THE USE OF L1 IN THE EFL CLASSROOM

Year 2015, Volume: 4 Issue: 6, 48 - 62, 02.11.2015

Zeynep Koçoğlu , Monica Gaba

Abstract

In English Language Teaching (ELT) profession, there still is no
general consensus on the use of mother language (L1) while teaching a target
language (L2).  Views on the issue differ
from both person to person and approach to approach. There are proponents of L1
who believe it can be used when necessary. There are also those who totally
shun the use of the mother tongue because, according to them, it hinders the
learning of a foreign language.  This study
tries to contribute to ELT field by examining the effects of the use of L1 on
the internalization of
L2 grammar structures in Turkish university English
preparatory school.  165 students whose major is business,
participated into the study.  The study
attempts to analyze how one of the variables changes when another variable is
manipulated and has an explanatory nature. 
The relationship between the dependent and independent variables is
established through the analysis of data collected through two tests: an
achievement test and a progressive test by means of descriptive statistics and
t-tests.  This
study could not find hard evidence in favour of L1 being used in the L2
context.

Keywords

language

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