Enhancing Students – Pre Service Teacher Interaction Using First Language (L1) in English for Young Learners (EYL) Classes

Rina Wahyu Setyaningrum,Kharisma Naidi Warnanda Sabgini,Slamet Setiawan

doi:10.18592/let.v10i1.3588

Rina Wahyu Setyaningrum, Kharisma Naidi Warnanda Sabgini + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.18592/let.v10i1.3588

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Abstract

For any different objectives of teaching EYL at primary schools in Indonesia, qualified EYL teachers are urgently needed. Pre-service teaching program is expected to provide experience of using proper English language in classroom setting. This case study aimed at describing the first language (L1) instruction used by the pre-service teachers of English for Young Learners (EYL) at the Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang (UMM). The findings depicted that L1 was used as a language of instruction to explain the materials and to clarify the instruction given in L2. It is recommended for the pre-service teachers of EYL to use L2 with demonstration, L2 Context Clues, and L1 translation. Ultimately, the use of L1 in L2 teaching is mandatory to communicate the topic and enhance the students - pre-service teacher interactions. As for meeting the purpose of interaction, the use of L1 should involve actional, conversational, and non-verbal competences. In the long run, the impact of L1 in L2 learning in earlier levels can be recognized from good interpersonal communication in English.

Highlights

Globalization conveys challenges such as people's movement, environmental changes, as well as languages and cultural differences, might have consequences for English for Young Learners (EYL) (Garton & Copland, 2019)
As English is a foreign language in Indonesia and an extra-curricular activity in primary school levels, there has been an absence of using English in daily activities
The students get their experience of using the English language when they are at school or at a private language school

Summary

Introduction

Globalization conveys challenges such as people's movement, environmental changes, as well as languages and cultural differences, might have consequences for EYL (Garton & Copland, 2019). The introduction of English in primary schools is urgent because of the common belief of a better start of learning language, the future workforce competition, and parents' demands on their children's English skills in global communication (Copland, Garton, & Burns 2013; Rich 2014). English subject has been transformed into extracurricular for primary school students according to the 2013 curriculum but some schools still put them as either local content subject or compulsory subject (Meisani & Musthafa, 2019). These situations occur because of the importance of English language skills for students to get better opportunities in their future education and career

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