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Article published In:
Journal of Immersion and Content-Based Language Education
Vol. 8:2 (2020) ► pp.173–199

Effects of input on L2 writing in English and Dutch

CLIL and non-CLIL learners in French-speaking Belgium

ORCID logo | NaLTT, Université de Namur
| ILC, UCLouvain
| ILC, UCLouvain
| ILC, UCLouvain
| ILC, UCLouvain

This study aims to explore the impact of formal and informal input on learners’ variability in writing, and to compare two target-language conditions (Dutch and English) in CLIL and non-CLIL settings in French-speaking Belgium. A regression model shows that CLIL is a significant predictor of L2 outcomes for both target languages, but that the relative impact of formal and informal input differs depending on the target language. In short, the amount of formal language exposure predicts the outcomes of the written productions of the learners of English, and the frequency of informal exposure those of the learners of Dutch. We argue that this observation is likely related to the difference in status that each of these languages holds among the pupils in our sample. The findings thus highlight the importance of the L2 status in research on CLIL, since different L2s can yield different results.

Keywords: L2 English, L2 Dutch, CLIL, non-CLIL, writing, French-speaking Belgium
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The influence of (different types of) TL input on TL proficiency
    • 2.1Duration of TL learning
    • 2.2Formal vs informal TL exposure
    • 2.3CLIL input
  • 3.Research questions, participants and data collection
    • 3.1Research questions
    • 3.2Participants
    • 3.3Data collection procedure and instruments
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Descriptive statistics
    • 4.2Correlations
    • 4.3Regressions
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusions
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 1 May 2020
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/jicb.18034.van
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