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The complementary contributions of oral and written modalities to the development of verbal morphology

A longitudinal study of Syrian learners of L2 French

ORCiD logo with link | University of Toulouse Jean Jaurès
Published online: 17 February 2026
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/lia.24027.sad
Abstract
In this study, we longitudinally investigate the use of verbal and morphological means to narrate past and present events. We compare oral and written personal narratives from two Syrian learners of L2 French (one beginner and one intermediate) across three data collection points over seven months. By analysing all verbal constructions in relation to the context of occurrence (past or non-past), we examine their constituents and the evolution of form-function mappings over time. Our results show that the written production, particularly in the beginner learner, reveals the production of a wider range of morphological choices and tense distinctions compared to oral production. By highlighting the use of verbal strategies in both the oral and written modalities, this study underscores the complementary contributions of each mode to the gradual mastery of French verbal morphology.
Résumé
Dans cette étude, nous examinons de manière longitudinale l’utilisation des moyens morphologiques et des constructions verbales pour raconter des événements passés et non passés, en comparant des récits personnels oraux et écrits recueillis auprès de deux apprenantes syriennes (une débutante et une intermédiaire) de français L2 à trois temps de collecte de données sur une période de sept mois. En analysant toutes les constructions verbales en relation avec le contexte d’occurrence (passé ou non passé), nous examinons leurs constituants et l’évolution des correspondances forme-fonction au fil du temps. Nos résultats montrent que la production écrite, en particulier chez l’apprenante débutante, révèle une gamme plus large de choix morphologiques et de distinctions temporelles par rapport à la production orale. En mettant en évidence l’utilisation différentielle des stratégies verbales dans les modalités orales et écrites, cette étude souligne les contributions complémentaires de chaque modalité à la maîtrise progressive de la morphologie verbale du français L2.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1L2 temporality among Arabic learners of French
    • 1.2On oral vs. written production
    • 1.3Verbal constructions and forms in Syrian Arabic and in French
  • 2.Research objectives and questions
  • 3.Predictions
  • 4.Methodology
    • 4.1Participants
    • 4.2The data
    • 4.3Data coding and analysis
  • 5.Results
  • 6.Discussion
  • 7.Concluding remarks
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
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