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Study Abroad Research in Second Language Acquisition and International Education
Vol. 8:1 (2023) ► pp.1–23

Studying abroad during and before the COVID-19 pandemic

A comparison of target language use and self-reported linguistic progress

 | Stockholm University
The study abroad (SA) context is assumed to be ideal for second language (L2) learning because of the opportunities it provides to use the target language (TL) and to socialize with TL speakers. Although research conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic generally confirms this assumption, little is known about how the COVID-19 pandemic modified conditions for L2 learning in a SA context. This study contributes by documenting Swedish French language students’ patterns of TL use and perceived linguistic progress in a SA context in France during the COVID-19 pandemic (spring 2021) and compares these data with data from an equivalent group of Swedish French language students who studied in France before the pandemic. The results suggest that the SA context provided advantageous learning conditions even during the pandemic.
Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, target language use, self-reported linguistic progress, L2 French
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Background
    • 2.1TL use in SA
    • 2.2Language learning in SA
    • 2.3The French SA context during a pandemic
  • 3.The study
    • 3.1Participants
    • 3.2Data overview and data collection procedure
    • 3.3Data
    • 3.4Data analysis
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Frequency and type of TL use
    • 4.2Self-reported linguistic progress
  • 5.Discussion
  • Notes
  • References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license.

For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at [email protected].

Published online: 30 March 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/sar.21029.arv
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2024. Oral proficiency gains of study abroad students before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Study Abroad Research in Second Language Acquisition and International Education 9:2 ► pp. 127 ff. DOI logo
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2024. Informal language contact and formulaic language development of Chinese students abroad during a global crisis. Australian Review of Applied Linguistics DOI logo

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