Investigating connections among reading, writing, and language development: A multiliteracies perspective

Abstract

This study explores relationships among reading literature, creative writing, and language development in a university-level advanced French grammar course through the theoretical lens of the multiliteracies framework. The goal is to investigate reading-writing connections and whether these literacy practices facilitate students’ understanding and use of resources such as grammar, vocabulary, genre, and style. Qualitative and quantitative findings show that students recognize reading-writing connections and their contribution to language development; they perceive reading and writing as contributing to their understanding of language and text-based features; and they can apply to varying degrees textual resources learned through reading to creative writing tasks. The implications of these findings lend support to a growing body of research that explores the feasibility and outcomes of literacy-based approaches to teaching and learning in university-level foreign language contexts that have as their goal development of students’ advanced foreign language competencies.