While the L2 Motivational Self System (L2MSS) has been extensively investigated among learners of English, this study explores through a crosslinguistic lens its applicability to learners of a language other than English (LOTE), in this case French. Quantitative survey analysis among 522 university learners of French and English in two European…

This mixed methods study compares L2 learning motivation of Burundi simultaneous learners of French, English and Kiswahili, mainly focusing on L2 Motivational Self System (L2MSS). A total of 348 junior high school students participated in a 60-item questionnaire survey, and 12 of those learners participated in a follow-up semi-structured…

Canada is facing a nationwide shortage of teachers of French as a second language. The profession is experiencing significant retention issues, with many teachers leaving the field within the first five years. One of the solutions proposed to address the challenges of teacher retention is for post-secondary institutions to integrate the concept…

The French as a second language (FSL) teacher shortage crisis has been a longstanding issue in Canada. In this paper, we examine the links between teacher agency, autonomy and identity in light of findings about marginalization, deprofessionalization, and/or difficulty in developing a strong sense of identity. Taking these findings into account,…

As plurilingual/multilingual research advances, factors that contribute to or hinder individual's flexible language use are still underexplored. Questions such as "Why do some people identify as plurilingual and pluricultural while others do not?" and "What factors contribute to high levels of plurilingual and pluricultural…

Drawing upon Darvin and Norton's framework of investment, this article explores the multiple factors underlying parents' commitment to bilingual education. I use open-ended responses on a survey to report on the motivations and experiences of parents who have enrolled their child in a French-English dual language immersion program. Findings…

There is a great deal of research literature that treats language learning as a process of identity construction, but relatively few studies have investigated so-called additional languages. This article presents interview and other narrative data from a single language learner studying French as an additional language in Hong Kong. Using the…

This study explores the perceptions of integration and cultural identity redefinitions expressed by Chinese adult learners of French as a second language (FSL) in Quebec (Canada). We present their reflections from their perspective of learning and using French, Quebec's main language. Interviews were conducted in French with 15 newly-arrived…

Academic self-concept (ASC) is a student's self-perceived level of ability in an academic domain and a major factor involved in academic performance. We examined the importance of internal/external sources of evaluation for the structure of L2 and L3 ASCs in two groups of 5th/6th graders learning English and French in Switzerland (mean age: 12.1).…

While the language portrait (LP) is a visual research method that can make visible speakers' multilingualism, this article considers how and why speakers may use the LP to make elements of their linguistic repertoire "invisible." Analysing the portraits created by three primary school students in Luxembourg, I explore why these young…

Using critical interpretive procedures, this synthesis reviews qualitative and quantitative empirical studies (N = 181) published between 2000 and 2017 in the Canadian French as a Second Language (FSL) K-12 context. This study examines the thematic focus of findings relevant to key stakeholders (i.e., students, teachers, teacher candidates,…

Teachers stand at the face of educational change, and it is therefore important to understand the identity work that they do if reform is to be successful. This paper explores how two Vietnamese university language teachers renegotiated their professional identity in the context of dramatic changes to language provision in the tertiary-sector in…

Linguistic identity is deeply embedded in how individuals identify within groups and cultures (Gee, 2000; Sachs, 2005). The contexts of English as a second language (ESL) teaching in Quebec and ESL teachers' range of linguistic repertoires provide an interesting landscape for considering issues of identity, equity, and acceptance (De Costa &…

The increasing popularity of radical right, anti-immigrant, neo-nationalist movements can be seen as a response to super-diverse and complex migration and globalization processes challenging the ideology of the 'nation-state' and the traditional education system. Based on the question of how English is increasingly viewed as a threat to Swiss…

This study presents the case of a multilingual refugee (Maji) of Kirundi, Swahili, French, and English, from Burundi living in the U.S., and examines the language ideologies and identities embedded in his transnational narratives. We analyze our focal participant's multi-layered transnational experiences using Darvin and Norton's (2015) model of…