The Place of Context in Language Teaching and Learning

张肖冀

【Abstract】There exists a fact that L1 is still used widely to teach L2. This article explores the use of L1 in L2 teaching from international perspectives and explains the reasons why teachers from Chinas private colleges employ L1 in L2 teaching.Finally， since L1 has a place in the English class of Chinas private colleges， some suggestions for English teaching in Chinas private colleges have been present.

【Key words】L1； L2； Chinas private college

1. Backgrounds

Whether the use of students' first language （L1） in the second language （L2） teaching should be included， is highly controversial at present in the foreign language teaching field.

It is arguable that the role of the L1 depends on which teaching methods employed in the foreign language learning. In the 19th century， the classical foreign language teaching method was known as the grammar translation method. In grammar-translation classes， meaning of the target language is translated into students native language. It was normal that teachers use the L1 to teach students the rules of English grammars （Cook， 2008）. The use of L1 in the L2 teaching was accepted at that time partly because the emphasis of the foreign language teaching was on the written word （Khati， 2011）. However， the use of L1 as the learning aid was discredited in the favour of the new language teaching methods such as Direct method and Audio-lingualism， because the language teaching began to focus on the spoken word （Khati， 2011）. Direct method only uses the target language （L2） and advocates the discouragement of L1 use. As the Audio-lingualism teach the L2 through numerous drilling and repetition of authentic materials， it is suggested that “render English （the L1） inactive while the new language is being learnt” （Brooks， 1964， p. 142）. Both the two methods stress that the learners first language should not be use in the L2 classrooms because it is believed that the L1 seems to interfere with the acquisition of the L2.

In addition， in the 20th century， the monolingual approach exacerbated the exclusion of L1 use. “At the level of national policy， the monolingual principle has been embodied in the guidelines of many countries” （Littlewood & Yu， 2011， p. 66）. Many professionals in the second language acquisition field advocate the maximum or even exclusive use of target language （L2）. As the proponent of the monolingual approach， Krashen （1985） has argued that learning the foreign language will follow the same route of acquiring the first language and the exposure to target language input leads to the more effective language learning. This argument is given additional strength by Turnbulls studies. From Turnbulls process-product study （1999a， 1999b）， it is found that students of teachers who spoke French （L2） more frequently outperformed students of teachers who spoke less French. He （2001） believes that both the theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence offer support to the argument that teachers should use the L2 as much as possible.

However， some scholars raise the questions against the avoidance of L1 use. Ellis （1990） states that Krashens account is one-side and “learners are capable of learning and using metalingual knowledge to a far greater extent than Krashen allows for” （p. 60）. In the research conducted by Tang （2002） about using the learners first language in L2 teaching， it has been found that using L1 dose not reduce learners exposure to the L2. Instead， the use of L1 helps facilitate L2 learning. Although the government and new foreign language teaching methods promote the discouragement of L1， there are still many teachers using the students mother tongue that is evidenced by the study carried out by Kharma and Hajjaj （1989）. Their study （1989） shows that near 93% of teachers have used learners native language （L1） to some degree in the L2 teaching. Littlewood and Yu （2011） have stated that the common purposes of L1 use are to express the complex meanings， construct social relationship and control the classroom management. The above examples also demonstrate the exclusion of L1 is hard to achieve unless the teachers share the different L1 with learners or learners may have multiple L1s.

Using L1 in the L2 classroom is not the problem. The problem is how to use L1 rationally and judiciously. For example， the proportion of L1 use should depend on the stages of learning. Explaining difficult word or grammars by L1 helps beginners to progress at a quicker pace to the next stage. When learners language proficiency is improved， teachers can minimize the L1 use and gradually lead them to an L2-only environment （Littlewood & Yu， 2011）.

2. Reasons of using L1 in the English class of Chinas private colleges

What influence teachers from Chinas private colleges to use L1 in the English class includes students language ability， teachers competence and exams influence. First of all， using L1 to explain the abstract vocabularies and grammars makes students less stressful and easier to keep up the pace. Also， students find it safe and comfortable to ask questions in Chinese， as students themselves may not be competent and confident to speak English in the classes.

Apart from that， in some private colleges， teachers incompetence in L2 may add to the use of L1 in L2 classes as well. Although teachers want to create an English-only environment as the same way as foreign teachers do， insufficient English proficiency， especially the short of oral ability， makes them difficult to express the meaning precisely in English during the whole class. This result has been also found by a previous study （Wang， 2003）. Wang （2003） points out that many teachers are not equipped with the ability to use English as the only medium of communication in the class. Teachers competences partly explain why L1 is still used widely in the English class under the strong opposing voice.

Lastly， the exam gives an important play to teaching. The examination-oriented teaching context in China not only occurs in high schools， but in colleges. Even though in the less pressure learning environment， college students are required to pass the English examinations， such as CET-4 and CET-6. These examinations involve listening， reading and writing， which are designed to evaluate students English output. As Wu （2001） says， “large-scale exams whose design is based on structuralism and whose format is predominantly multiple choice have been found to constrain language teaching in a rather negative way” （p. 193）. Because the grammar and vocabulary occupy an important place on exams， students who aim to pass the two most important exams will pay lots of attentions on the grammars and language structure （Wu， 2001）. Under such a circumstance， large-scale use of L1 is universal and readily accepted.

3. Suggestions for English teaching in Chinas private colleges

Together with listed researches and real English teaching context， it cannot be neglected that L1 has a place in the English class. Followings are some suggestions for English teaching in Chinas private colleges. First， after explaining the abstract language items in Chinese， teachers can repeat in English. Therefore， students can have a clear understanding of the knowledge and get familiar with the English expressions. Moreover， it is recommended that teachers can start from mixed sentences of the mother tongue with the target language and the shift to whole target language sentences （Bawcom， 2002）， which gradually minimises the use of L1. In addition， teachers need some necessary training. From the researches discussed previously， teachers own language competence play a decisive role in the teaching. As a result， training， especially the oral ability training should be accessible to teachers in order to enhance their language proficiency. Last， it is necessary to improve the examination form. Exams should put an emphasis on investigating the listening and speaking ability and reduce the proportion of grammars. At the same time， both the officials and teachers need take a correct attitude towards the exam， regarding it as a normal part of the teaching process and a means of examining students learning outcomes at different stages.

References：

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作者簡介：袁芳，女，汉族，湖南衡阳人，对外英语教育硕士，从事二语习得、语料库语言学、语言测试学研究。