RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BILINGUAL INSTRUCTION AND LEARNERS’ PERFORMANCE IN ENGLISH AS SECOND LANGUAGE CONTEXT

Huma Imran Khan

doi:10.22555/joeed.v2i1.47

Abstract

The prime purpose of this study was to explore a correlation between bilingual instruction in an ESL class and the class performance of the ESL learners at the secondary level. Quantitative research method was used to evaluate the test performance of 60 ESL learners divided into two groups: One was the controlled group (which was given instructions in L2 only) and the other was the treatment group (which was given instructions in both L1 and L2) in Public School settings. Apart from the students, 15 language teachers’ feedback upon their perceptions of L1 usage in L2 classrooms was taken by using the Likert scale feedback forms. The results confirmed that the instructions given bilingually are directly associated to improved learner outcomes and teachers’ responses for the usage of L1 in classrooms showed a strong positive response.

Highlights

English is Pakistan’s second and official language (Schiffman, 2003) as it is one of those colonial countries of the past where British raj introduced it in schools as a second language
Pakistan is basically an agricultural country where more than 80% of the population lives on agri-business in rural areas having a multicultural environment along with more than 20 languages spoken in various parts of the country (Jutting & Morrison, 2009)
Pakistan like its counterpart India, has English as its second language and it has been taught in schools right from the beginning (Tsui, 1996), but unlike India it is still facing multiple issues of teaching English language skills successfully to the young learners (Harmer, 2006; Norton, 1997; Quirk, 1990)

Summary

Introduction

English is Pakistan’s second and official language (Schiffman, 2003) as it is one of those colonial countries of the past where British raj introduced it in schools as a second language. Pakistan comes in the group of countries where even the illiterate can understand English vocabulary to an extent (Rahman, 2001). Since it is the second language of the country, the language learning starts right from the kindergarten level and is a compulsory component of the cur-. Pakistan like its counterpart India, has English as its second language and it has been taught in schools right from the beginning (Tsui, 1996), but unlike India it is still facing multiple issues of teaching English language skills successfully to the young learners (Harmer, 2006; Norton, 1997; Quirk, 1990). The teachers are neither exposed to their second language nor are they interested in improving it, especially in the context of public schools where the teachers are not accountable for any incompetency or inefficiency by the government authorities

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Conclusion