Young Malaysian Children's Silence in a Multicultural Classroom

Abstract

In a multicultural classroom, second language learners’ silence has always been related to the lack of understanding the target language or psychological or linguistics withdrawal. However, the findings of the study reported in this paper presented a different explanation. The study employed an ethnographic case study research design exploring the second language acquisition experiences of three six year old Malaysian children who were attending a mainstream multicultural classroom in the United Kingdom. Data were gathered through interviews with the children, their class teacher and their mothers.Classroom and home observations were also carried out as a means of triangulation. Findings from the teacher and parents’ interviews illuminated that the silence was due to cultural practices as well as a display of personality. Meanwhile the children's responses as well as observations of their behaviours indicated their silence as a coping mechanism in their language learning process as well as their way of expressing their identity. This implies that teachers of multicultural classrooms need to understand and be aware of the different meanings of silence and be better prepared in dealing with children from different cultural backgrounds.