The Acquisition of 3pl Verb Markings by (Very) Advanced FSL Learners and Francophone Students in Ontario, Canada (Oct. 5, 2023)

We’re excited to welcome Raymond and Françoise Mougeon from Glendon College, York University, who will be giving a talk on the acquisition of verbal inflection by French-English bilinguals as the second event in our seminar series on "Multilingualism: Reflecting on a Global Reality through Time, Space, Mind, and Text". 

The talk takes place on Thursday, October 5, 2023; 10 a.m. – 11 a.m.

Join us in person (MN3230 (CDRS)) or via Zoom (https://uoft.me/bilingual-register).

Abstract: This study examines the acquisition of the use of 3pl. markings of French verbs by speakers along an enhanced French L1 – L2 speaker continuum, namely i) bilingual (French/English) students attending French-medium high schools in the Francophone communities of Hawkesbury, Cornwall, North Bay and Pembroke, Ontario, ii) FSL high school students enrolled in an immersion program in Toronto and iii) FSL students attending a bilingual university college, also in Toronto. It documents the impact of the following factors: i) the discursive frequency of the verbs; ii) the proportion of Francophones in the students’ communities of residence; iii) the students’ individual frequency of extra-curricular use of French; (iv) use of the 3pl. verb markings by teachers in French-medium schools and French Immersion programs and v) use of the 3pl. verb markings in the varieties of French spoken in the four Franco-Ontarian communities. Our study examines the role of these factors in the intergroup hierarchies in rates of acquisition of the 3pl. verb markings along the enhanced speaker continuum. 

This event is sponsored by the Jackman Humanities Institute.