Perspectives on Teacher Talk in the English Language Classroom : a comparative analysis between Flemish and Walloon secondary schools

Details

Supervisors

Meunier, Fanny

Faculty

Faculté de philosophie, arts et lettres

Degree label

Master [120] en langues et lettres modernes, orientation germaniques, à finalité didactique

Abstract

The use of the pupils’ mother tongue (MT) in the language classroom has been a topic of debate for many years. Based on the observations of English teachers in Flanders and Wallonia, this master’s dissertation aims to render a qualitative report of the situations in which the pupils’ native language was used by their instructors. This study compares the teachers from both communities who teach English in 4th and 6th grades of secondary school. The observations have shown that the Flemish teachers used the target language (TL) almost exclusively, while the Walloon instructors relied much more on their pupils’ assumed common native language (L1), i.e. French. Furthermore, it appeared that the type of language used by the teachers was proper to the instructor and not so much related to the pupils’ level. As such, the teachers seemed to have their habits and did not appear to adapt the language to their pupils’ level. After the observations, the teachers have all been interviewed in order to collect their opinion on the use of the pupils’ L1. One finding was that they all mentioned that the use of the target language was crucial for the learning process of a foreign language, but not all teachers appeared to apply what they recommend – or, to put it differently, ‘to walk the talk’.