Teaching French to North African Soldiers in the French Colonial Army: Pedagogy and Ideology

While many studies explore the role of foreign soldiers in war, not many address the issue of intercommunicability and, therefore, the question of language. Faced with a growing need for more foreign soldiers, the French colonial army designed handbooks to teach them basic French. Focusing on North African soldiers enrolled in the French army, this article examines the ideological and political considerations that shaped language policy and pedagogical tools. Although the army failed to educate foreign soldiers in French, it became an unwilling pioneer in the pedagogy of what later became known as French for Specific Purposes.