Evaluating the Role of L1 in Teaching Receptive Skills and Grammar in Efl Classes

Abstract

Abstract:The debate over the use of Bahasa Indonesia and English has been an unsolved issue. Some teachers still lack confidence in using Bahasa Indonesia in their teaching to promote classroom interaction. Classroom interaction is important since the more engaged the students are, the more successful the material delivery will be. Hence this study was aimed at finding out whether or not teacher"s use of Bahasa Indonesia in teaching receptive skills of language and grammar contributes to classroom interaction and investigating the benefits of the use of Bahasa Indonesia in EFL classes as perceived by the teachers and the students. Six classes of different majors and six English lecturers from a polytechnic in Bandung participated in the study. The data were collected through questionnaires, interview, and classroom observation. The findings support the idea that teachers" use of Bahasa Indonesia judiciously promotes classroom interaction. Both students and teachers found the benefits of the use of Bahasa Indonesia in the classroom only when it was needed. However, some teachers still overused Bahasa Indonesia in the EFL classrooms.Keywords: teachers and students" perceptions, classroom interaction, English (L2), Bahasa Indonesia (L1), English as a Foreign Language Teaching Abstrak: Perdebatan mengenai penggunaan Bahasa Indonesia dan Bahasa Inggris menjadi isu yang belum tejawab sampai saat ini. Beberapa guru masih kurang percaya diri dalam menggunakan Bahasa Indonesia dalam proses pembelajaran mereka untuk meningkatkan interaksi kelas. Interaksi kelas merupakan hal yang penting karena semakin para siswa terlibat, semakin berhasil penyampaian materi pembelajaran yang dilakukan guru. Oleh karena itu, penelitian ini ditujukan untuk menemukan apakah penggunaan Bahasa Indonesia oleh para guru dalam mengajarkan keterampilan berbahasa receptive dan tata bahasa berhubungan dengan interaksi kelas atau tidak dan meneliti keuntungan penggunaan Bahasa Indonesia dalam kelas EFL seperti yang dikemukakan oleh para guru dan siswa. Enam kelas dari jurusan yang berbeda dan enam dosen dari satu politeknik di Bandung berpartisipasi dalam penelitian ini. Data didapatkan melalui kuesioner, wawancara, dan observasi kelas. Temuan penelitian ini mendukung gagasan bahwa penggunaan Bahasa Indonesia secara cermat meningkatkan interaksi kelas. Baik siswa maupun guru mendapatkan keuntungan dari penggunaan Bahasa Indonesia di dalam kelas hanya ketika dibutuhkan. Namun, beberapa guru masih menggunakannya secara berlebihan di dalam kelas EFL.

The Use of L1 in English as a Foreign Language Classes: Insights from Iraqi Tertiary Level Students

“…Similarly, the results of the LATL1UQ and the SSIs demonstrate that learners' L1 is also widely used to translate from the target language to L1, especially during translation lessons. The findings of the current study are in line with the findings of Hidayati (2012). The results of the current study reveal that L1 is used to facilitate social interactions with and among students.…”

“…Furthermore, the findings of Hidayati's (2012) indicate that the participants stated that they widely use their L1 in social interactions while talking about personal things with their classmates as well as the case with the current study. The results of the LATL1UQ and the SSIs suggest that EFL learners at Salahaddin University commonly use their L1 for talking about personal things with their classmates.…”

“…An interesting point is that 21% of the participants (both teachers and students) thought that the L1 should always be used in EFL classes. Finally, in his study concerning teacher attitudes, Hidayati (2012) determined that 36% of learners believed that the L1 should be used for nearly 30% of class time. Students claimed that they became confused and, consequently, disinterested when English was over-used in their classes.…”

Rethinking the Use of L1 in L2 Classroom

“…Forman (2010) mentions that "in many EFL contexts, students do share a first language (and culture) with each other and their teacher, and bilingual teaching in fact operates as a default mode" (p. 56). In a study on the use of Bahasa Indonesia L1 in EFL classroom, Hidayati (2012) found that the majority of the EFL learners believed that the use of their L1 was needed in their learning. Further, in a study on the use of translation in EFL learning context, Heltai (1989, as cited in Wharton, 2004) found that, in learners' real life use of English L2, they were often faced with the task of converting texts or statements in L1…”

The Use of English and Code Switching in the Teaching and Learning of Technology in some Schools in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

“…Studies seem to suggest that teacher code switching, whether in teacher-led classroom discourse or in teacher-student interaction, may be a sophisticated language use serving a variety of pedagogical purposes. Yet, some researchers called for occasional and judicious use of L1 in L2 classes to avoid over use of L1 ( Hidayati, 2012;Neeta & Klu, 2013;Weschler, 1997). Studies found that code switching to students' L1 in the ESL classroom served hybrid useful functions that expand negotiation, understanding and hence interaction in the classrooms.…”