Cross-linguistic writing with AI

Investigating transfer effects in L1/L2 and FL contexts

Abstract

This study explores how multilingual 9th-grade students use generative AI as a writing assistant in German (L1/L2) and English (FL) writing contexts by focusing on strategy use, cross-linguistic transfer, and proficiency-related variation. Drawing on a mixed-methods design that combines qualitative and quantitative data, the analysis suggests that generative AI may introduce a new mediating layer in the writing process, enabling learners to externalize cognitive subtasks such as planning, drafting, and revising. Five main AI writing strategies were identified, ranging from planning and linguistic optimization to metacognitive reflection. Overall, findings indicate patterns consistent with cross-linguistic transfer of AI writing strategies in this exploratory sample, highlighting AI’s potential to foster metacognitive awareness and cross-linguistic strategy development in multilingual writing. However, proficiency appears to moderate these patterns: More proficient (Level B2) learners of English as a foreign language show greater strategic stability in their AI use, whereas lower-proficiency learners engage with AI in a more situational and cautious manner, a pattern that is also reflected in two illustrative learner cases.