The “Punishment” of Diligence: The Paradox of Formative Assessment and the Reconstruction of Learning Ecology in the Second Foreign Language French Classroom

Abstract

The teaching of French as a second foreign language (L2 French) in Chinese universities faces persistent challenges of declining motivation and low efficiency. This study identifies a central paradox: classrooms implementing intensive formative assessment (e.g., unit quizzes, systematic review) exhibited significant score polarization, whereas comparison classes using summative assessment with “pre-exam scope delimitation” achieved superficially superior, tightly clustered grade distributions. Analysis of multi-cohort exam data and student interviews reveals that formative assessment produces a normal distribution reflecting true learning disparities, while summative practices generate a “pseudo-excellence distribution” that masks underlying competence gaps. Crucially, students who excelled in exam-oriented settings suffered severe “academic shock” under formative assessment, exposing the fragility of their prior knowledge. The paradox stems from a systemic clash between the “exam paradigm” and the “competence paradigm.” This study proposes reconstructing a “progressive teaching ecology” through scaffolding, renegotiated teacher-student contracts, and hybrid assessment models to enable a “soft landing” from knowledge transmission to competence cultivation.