Research Paper

The over use of L1 in

English Classroom in
Chile.

Students: Alejandra Araneda

Victor Machuca
Teacher: Mabel Ortiz

Concepción, July 2nd, 2017

 1. Research problem

In Chilean English classes it is very common the use of the first language instead
of the second one. As we have already noticed in past studies, we analysed the
phonological and syntactical problems a learner speaking in English. As a
conclusion we found that most of the problems were concerned with the L1
interference that the learner made at the time of speaking in a second language.
Basically, the subject we have studied did not feel comfortable enough at the time
of the interview and ended up speaking in Spanish in some occasions. (Araneda,
A. & Machuca, V. 2017, pp. 17). Unfortunately, this is something usual in Chilean
learners in their English classes, hence we are going to talk deeply about the L2
learner's’ situation and why they make this interference.

On the other hand, due to the disadvantage of Chile’s geography, learners who
learn a second language face a complete uncertainty scenario. Things like
enjoying a meal at a restaurant, reading a newspaper, chatting with friends, going
to a bookstore or English classes turns into a very uncomfortable stage. This is
because we are in a very long distance from English speaking countries, thus the
opportunity to gain more vocabulary, knowledge and practice outside the
classroom is very limited. Regardless the environment the learners are involved,
the real challenge for them is to master that target language. Consequently,
Chilean learners do not have real or authentic English classes, what can causes to
learners problems with their confidence at the time of speaking, and make errors
due to their first language.

2. Theory linked to research problem:

L1 speakers already have a whole linguistics system inside their head. Chomsky
(1965) claims the existence of a language acquisition device that allows children to
master a language in a short period of time. It does not matter how much they
strive to forget the native language, because it cannot be so. Once the system has
been wired with the grammar of the first language, that knowledge is very sticky.
Throughout the years, learners who are mastering a second language seem to be
acquiring a lot of structural grammar that would lead them to a successful and well-
formed sentences; however, it does not seem to be in most of the cases.
According to ( Dechert, 1983 and Ellis 1997) the existence of a gap is real and
what raises to a critical question is - what kinds of language do second language
learners produce in speaking and writing? it is said that most learners tends to rely
back to their native language producing grammatical structures based on their first
language in order to response. It can be inferred that as much as the two
languages are highly different in terms of structures, the most errors will occur in
L2.

It is a fact that the use of L1 in English classes is a facilitating tool in L2 teaching

and learning (Cook , 2001) and does not hinder the learning process (Miles, 2004)
in the classroom. However, there should always be a limitation in the overuse of L1
in the classroom that can cause students’ laziness or weakening their learner
process.

According to Vygotsky's sociocultural theory (1976) the function of the use of L1

preserves the purpose of communication. However, in a Chilean context, the main
use of it has been for years the translation methods which make teachers
inadequately skilled and incapable of effective teaching English, reason of why the
overly use of L1.

Harbor, 1992, concluded that there are three reasons for using L1 in classes, and
as well as Vygotsky, are for facilitating communication, plus facilitating teacher-
learner relationships, and facilitating the learning of L2. (Harbord, 1992, p354). By
contrast, Cook states that there must be conveying in meaning and organization
(Cook, 2001, p410). For instance, learners can use it to scaffolding.

Beardsmore (1982) suggest that many of the difficulties a second language learner
has is with the phonology, vocabulary and grammar of L2 are due to the
interference of habits from L1 which are use in an L2 context. This tendency could
lead to the development of an excessive dependency on the teacher’s mother
tongue as well as for the students. Moreover, learners may feel that the only way to
understand anything the teacher is saying is by forcing him to translate. This can
significantly reduce teacher’s control in English classes and also reduce learner’s
opportunities to practice the target language. Concerning to translations, is that
this method regularly create an oversimplification due to the fact that many cultural
and linguistics facts cannot be translated , for instance, many would not make
sense at all.

3. Own stance:
We as students of a second language have been gone through the L1 interference
in our first years of learning English. This was because we did not have the enough
knowledge about the language, thus we used to think what we wanted to say in
Spanish then translated it to English. To put it in another words, we did not have
enough proficiency in the language. Others reasons of this phenomenon can be
shyness and lack of interest, hence the role of the teacher in these circumstances
are very important. Teachers should create a comfortable environment for learners
and perform innovate or authentic tasks as well to catch the attention and
encouragement of learners. Moreover, teachers did not were totally concerned
about those aspects, they used to focus the classes on teaching English grammar
in traditional ways. Even though grammar rules are important, we believe that it
should not be the main focus of the class. The idea of teaching English or any
other language is to facilitate communication. Thus, teachers should teach
grammar within a context, and just use L1 when it is truly necessary. Nation (1997)
declares on one hand that L2 must be maximized as much as possible in the
classroom; on the other hand, he also states that the role that L1 plays in the
classroom can be very useful and important for learners of a Second Language. If
teachers find best ways of use L1 without making learners to get used to it and
without making learners fall in this interference, according to what Nation says,
learners can gain the knowledge they need to score a higher level of L2
performance.

For example, for us it is very meaningful to search for the definition of English
words in Spanish rather than in English. That does not mean that we cannot
explain the definition in English, but it is easier to remember and keep them in our
minds.

Maybe, in Chilean english classes, the totally banning of the L1 may not be a wise
idea or the overusing of L1 may kill language acquisition, notwithstanding, the
teacher must strike a balance between the two options. If teachers minimized the
use of L1, the tendency to solve task in the primitive language will no longer be a
habit. In addition, we believe that the target language must be used where possible
and L1 when necessary.

To conclude, we believe that there should be an appropriate management of the

English classes by teachers in Chile, not just teaching grammar only, but also real
English in real context. Maybe for beginners, the mother tongue can be more
beneficial as they start learning a new language, it is also time saving instead of
going through a long explanation that can ended up on an endless class.
Nevertheless, teachers should master to speak 100% in English, except where
doubts arise or in complex instructions in order to maximise time. Teachers might
be educated before hand to handle with these situation to come to a better
understanding of why these things occurs and how to treat them in order to be
beneficial for both sides.
References:

Beardsmore, H.B. 1982, Bilingualism: Basic Principles, Tieto, Avon.

Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the Theory of Syntax. MIT Press.

Cook, V. (2001). Using the First Language in the Classroom, in The Canadian
Modern Language Review/La Revue Canadienne des Languages Vivantes, 57/3:
402-23.

Ellis, R. (1997). Second Language Acquisition. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Harbord, J. (1992). The Use of the Mother Tongue in the Classroom. ELT Journal,
46/4: 30-55.

Nation, P. (1997). L1 and L2 use in the classroom. Victoria University of

Wellington, New Zealand.

Sinha, A., Banejee, N., Sinha, A., & Shastri, R. (2009). Interference of first
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Bhela, B. (1999). Native language interference in learning a second language:

Exploratory case studies of native language interference with target language
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Y, Du. (2016) Chapter 2: The L1 in L2 Learning and Teaching. EFL Classrooms,

DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-1911-1_2