The Effects of Generative AI Assistance on Receptive Discourse Analysis: A Study of First-Year French as a Foreign Language (FFL) Students at the University of Bordj Bou Arréridj, Algeria

Abstract

Receptive discourse analysis examines the processes through which readers construct meaning from a text. The rapid development of generative AI conversational assistants is reshaping these processes by introducing algorithmic mediation between the reader and the text. This study, conducted with 77 first-year students of French as a Foreign Language (FFL) in the Department of French at Mohamed El Bachir El Ibrahimi University of Bordj Bou Arréridj, compares the effects of two instructional conditions across four dimensions assessed using an analytical rubric. The findings indicate that generative AI assistance enhances linguistic decoding while diminishing inferential skills and language autonomy. The article discusses these effects and explores pedagogical strategies for achieving a balanced integration of generative AI into university language teaching.