L1 in the EFL Classroom: Teachers and Students' Use and Perceptions

This research study investigated EFL teachers and students’ use of L1 (Arabic) in the Department of English Language and Translation at King Saud University. The purpose of the study was threefold: (1) to find out how much L1 (Arabic) is being used, if any, and for what purposes, (2) to gain insights into the teachers and the students’ beliefs and attitudes about the use of L1 (Arabic) in EFL classes, and (3) to report how much of the teachers' and students’ perception with regards to L1 use in EFL classes is actually reflected in their classroom practices. 30 teachers and 120 students from the Department of English Language and Translation (DELT) in the College of Languages and Translation (COLT) at King Saud University (KSU), Saud Arabia, agreed to participate in this study. Data collection methods included classroom observation, audio recordings of the teaching sessions, and two structured questionnaires: administered to teachers and students. Data analysis procedures included a) orthographic transcription of the audio recordings followed by qualitative analysis to identify episodes of L1 (Arabic) produced by the teachers and/or the students, and b) statistical analysis of the data obtained from the questionnaires (descriptive and inferential).
Results revealed that, except for one teacher, neither the observed teachers nor the students used L1 (Arabic) in their EFL classes. The one teacher who used L1 employed it for a range of functions. As for the participants’ perceptions towards L1 use in EFL contexts, it was found that the participants, teachers and students, held some contradictory views regarding how much L1 should be used in EFL classes, for what purposes, and what effects use of L1 has on learning the L2. Furthermore, results showed substantial differences between what the participants say they do in class and what they actually do, but not between teachers and students.

Mashael Salem Al-Salem

AlSalem, Mashael . 2017