Violencia Que Engendró ‘La Violencia’.

The CEFR has been used in a variety of educational environments, including post-secondary education. As the framework provides ideas for L2 teachers, there has been research conducted where students in a teacher education program have been introduced to the CEFR. In the next paragraphs, I will outline how researchers worked with university-aged students to explore an Intercultural Development Index, reflexivity, and the ELP as identified in the CEFR and how early immersion affected L2 learning in university.

Ragoonaden (2011) conducted a pilot study involving preservice FSL teachers in British Columbia. This study focused on teachers’ intercultural development. An Intercultural

Development Index (IDI), a statistically valid tool to measure intercultural competence, was administered to twelve preservice candidates. Intercultural competence refers to the ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with people of other cultures (Ragoonaden, 2011). The results were used as a basis to discuss the integration of intercultural competencies as identified in the CEFR. The study contributes to future research involving preservice teachers and further exploring intercultural competence.

Peguret (2014) set out to evaluate the circumstances that post-immersion students in their first year of French language study in university encounter with varied L2 background and levels of proficiency. What this study aimed to do was to assist students in surpassing the perceived plateau level of communication. Peguret (2014) observed students’ use of reflexivity, relating specifically to a lack of engagement with learning strategies and long-term auto-regulation. This study related to an instrumental understanding of language and language learning of 82 students who provided insights into their use of strategies in an L2 through the analysis of two open- ended questions related to writing and speaking. The researcher found that there was an

extremely significant difference between students with a background in early immersion or French schooling and those from other FSL programs. The former used fewer strategies in their writing. This raises the question of how French Immersion students are applying their knowledge to their written output. Peguret (2014) wanted to find out pedagogical approaches to reactive students’ reflexivity and determine how to encourage students to reflect on their prior knowledge of French learning.

The European Language Portfolio.Gagné and Thomas (2011) discuss their study, where the CEFR and an EPL (Electronic Language Portfolio) philosophy were introduced in a teacher education program in Ontario. There were supports given to students who were interested in creating an EPL for their own learning. The main goal of the study was to foster common learning of French language for future teachers. Gagné and Thomas’s work (2011) raised awareness to individuals who taught French of the existence of a language portfolio (such as the EPL) and created support between colleagues teaching French and other language instructors.

Similarly, another study that took place in a university setting was part of an education course that was taken in conjunction with a French language course. Lemaire’s (2013) goal was to assist French-speaking students living in Western Canada to reflect on their language

repertoire and identity. The study involved a review of LaPlante and Christiansen’s portfolio (2001) and the ELP, and students were asked to identify their strengths and challenges to focus better on their language development. Here, in this study, similar to that of Gagné and Thomas’ work (2011), students were at the forefront of the study and were involved in the co-construction of learning French and delving into the language portfolio as set out by the CEFR. As in

Majhanovich et al.’s (2010) study, learner autonomy was still a focus, and continued well into students’ language learning journeys.

Another research study that encompassed the CEFR and the ELP is that of Mansilla and Riejos (2007). They provide a short overview of the history of the CEFR and ELP, and explain the aims and functions of the portfolio. Their study describes the ELP’s use in Europe with the implementation of the portfolio into students’ language learning. The research uncovered that most of the ELP users are students at the elementary school level. In a post follow-up interview, there was discussion of the most salient and practical points of the CEFR, reference levels, assessment opportunities, and the ELP. There were not many reports of students in higher education using the portfolio. Mansilla and Riejos (2007) observed that the results of the study were mixed but there were positive effects on the learning process, learning outcome, and learner motivation. However, there were challenges and drawbacks that were encountered by both teachers and students, including the rigidness of self-assessment, difficulty in handling and updating the portfolio, and the amount of time that the ELP involves (Mansilla and Riejos, 2007). This pertains to my study during which I tried to address the struggles and obstacles encountered by my teacher participant in her classroom, identify areas where she would like to explore next, and then set goals and steps to achieve these expectations.

Mandin (2010) used the CEFR and language portfolio with French Immersion graduates in the context of an introductory language methodology course in a Francophone institution. Students were to complete a two-page autobiographical narrative entitled, “My Life in French till now”, create an action plan that included an analysis of errors they identified as targets in their learning, and the means or tools by which they chose to use to correct the identified errors. Their analysis of the autobiographical narrative stemmed from their life experiences, specifically when they were exposed to the French language. Their narrative was inspired by values that they developed and the choices they made relating to learning French. Students also included

significant experiences that they identified as pivotal in their motivation to pursue postsecondary studies in French, along with teachers, friends, and family who played an important role in their lives. Mandin’s study (2010) was laid out in a way where students in an elementary school setting could be able to replicate the process, using more appropriate self-assessment strategies.

Turning to a study at the high school level, Kristmanson, Lafargue and Culligan (2013) engaged in an action-research project with Grade 12 students, using a language portfolio based on the ELP. This project involved a focus group with interviews conducted to gather data related to experiences and perceptions regarding L2 learning. The study focused on learners’

experiences with the portfolio and its role in promoting learner autonomy. The main themes uncovered were those of general perceptions of learning, language learning experiences, and experiences with the language portfolio. The project discovered pedagogical possibilities for students learning a second or foreign language. The study suggested that developing learning autonomy presented opportunities and challenges for language studies. However, there needed to be continued exploration of learner voices, as this was an important direction to take for studies involving language portfolios based on the ELP principles and guidelines. Kristmanson et al. (2013) concluded that using student voices would allow educators to further understand ways in which ownership involvement and personalization could lead to more effective goal-setting, self- assessment tasks, and learner autonomy.

It is evident that because the CEFR is such a large document, each study discussed above aimed to highlight and focus on certain aspects of the document. It would be a challenge to find salient studies that reflected a number of parts of the CEFR, and the studies mentioned above all involved students of various levels of education, along with one important piece of the CEFR (such as the language portfolio or intercultural competence).