CCERBAL Research Forum: From French to the Francophonie

In Japan, university teaching of French has historically been built in close relationship with France and its cultural representations, particularly in Paris (Giunta, 2017). While studies have already highlighted the interest to broaden this teaching to include the diversity of French-speaking spaces (Komatsu, 2018), recent research also invites us to rethink pedagogical practices from a more plurilingual perspective (Mouton and Oyama, 2024). In this context, one questions the place that the plurality of French-speaking countries occupies in the teaching of French in Japan, and the expectations of the learners in this regard. 

This presentation is based on a survey conducted in 2025 among 153 students from 8 Japanese universities. The survey aims to examine their representations of the Francophonie, their interest in the different French-speaking regions, and their expectations with regard to their learning. The results reveal a significant gap between a limited knowledge of Francophonie and a strong curiosity for the cultural, social and linguistic diversity of the French-speaking world. The comments collected demonstrate an interest in the variations of French, the social realities of the different regions and the possibilities of meeting other speakers. 

These results will be examined in light of the work on plurilingual and pluricultural competence (Coste, Moore and Zarate, 1997; Council of Europe, 2020), plural approaches (Candelier et al., 2012) and the action-oriented perspective (Puren, 2006). The aim is to demonstrate that the more explicit integration of the great diversity of French-speaking countries does not simply consist of expanding the geographical content seen in the classroom, but can also contribute to rethinking the very purposes of French teaching. 

The Canadian context, where institutional bilingualism, minority Francophonie, French as a second language, and linguistic diversity intersect, allows us to deepen this reflection. Finally, we will briefly present a draft textbook for Japanese learners at the intermediate level that is currently in development, as an attempt to translate these reflections into concrete pedagogical approaches.

References

Candelier, M. et al. (2012). Le CARAP – Un Cadre de Référence pour les Approches Plurielles des Langues et des Cultures. Conseil de l’Europe.

Conseil de l’Europe. (2020). Cadre européen commun de référence pour les langues : apprendre, enseigner, évaluer – Volume complémentaire. Conseil de l’Europe.

Coste, D., Moore, D. & Zarate, G. (1997). Compétence plurilingue et pluriculturelle. Conseil de l’Europe.

Giunta L. (2018). Stéréotypes et représentations de la France chez les étudiants japonais à Tokyo en 2017, entre continuité et nouveauté : influence de la durée d’étude du français et du séjour en France. Revue de Hiyoshi, Langue et littérature françaises, 66, 1-31.

Komatsu, S. (2018). « La francophonie et l’enseignement du français au Japon : analyse qualitative des représentations de la langue française et de la francophonie chez les apprenants japonais ». Actes du XIV^e congrès mondial de la FIPF(Fédération Internationale des Professeurs du Français), V, 175-179.

Mouton, G. & Oyama, M. (2024). « L’éducation plurilingue en contexte universitaire japonais : les traces de DIL dans les manuels de FLE pour débutants ». Revue japonaise de didactique du français, 19(1-2), 77-94.

Puren, C. (2006). « De l’approche communicative à la perspective actionnelle ». Le Français dans le monde, 347, 37-40.

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