Who are the Specialists? Teaching and Learning Specialised Language in French Educational Contexts

Abstract

This paper focuses on specialisation in language teaching and research in French educational settings by comparing and contrasting objects and goals of language education, scholarship and research, and approaches to language and content across modern foreign languages (MFL) scholars, applied linguists working in languages for specific purposes (LSP), and second language acquisition (SLA) researchers. It examines research domains, language teaching and learning, and language teacher education in French secondary and higher education contexts, and draws on this theoretical and pedagogical background to identify three intersections among MFL, LSP and SLA. These intersections involve the role of second language research in teacher preparation, tasks in language teaching methodology, and intercultural dimensions of language education. They correspond to common ground shared by the three approaches to language education and constitute promising areas for the development of LSP teaching and research.