The Specific Characteristics of Greek Students as Users of Spanish AFL

Abstract

The construction of systematic corpora comprising written production by non-native speakers enables a more precise and reliable assessment of language proficiency levels and text readability, thereby contributing to the enhancement of foreign language education. The present study is based on the compilation of a corpus of written texts produced over ten years by Greek undergraduate students from various departments of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki who attended the elective course “Spanish Language A1.” All collected texts were digitised as Word files and subsequently analysed using readability assessment tools in combination with Tableau statistical analysis software. The research examines morphological, grammatical, lexical, and syntactic features, analysed alongside quantitative and demographic variables, with the aim of identifying factors that influence written language production by non-native learners. The present research constitutes a pilot phase of a broader investigative framework, laying the groundwork for future studies and for the potential development of assessment tests targeting additional levels of language proficiency. Moreover, the findings of this study contribute to the refinement of more accurate language proficiency and readability assessment instruments and to the development of a new learner corpus.