Mediation in informal foreign language learning

Abstract

This article examines the role of mediation in informal foreign language learning (IFLL). Although research on IFLL highlights predominantly receptive activities, the presence and function of mediation – inherently linked to the social nature of language – remain largely unexplored. To address this gap, the study investigates how mediation emerges in learners’ informal practices, what forms it takes, and how it con­tributes to linguistic development and identity construction. The research adopts an emic, qualitative approach based on 92 logbooks collected in four countries. Participants documented, over one month, all out-of-class uses of French and reflected on what they learned from each situation. This method enabled the observation of naturally occurring mediation activities in private, heterogeneous ecologies of learning. The analysis identifies the three main types of mediation: textual, conceptual, and communicative, each activated through learners’ plurilingual resources and social interactions. The findings show that mediation in IFLL fulfils linguistic, cultural, social, and pedagogical functions. They also reveal the strong conceptual convergence between mediation and informal learning, both grounded in autonomy, social participation, reflexivity, and the dynamic co-construction of meaning.