possible barriers that exist. However, the students also reflected on how translanguaging is difficult to maintain and how the encouragement to use only French should continue to push them to improve. Franglais has its uses in the classroom, and should be thus used in informal conversational settings in the French immersion setting.

In second language learning, willingness to communicate is a difficult challenge to overcome. In French immersion, students come from different linguistic backgrounds that influence how they use language. Students may also have different social situations where they feel more or less at ease to communicate in their L2. The figure below attempts to capture the different factors that influence L2 learners. The bottom of the pyramid forms the base of L2 communication to the top level where L2 learners willingly communicate on their own.

Figure 1: Pyramid of Willingness to Communicate Factors

94% of students enjoyed the option of being able to use Franglais, even if they did not require it. They mentioned how Franglais improved their fluidity, removed hesitation over answering questions, and improved their confidence since they could communicate better knowing there was a safety net for them, if needed. In a French immersion classroom, we are at Layer III of the pyramid as we are trying to communicate with a specific person (the Teacher), while working on self-confidence. The use of Franglais opens up more students feeling at ease to communicate in their L2, which allows us to move to Layer II. It is ironic that for immersion students, being able to use their L1 can encourage their L2 use.

In the French immersion setting, students are grappling with subject acquisition in addition to language acquisition. This can lead to situations where the L2 level is not where students would like it to be in order to communicate all of their thoughts to the teacher. Coelho notes that “ learners must have enough background knowledge in the subject area to be able to relate to the context, and the language level of the text or lesson must not be too far above the learner’s current level of development” ( 2004). The use of Franglais can manifest in multiple ways in the classroom to help students reach their zone of proximal development. French immersion teachers are introducing new content in the subject area, thus, it is vital to establish a base level of vocabulary and language level in order for the learners to have a level of background knowledge of what everything is. This can also benefit student learning at home, as students who ask their parents for help with homework, are able to explain the base content which parents can build off of to aid with homework. Additionally, allowing Franglais in informal settings was observed to see students asking clarification questions in front of the class, without students worrying about pronunciation and fluidity errors. This was seen to improve answer quality in written work as students had a better idea of what was being asked.

Some teaching strategies that will enhance my professional practice will include allowing students to use Franglais in informal settings, such as class discussion or asking clarification questions. Content and language are paired together in immersion classrooms. Thus, it is important to ensure students understand both and Franglais can be a tool used to achieve understanding. Reading over questions, and clarifying words with a French synonym or the English translation are both strategies to encourage understanding, while creating a positive plurilingual environment.

In immersion classrooms, teachers need to ensure language, as well as subject content, is understood. 91% of the students surveyed agreed that they appreciated when the teacher used Franglais. Franglais by a teacher can be used to confirm understanding and signal important information and concepts. Additionally, it can foster a positive environment within the classroom. If students see their teacher occasionally using a word or two in English, it normalizes trying despite imperfections. This can possibly lead to more students trying to reach Level II in the Willingness to Communicate Factors Pyramid as it normalizes the learning process and that everyone’s French is imperfect. French, especially in the Ontario context, is influenced by English. Thus, English in the context of Franglais should be leveraged by the teacher to normalize speaking some French in a transition to full French.

In recognizing gaps within the research, the French-only class was only used in teacher observation; they did not complete the Google Form on whether or not they think they would benefit from using Franglais. Including these students, as well as core French students, would provide additional insights to Franglais use and how it intertwines with the willingness to communicate. Additionally, French immersion in a pandemic creates a unique situation. Students’ French skills have been affected due to online learning and the difficulty to communicate in such settings. Language needs to be consistently used to maintain and improve. However, no fault of the teachers and the students trying to navigate their online learning situation, L2 skills have been affected. A further area of research would be to examine how Franglais could impact language acquisition in a pandemic classroom setting.

Through this research project, Franglais and French attitudes in the classroom were examined. Students reflected on how the use of Franglais affects their language skills and their willingness to communicate. Pairing this with teacher observation from the classroom, Franglais was noted to aid with student understanding in content-based courses, class participation, and overall willingness to communicate in group settings. Using plurilingual teaching with Franglais, students can gain better content understanding and be more at ease in their language journey when a teacher joins them on that journey as well. Further research is required to include core French students, as well as students who only are allowed French in the classroom, keeping in mind the pandemic situation that has affected student learning.

Bibliography and Further Reading

• Boudreau, C., MacIntyre, P. D., & Dewaele, J.-M. (2018). Enjoyment and anxiety in second language communication: An idiodynamic approach. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 8(1), 149-170.

• Coelho, E. (2004) Understanding Second Language Acquisition. The Language Learning Environment, 141-166.

• Cormier, M., Turnbull, M. (2009) Une approche littératiée: apprendre les sciences et la langue en immersion tardive. The Canadian Modern Language Review/La revue canadienne des langues vivantes, 65(5), 817-840.

• Kantzou, V., Vasileiadi, D. M. (2021). On Using Languages other Than the Target One in L2 Adult Language Education: Teachers’ Views and Practices in Modern Greek Classrooms. Journal of language and education, 7(2), 155-174.

• MacIntyre, P., Burns, C., Jessome, A. (2011). Ambivalence About Communicating in a Second Language: A Qualitative Study of French Immersion Students’ Willingness to Communicate. The Modern language Journal, 95(1), 81-96.

• Roy, S. (2012) Qui décide du meilleur français? Représentations des variétés linguistiques du français en immersion. The Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 15(1), 1-19.