T1 112012074 Full text
FIRST YEAR STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS TOWARD L2 USE
IN EFL CLASSROOMS
THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan
MAGDALENA KRISTIANI BUDIARTO
112012074
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION PROGRAM
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS
UNIVERSITAS KRISTEN SATYA WACANA
SALATIGA
2016
FIRST YEAR STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS TOWARD L2 USE
IN EFL CLASSROOMS
THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan
MAGDALENA KRISTIANI BUDIARTO
112012074
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION PROGRAM
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS
UNIVERSITAS KRISTEN SATYA WACANA
SALATIGA
2016
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COPYRIGHT STATEMENT
This thesis contains no such material as has been submitted for examination
in any course or accepted for the fulfillment of any degree or diploma in any
university. To the best of my knowledge and my belief, this contain no material
previously published or written by any other person except where the reference is
made in the text.
Copyright@2016 Magdalena Kristiani Budiarto and Victoria Usadya Palupi, M.AELT.
All rights reserved. No part of this thesis may be reproduced by any means without
the permission of at least one of the copyright owners or the English Department,
Faculty of Language and Arts, Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana, Salatiga.
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TABLE OF CONTENT
INSIDE COVER ……………………………………..……………………….... ii
APPROVAL PAGE ………………………………………...………………….. v
PUBLICATION AGREEMENT DECLARATION ………………………… vi
COPYRIGHT STATEMENT .......................................................................... viiii
TABLE OF CONTENT ................................................................................... viiiii
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... 1
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 2
LITERATURE REVIEW..................................................................................... 4
Definition of perception .................................................................................... 4
The Advantages and disadvantages of the use of L2 ...................................... 5
THE STUDY .......................................................................................................... 6
Context of the study .......................................................................................... 6
Participants ........................................................................................................ 6
Data collection instruments .............................................................................. 6
Data collection procedures ............................................................................... 6
Data analysis procedures .................................................................................. 7
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION .......................................................................... 8
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................ 18
REFERENCES .................................................................................................... 20
APPENDIX .......................................................................................................... 22
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FIRST YEAR STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS TOWARD L2 USE
IN EFL CLASSROOMS
Magdalena Kristiani Budiarto
ABSTRACT
The language use by the teachers and the students in classroom has pros and cons
results whether they use first language (L1) or second language (L2). In this case,
L1 refers to Bahasa Indonesia. Many teachers and students in Indonesia still use L1
in English teaching and learning process. That is why aimed of this study is to
answer the research question about students’ perceptions toward L2 use in EFL
(English as a Foreign Language) classrooms. Further, this study was conducted
using open-ended questionnaire. The participants of this research were first year
students of English Language Education Program (ELEP) from Faculty of
Language and Arts (FLA) in Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana, Salatiga (UKSW).
There were 9 questions and categorized them in students’ preferences, students’
feeling, and students’ opinion of the use of dictionaries. The result showed that
students were prefer to have teachers and classmates who spoke their first language.
However, it seemed contradicted with the students’ opinion of having English only
policy. Here, this study might have significant implications for the teachers and
students such teachers might be able to modify their classroom management to
reduce the amount and frequency for first language use. Then, the students may be
able to eliminate them and eventually improve the English language learning.
Key words: Perceptions, first language, second language, L1, L2, EFL.
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INTRODUCTION
Recently, researchers have shown an increasing interest in educational
institutions which have their own “policy” of which language they want their
classes taught in; the students’ first language or the second language. In Faculty of
Language and Arts Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana (FLA-UKSW), most of the
lessons were taught in English. However, a major problem with this kind of topic
is students in this faculty have different background knowledge of English.
Sharaeai (2012) conducted a study which aimed to find students’ perceptions
toward the language use in English classroom. He worked in total 51 participants
from different majors at the large university, most were in the Engineering and
English Department. He found that the students were preferred to use their first
language.
Moreover, in his paper, he found that Schweers (1999) carried out a study to
investigate the reasons and amount of L1 or first language usage in the English
classrooms. He investigated the use of Spanish in English classes in the University
of Puerto Rico. His study found out that about 88.7 percent of the students thought
Spanish should be used. And none of the students thought the teachers should stop
using Spanish in the classroom. This shows differences between how the two
perceive L1 usage in the classroom. Most of the teachers and students agreed that
Spanish should be used to explain difficult concepts.
Another study by Rodrigues and Oxbrow (2008) found that most of the
students said that the use of L1 in English classroom can help them improve their
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second language ability. The students agreed that they preferred to have the teacher
who are able to talk in their L1 to explain the grammar point.
Cook (2001) argued that although the teachers try their best to separate the
first language from second language in their teaching by trying to use a number of
techniques. As a result, even if the teacher tried to separate the two languages, the
students would still refer to them and connect them in their minds.
Levine (2003) conducted a study based on an online questionnaire about the
attitudes of university students and instructors regarding the use of the first and the
target language. His participants were first and second year students of French,
German, and Spanish. All the participants were either native speakers of English or
bilingual speakers. The study found out that teachers and students usually used the
first language to discuss class assignments, course policies, and for class
management.
This study examined the perceptions from the first year students at English
Language Education Program, Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana (ELEP-UKSW)
toward L2 (second language) use. This study was expected to provide information
about their preferences in using language in a classroom, in this case, Bahasa
Indonesia as L1 (first language) and English as L2. This study helps to understand
students’ perceptions about the language use at ELEP-SWCU.
The specific purpose of this study was to answer the following questions:
What are the students’ perceptions toward L2 use in EFL classrooms?
As a result, the study can help the teachers at ELEP-UKSW to manage the
classroom or even avoid the first language use, then the students can improve their
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ability in learning English; in speaking English or even only to pronounce English
words.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The use of the first language in English classroom has been and will remain
an issue that everyone has an opinion about. Some of teachers and students are
against the use of first language and they have their own reason. In this chapter of
the paper, we will see some of the studies that have been conducted to investigate
the use of second language in EFL classroom.
This literature review will be organized into two parts. First, we will see a
brief definition of perception. Second, some advantages and disadvantages of the
use of second language in EFL classrooms will be reviewed.
Definition of perception
First, a brief definition about perception will be given. According to Hong
(2003) (as cited in Permatasari, 2014) perception is someone thought about
something that they learn to measure how their attitude toward using something,
whether they agree or not about that method or about something that they learn.
Moreover, Sidhu (2003) (as cited in Permatasari, 2014) stated that students’
perceptions are students’ point of view toward something that happened in learning
process. From the definition above, we can conclude if students’ perception means
how students’ thought to response about they have done or about what they have
learned.
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The Advantages and disadvantages of the use of L2
Using the second language in learning can make the students more aware to
the use of the target language. In the foreign language classroom, the exclusive use
of second language is necessary to use in order to provide a context for learners to
communicate using the second language in a more meaningful and authentic
manner.
Chaudron (1988) (as Cited in Rabbidge & Chappell, 2014) argued that the
best competence in the foreign language is realized by creating a rich second
language environment that uses English for not only instruction but also
disciplinary and management”. Moreover, Singleton (1989) argued that “L2
learners are different from children acquiring their L1 because they have more
mature minds, greater social development and larger short-term memory capacity.
Moreover, Prodromou (2003) (as cited in Hanna & Majeda, 2012) stated that
“L1 is useful in L2 classroom situations as in giving instructions, and sorting out
activities. He said if the students’ L1 is very useful for students in learning the target
language especially when the students study about proverbs or idioms. Other
opinion came from Anton & Dicamella (1998) (as cited in Thompson, 2006) viewed
the use of L1 as a useful psychological tool in the early stages of second language
learning, and they found in their study that the use of L1 helped the students
psychologically in providing help to each other.
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THE STUDY
Context of the study
This study was conducted at ELEP-UKSW. This study attempted to explore
the students’ perceptions toward L2 use in EFL classroom. This study was
conducted in ELEP-UKSW because the students in Faculty of Language and Arts
have to learn and use English in every course.
Participants
There were 80 participants of first year students of the FLA-UKSW, majoring
in ELEP. Common to all the participant was having their first year of study in FLA,
and at least they had 10 years of studying English. The reason why they were chosen
to be the participants is because accessibility and flexibility to meet them. The age
of the students mostly ranged from 18 to 20. The participants came from both
gender; male and female.
Data collection instruments
For this study, the questionnaire was used to explore students’ perception
toward language use in a classroom. It used was adapted from Sharaeai (2012). It
consists of 9 questions with 4 options for each number; strongly agree, agree,
disagree and strongly disagree (see Appendix 1). Moreover, the questionnaire were
asked not only about students’ preferences of their teachers’ and classmate language
use, but also it asked about their perceptions about speaking activity, English as a
policy and dictionaries used in a classroom. Further, the questionnaire was edited
to be open-ended question which participants should give the reason for each
number.
Data collection procedures
The questionnaire was distributed to 80 students who are first year students
in Extensive Listening classes (there are 4 classes, each class consists of 20
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students). The participants were asked to fill the questionnaire based on the
instruction in the questionnaire. Then, it took around 4 days in a total time to get
the complete data from the participants.
Data analysis procedures
To discover the perceptions of first year students in FLA about the language
use, the result was analyzed to get the percentages of each result using Microsoft
Word. After finding the percentage, the result of each items were converted into
diagrams form to ease the analysis process. After the diagram was completed, the
result will be analyzed by comparing and relating one to another. Finally, it will be
related to the previous theories. The procedure was based on Sharaeai (2012).
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FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
This part presents overall of the study’s result. This result and discussion
differed according to the participants’ own personal opinions. The finding was
divided into two parts, they were positive and negative perceptions. Diagram 1
below shows the students’ perceptions towards the use of language by the teacher
in English classroom.
Figure 1 The participants’ opinion about having a teacher who spoke their first
language
Item 1; I would prefer to have a teacher who speak my
first language
Positive
Negative
From the data in Figure 1, it is apparent that item 1 shows that 75 participants
(94%) thought positively about having a teacher who understood their first
language. For example, participant A said “Teacher who understand our first
language can help us to understand the material easily. They can make us easier to
catch it.” This finding was in line with the study by Cook (2001) that found the
different ways in which first language (L1) could be positively used in the foreign
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language classroom. He argued that L1 and L2 have two different linguistic
systems. For that reason, teacher usually encourage students to avoid using L1 or
comparing the two languages.
However, only 5 participants (6%) thought negatively about having the
teacher who knew their first language. Participants B said “If I have a teacher who
teach me using my first language, I cannot improve my English.” Based on this
finding, the participants preferred to have a teacher who knew their first language.
Generally, students preferred to have teachers who were able to speak their
first language. Many positive reasons were given by the participants such as they
were still in the beginner level in studying English. Moreover, other positive
reasons were the teacher can help them to fix the mistake when they made it. As
mentioned in the literature review, based on Schweers’s study in 1999 about the
perceptions of the students, they preferred to have teacher who speak Spanish as
their first language.
Figure 2 The participants’ opinion about classmate who speak their first language
Item 2; I would prefer to sit
next to my classmate who
speak my first language
Item 8; Speaking first
language with my classmates
in classroom should be
allowed
Positive
Positive
Negative
Negative
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From this data, we can see that more than 50% of the students still preferred
to have classmates who spoke in the first language. Regarding students’ preferences
about using first language with classmates, participant C mentioned “We can
motivate each other because we can talk about anything with our first language,
include talk about the lesson.”
The results showed that the participants preferred to sit next to their
classmates who can speak their first language. The participants said they usually
use their first language to chat with their classmate about general and personal
topics that are not connected to the textbook. This finding is in line with Manara
(2007) that found the students should use English with the teachers in the classroom
all the time.
However, the rest of them which were around 30% of the students gave
negative responses. They stated that having classmates who spoke first language
would not improve their English ability. Participant D had his own opinion, he said
“If she (his classmate who speaks their first language) sits next to me, I cannot
improve my English because she always talk using Bahasa Indonesia to me.”
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Figure 3 The participants’ perception toward English only policy
Item 3; Only English is allowed in class
Positive
Negative
From this data, we can see that more than 80% of the participants agreed on
the use of an English-only policy in English classroom. This finding was
contradicted with Auerbach (1993) & Izumi (1995) (as cited in Thompson, 2006)
who stated that many ESL/EFL teachers around the world felt impossible to totally
avoid the usage of the L1 in the classroom. Participant E had her opinion about this
statement. She said that English is funny, so she preferred to use English all the
time.
Besides, only 15 participants (19%) thought negatively to this item. Some of
them have their opinion. Such as “We do not want to be forced to use English,
because we are still learning.” (Participant F & Participant G). Further, the negative
reason also came from participant H who said “Using English all the time in the
classroom may cause misunderstanding.” In general, there are similarities between
the reason expressed by the students in this study and those described by Auerbach
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(1993) who argued that the bilingual policy is not only effective but also necessary
for adult ESL.
Figure 4 The participants’ opinion about speaking English
Item 4; I am becoming more comfortable to speak
English
Positive
Negative
From this data, we can see in item 4, 68 participants (85%) felt that they were
more comfortable speaking English in their classroom as they were improving their
English.
In contrast to the earlier findings, however, around 15% of the students
thought negatively about the use of English itself. This negative reason came from
participant I and participant J who said “We also have to develop our speaking skill
outside the classroom.” Manara (2007) also gave her opinion, she stated that
students were probably wish to have more exposure by listening to the teachers who
spoke English.
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Figure 5 The participants’ opinion about speaking first language
Item 5; Speaking my first
language when I feel I need
to
Item 6; Speaking English to
complete the course only
Positive
Positive
Negative
Negative
From this data, we can see in item 5, 61 participants (76%) had positive
perceptions towards the use of their first language or Bahasa Indonesia in the
classroom when they needed to while the rest of them or 19 participants (24%) had
the opposite perceptions. The reason from participant K is if he talks using Bahasa
Indonesia, it will disturb his friends. It shows that participants were preferred to use
their first language only when they need to.
Further, in response to 63 participants (78.75%) thought negatively about the
use of second language only to complete the courses. Participant L said “I need to
be able to speak English to prepare for my future.” In general, the participants felt
that they needed to use English in classroom not only for completing the course,
but also to improve their ability in speaking the second language. This finding is
contradictory to the response to item 3 which stated that more than 50% students
agreed about English only policy in the classroom.
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Figure 6 The participants’ opinion about the use of dictionary
Item 7; The use of dictionaries or resources in first
language should be allowed
Positive
Negative
What is interesting in this data is in item 7 which discussed whether the
participants needed dictionaries and resources in first language or not. In fact, 75
participants (93%) stated that the use of dictionaries in their first language were
really needed because the participants thought they were in the beginning of their
study. “I use dictionary to avoid mistake and misunderstanding between me and my
friends.”, said participant M. Strong evidence of dictionaries use was found by
Broadhurst (1978) said if students use their English dictionaries as crutches, looking
up every word they do not know will get many advantages of using it, such as; will
know the meaning easier and faster.
Besides, only 5 participants (7%) thought that they do not need EnglishIndonesian dictionaries. The reason from participant N was if they need to try use
English without dictionaries.
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Figure 7 The participants’ feeling about speaking in English
Item 9; Speaking English in classroom makes me feel
nervous
Positive
Negative
From the data above, in item 9, 45 participants (56%) felt nervous when they
had to speak English in classroom and the rest of them which is 35 participants
(44%) do not make them feel nervous like participant O who mentioned “I am afraid
of making mistake, I am also afraid if the listeners will not understand what I am
talking about.”
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CONCLUSION
This research has investigated the students’ perceptions toward L2 use in
classroom. In general, there were various reason for using first language and second
language in the classroom. We can conclude that; First, participants in open-ended
questionnaire agreed that they sometimes used the first language to explain and ask
about the new ideas and concepts presented in English class. Participants in
previous study (Sharaeai, 2012) also said they sometimes use their first language,
and they would prefer having their first language used a little in the English
classrooms. Second, most of the students agreed to have the teachers and classmates
who spoke their first language. Third, most of the participants agreed with the
English only policy in their classroom. Fourth, as their language improved, they
also feel more comfortable using English in English classroom. However, that
contradicted to the finding which showed that students felt nervous when they
needed to speak English in the classroom.
In fact, these findings were in the contrary to my pre-understanding that
students will prefer to have the teacher that use English during the lessons. It refers
to Ellis (1988) that claimed in the EFL classroom, the English used for these
functions is inevitable. Furthermore, a bit implications might be given for EFL
teaching and learning in Indonesia. As EFL teaching and learning process in
Indonesia still rely on the use of Bahasa Indonesia as a language of instruction these
results may help the teacher to understand the students’ perceptions towards English
and students may also have better understanding why they tend to use their first
language.
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Finally, the suggestion comes to the teachers as well as the students who
learned English as their foreign language. Hopefully, this suggestion can help them
improve their English learning and teaching. First, this suggestion is for teachers
such as they can change their styles in teaching by using direct method to force the
students use English in learning; speak English during the class also they can reduce
the amount of first language use. Next, the suggestion for the students in this faculty
is they need to change their mind set to use English in every situation; not only
when they ask for the explanation from their teachers but also when they talk with
their classmates. Considering they will be a future English teacher, they need to
accustom themselves with English.
Lastly, there was a number of limitation to the current study that would need
to be addressed. Such the statement of the questions was too long and they need to
write their own reason to each answer, it might be made them felt bored so it made
them not interested to the statement in questionnaire.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank;
1. My Savior Jesus Christ who gives me strength and never leave me alone until
I can finish writing this thesis.
2. My super mama Melanie Wulandari who always reminded and asked about the
progress of this thesis before she leaves. I believe you can watch my effort from
above and I promise I will make you proud. “Yes, akhirnya skripsiku selesai
ma, aku S1 lho. I miss you a lot, ma..”
3. My supervisor Victoria Usadya Palupi, M.A-ELT who supervised me well.
4. My thesis examiner Yustinus Calvin Gai Mali, M.Hum. who gave the best
solution when I face many difficulties during the writing process.
5. My papa, Richard Budiarto who gave me support (moral dan material). My
grand-mom, Corry Indrawati who always waits for me to come home. My
beloved sissy and my mentor, Priskila Kristanti Budiarto. My older brothers,
Yonatan Oktavianus Budiarto and Andreas Kristian Budiarto. My sissy in law,
Elizabeth Hanna Eka Christy. My beloved niece, Joanne Dominique Budiarto,
thank you for always make me smile. I love you all.
6. My lovely friends, Theodora Adeline and Margareta Cartona, Makasih yaaa.
Someday, aku pasti bakal sampe ke rumah kalian di Pangkalan Bun sana.
7. My Ibu dan Bapak Kost, Mbak Yuni and Mas Yoki and your cute son Abe, I
will miss your advice.
8. And the last, my super boyfriend, Bernardus Rexy Kurniawan Widjaja who
always supports, cheers and gives me so many advice when I feel lazy to finish
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my thesis. “Akhirnya aku nulis namamu di sini oh.. Makasih ya.. I love you lho
..”
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REFERENCES
Al Sharaeai, W. A. A. (2012). Students’ perspectives on the use of L1 in English
classrooms. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Iowa State University, Iowa.
Alenezi, A., A. (2010). Students’ language attitude towards using code-switching
as a medium of instruction in the College of Health Sciences: An exploratory
study. ARECLS, 7, 1-22.
Channa, M. A. (2012). Teachers’ perceptions towards English Language as medium
of Instruction in Pakistan. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary
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Dickson, P. (1996). Using the target language a view from the Classroom. National
Foundation for Educational Research.
Hanna, N. H., & Majeda, A. (2012). The use of the first language in second
language learning reconsidered. College Student Journal. 46 (1), 1-13.
Hartono, D. A. W. (2013). Teachers’ perception about the use of English and
Indonesian in the EFL Classroom. Unpublised bachelor’s thesis, Satya
Wacana Christian University, Salatiga, Central Java, Indonesia.
Manara, C. (2007). The use of L1 support: Teachers’ and students’ opinions and
practices in Indonesian context. The Journal of Asia TEFL, 4 (1), 145-178.
Mohebbi, H., & Alavi, S., M. (2014). An investigation into teachers’ first language
use in a second language learning classroom context: A Questionnaire-based
study. Bellaterra Journal of Teaching & Learning Language & Literature, 7
(4), 57-73.
Nilsson, M. (2013). Target language in the primary classroom. Unpublished
doctoral dissertation, Stockholms Universitet.
Permatasari, R., R. (2014). Students’ perceptions toward teachers’ use of Bahasa
Indonesia in English learning classroom. Unpublished bachelor’s thesis,
Satya Wacana Christian University, Salatiga, Central Java, Indonesia.
Rabbidge, M., & Chappell, P. (2014). Exploring Non-native English speaker
teachers’ classroom language use in South Korean elementary schools. The
Electronic Journal for English as a Second Language, 17 (4), 1-7.
Thompson, G. L. (2006). Teacher and student first language and target language
use in the foreign language classroom: A qualitative and quantitative study
of language choice. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, The University of
Arizona.
Tsukamoto, M. (2011). Students’ perception of teachers’ language use in an EFL
classroom. Unpublished doctoral dissertation.
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Walkinshaw, I., & Duong, O. T. H. (2012). Native-and Non-Native Speaking
English teacher weighing the benefits. The Electronic Journal for English as
a Second Language, 16 (3), 1-17.
Zheng, H., & Wang, X. (2016). The Use of electronic dictionaries in EFL
classroom. Studies in English Language Teaching, 4 (1), 144-156.
21
APPENDIX
Dear Friends,
In order to continue my thesis, I need your help to fill in this questionnaire honestly.
This questionnaire is to answer the research question: ‘What are the students’
perceptions toward the use of L2 in ESL classroom?’ Your response to the
questionnaire will not affect your grade and will be kept confidential. Feel free to
fill it in Bahasa Indonesia. Many thanks.
A. Demographic information
NIM :……………………..
Gender: Male/Female (circle accordingly)
B. Put a check mark () in the appropriate option.
1. In English class, it is best to have a teacher who can understand my first
language.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
2. I would prefer to sit next to a classmate who speaks my first language in
English class.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
___________________________________
Disagree
___________________________________
Strongly disagree
___________________________________
3. I think my English class should have an “English Only Policy.” (This
means only English is allowed in the English classroom.)
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
__________________________________
Disagree
__________________________________
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Strongly disagree
__________________________________
4. As my English improves, I am becoming more comfortable speaking only
English in English class.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
5. I want to be able to speak my first language in English class when I feel I
need to.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
6. It’s not important to speak only English in class as long as I am
completing the course tasks.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
7. Using dictionaries and resources in the first language should be allowed in
English class.
Strongly agree`
Reaason :
Agree
__________________________________
Disagree
__________________________________
Strongly disagree
__________________________________
8. Speaking my first language with my classmates between and during class
activities should be okay as long as the course is not a speaking class.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
__________________________________
Disagree
__________________________________
Strongly disagree
__________________________________
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9. Having to speak English only in class makes me feel nervous.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
___________________________________
Disagree
___________________________________
Strongly disagree
___________________________________
C. Consent form
If I need more information on your questionnaire, can I contact you for an
interview? Yes/No (circle one)
If you say Yes, complete the following information:
Name: …………………………………….. Email:………………………………
HP: ………………………………………
Thank you
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IN EFL CLASSROOMS
THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan
MAGDALENA KRISTIANI BUDIARTO
112012074
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION PROGRAM
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS
UNIVERSITAS KRISTEN SATYA WACANA
SALATIGA
2016
FIRST YEAR STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS TOWARD L2 USE
IN EFL CLASSROOMS
THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan
MAGDALENA KRISTIANI BUDIARTO
112012074
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION PROGRAM
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS
UNIVERSITAS KRISTEN SATYA WACANA
SALATIGA
2016
ii
iii
iv
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COPYRIGHT STATEMENT
This thesis contains no such material as has been submitted for examination
in any course or accepted for the fulfillment of any degree or diploma in any
university. To the best of my knowledge and my belief, this contain no material
previously published or written by any other person except where the reference is
made in the text.
Copyright@2016 Magdalena Kristiani Budiarto and Victoria Usadya Palupi, M.AELT.
All rights reserved. No part of this thesis may be reproduced by any means without
the permission of at least one of the copyright owners or the English Department,
Faculty of Language and Arts, Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana, Salatiga.
vii
TABLE OF CONTENT
INSIDE COVER ……………………………………..……………………….... ii
APPROVAL PAGE ………………………………………...………………….. v
PUBLICATION AGREEMENT DECLARATION ………………………… vi
COPYRIGHT STATEMENT .......................................................................... viiii
TABLE OF CONTENT ................................................................................... viiiii
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... 1
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 2
LITERATURE REVIEW..................................................................................... 4
Definition of perception .................................................................................... 4
The Advantages and disadvantages of the use of L2 ...................................... 5
THE STUDY .......................................................................................................... 6
Context of the study .......................................................................................... 6
Participants ........................................................................................................ 6
Data collection instruments .............................................................................. 6
Data collection procedures ............................................................................... 6
Data analysis procedures .................................................................................. 7
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION .......................................................................... 8
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................ 18
REFERENCES .................................................................................................... 20
APPENDIX .......................................................................................................... 22
viii
FIRST YEAR STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS TOWARD L2 USE
IN EFL CLASSROOMS
Magdalena Kristiani Budiarto
ABSTRACT
The language use by the teachers and the students in classroom has pros and cons
results whether they use first language (L1) or second language (L2). In this case,
L1 refers to Bahasa Indonesia. Many teachers and students in Indonesia still use L1
in English teaching and learning process. That is why aimed of this study is to
answer the research question about students’ perceptions toward L2 use in EFL
(English as a Foreign Language) classrooms. Further, this study was conducted
using open-ended questionnaire. The participants of this research were first year
students of English Language Education Program (ELEP) from Faculty of
Language and Arts (FLA) in Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana, Salatiga (UKSW).
There were 9 questions and categorized them in students’ preferences, students’
feeling, and students’ opinion of the use of dictionaries. The result showed that
students were prefer to have teachers and classmates who spoke their first language.
However, it seemed contradicted with the students’ opinion of having English only
policy. Here, this study might have significant implications for the teachers and
students such teachers might be able to modify their classroom management to
reduce the amount and frequency for first language use. Then, the students may be
able to eliminate them and eventually improve the English language learning.
Key words: Perceptions, first language, second language, L1, L2, EFL.
1
INTRODUCTION
Recently, researchers have shown an increasing interest in educational
institutions which have their own “policy” of which language they want their
classes taught in; the students’ first language or the second language. In Faculty of
Language and Arts Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana (FLA-UKSW), most of the
lessons were taught in English. However, a major problem with this kind of topic
is students in this faculty have different background knowledge of English.
Sharaeai (2012) conducted a study which aimed to find students’ perceptions
toward the language use in English classroom. He worked in total 51 participants
from different majors at the large university, most were in the Engineering and
English Department. He found that the students were preferred to use their first
language.
Moreover, in his paper, he found that Schweers (1999) carried out a study to
investigate the reasons and amount of L1 or first language usage in the English
classrooms. He investigated the use of Spanish in English classes in the University
of Puerto Rico. His study found out that about 88.7 percent of the students thought
Spanish should be used. And none of the students thought the teachers should stop
using Spanish in the classroom. This shows differences between how the two
perceive L1 usage in the classroom. Most of the teachers and students agreed that
Spanish should be used to explain difficult concepts.
Another study by Rodrigues and Oxbrow (2008) found that most of the
students said that the use of L1 in English classroom can help them improve their
2
second language ability. The students agreed that they preferred to have the teacher
who are able to talk in their L1 to explain the grammar point.
Cook (2001) argued that although the teachers try their best to separate the
first language from second language in their teaching by trying to use a number of
techniques. As a result, even if the teacher tried to separate the two languages, the
students would still refer to them and connect them in their minds.
Levine (2003) conducted a study based on an online questionnaire about the
attitudes of university students and instructors regarding the use of the first and the
target language. His participants were first and second year students of French,
German, and Spanish. All the participants were either native speakers of English or
bilingual speakers. The study found out that teachers and students usually used the
first language to discuss class assignments, course policies, and for class
management.
This study examined the perceptions from the first year students at English
Language Education Program, Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana (ELEP-UKSW)
toward L2 (second language) use. This study was expected to provide information
about their preferences in using language in a classroom, in this case, Bahasa
Indonesia as L1 (first language) and English as L2. This study helps to understand
students’ perceptions about the language use at ELEP-SWCU.
The specific purpose of this study was to answer the following questions:
What are the students’ perceptions toward L2 use in EFL classrooms?
As a result, the study can help the teachers at ELEP-UKSW to manage the
classroom or even avoid the first language use, then the students can improve their
3
ability in learning English; in speaking English or even only to pronounce English
words.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The use of the first language in English classroom has been and will remain
an issue that everyone has an opinion about. Some of teachers and students are
against the use of first language and they have their own reason. In this chapter of
the paper, we will see some of the studies that have been conducted to investigate
the use of second language in EFL classroom.
This literature review will be organized into two parts. First, we will see a
brief definition of perception. Second, some advantages and disadvantages of the
use of second language in EFL classrooms will be reviewed.
Definition of perception
First, a brief definition about perception will be given. According to Hong
(2003) (as cited in Permatasari, 2014) perception is someone thought about
something that they learn to measure how their attitude toward using something,
whether they agree or not about that method or about something that they learn.
Moreover, Sidhu (2003) (as cited in Permatasari, 2014) stated that students’
perceptions are students’ point of view toward something that happened in learning
process. From the definition above, we can conclude if students’ perception means
how students’ thought to response about they have done or about what they have
learned.
4
The Advantages and disadvantages of the use of L2
Using the second language in learning can make the students more aware to
the use of the target language. In the foreign language classroom, the exclusive use
of second language is necessary to use in order to provide a context for learners to
communicate using the second language in a more meaningful and authentic
manner.
Chaudron (1988) (as Cited in Rabbidge & Chappell, 2014) argued that the
best competence in the foreign language is realized by creating a rich second
language environment that uses English for not only instruction but also
disciplinary and management”. Moreover, Singleton (1989) argued that “L2
learners are different from children acquiring their L1 because they have more
mature minds, greater social development and larger short-term memory capacity.
Moreover, Prodromou (2003) (as cited in Hanna & Majeda, 2012) stated that
“L1 is useful in L2 classroom situations as in giving instructions, and sorting out
activities. He said if the students’ L1 is very useful for students in learning the target
language especially when the students study about proverbs or idioms. Other
opinion came from Anton & Dicamella (1998) (as cited in Thompson, 2006) viewed
the use of L1 as a useful psychological tool in the early stages of second language
learning, and they found in their study that the use of L1 helped the students
psychologically in providing help to each other.
5
THE STUDY
Context of the study
This study was conducted at ELEP-UKSW. This study attempted to explore
the students’ perceptions toward L2 use in EFL classroom. This study was
conducted in ELEP-UKSW because the students in Faculty of Language and Arts
have to learn and use English in every course.
Participants
There were 80 participants of first year students of the FLA-UKSW, majoring
in ELEP. Common to all the participant was having their first year of study in FLA,
and at least they had 10 years of studying English. The reason why they were chosen
to be the participants is because accessibility and flexibility to meet them. The age
of the students mostly ranged from 18 to 20. The participants came from both
gender; male and female.
Data collection instruments
For this study, the questionnaire was used to explore students’ perception
toward language use in a classroom. It used was adapted from Sharaeai (2012). It
consists of 9 questions with 4 options for each number; strongly agree, agree,
disagree and strongly disagree (see Appendix 1). Moreover, the questionnaire were
asked not only about students’ preferences of their teachers’ and classmate language
use, but also it asked about their perceptions about speaking activity, English as a
policy and dictionaries used in a classroom. Further, the questionnaire was edited
to be open-ended question which participants should give the reason for each
number.
Data collection procedures
The questionnaire was distributed to 80 students who are first year students
in Extensive Listening classes (there are 4 classes, each class consists of 20
6
students). The participants were asked to fill the questionnaire based on the
instruction in the questionnaire. Then, it took around 4 days in a total time to get
the complete data from the participants.
Data analysis procedures
To discover the perceptions of first year students in FLA about the language
use, the result was analyzed to get the percentages of each result using Microsoft
Word. After finding the percentage, the result of each items were converted into
diagrams form to ease the analysis process. After the diagram was completed, the
result will be analyzed by comparing and relating one to another. Finally, it will be
related to the previous theories. The procedure was based on Sharaeai (2012).
7
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
This part presents overall of the study’s result. This result and discussion
differed according to the participants’ own personal opinions. The finding was
divided into two parts, they were positive and negative perceptions. Diagram 1
below shows the students’ perceptions towards the use of language by the teacher
in English classroom.
Figure 1 The participants’ opinion about having a teacher who spoke their first
language
Item 1; I would prefer to have a teacher who speak my
first language
Positive
Negative
From the data in Figure 1, it is apparent that item 1 shows that 75 participants
(94%) thought positively about having a teacher who understood their first
language. For example, participant A said “Teacher who understand our first
language can help us to understand the material easily. They can make us easier to
catch it.” This finding was in line with the study by Cook (2001) that found the
different ways in which first language (L1) could be positively used in the foreign
8
language classroom. He argued that L1 and L2 have two different linguistic
systems. For that reason, teacher usually encourage students to avoid using L1 or
comparing the two languages.
However, only 5 participants (6%) thought negatively about having the
teacher who knew their first language. Participants B said “If I have a teacher who
teach me using my first language, I cannot improve my English.” Based on this
finding, the participants preferred to have a teacher who knew their first language.
Generally, students preferred to have teachers who were able to speak their
first language. Many positive reasons were given by the participants such as they
were still in the beginner level in studying English. Moreover, other positive
reasons were the teacher can help them to fix the mistake when they made it. As
mentioned in the literature review, based on Schweers’s study in 1999 about the
perceptions of the students, they preferred to have teacher who speak Spanish as
their first language.
Figure 2 The participants’ opinion about classmate who speak their first language
Item 2; I would prefer to sit
next to my classmate who
speak my first language
Item 8; Speaking first
language with my classmates
in classroom should be
allowed
Positive
Positive
Negative
Negative
9
From this data, we can see that more than 50% of the students still preferred
to have classmates who spoke in the first language. Regarding students’ preferences
about using first language with classmates, participant C mentioned “We can
motivate each other because we can talk about anything with our first language,
include talk about the lesson.”
The results showed that the participants preferred to sit next to their
classmates who can speak their first language. The participants said they usually
use their first language to chat with their classmate about general and personal
topics that are not connected to the textbook. This finding is in line with Manara
(2007) that found the students should use English with the teachers in the classroom
all the time.
However, the rest of them which were around 30% of the students gave
negative responses. They stated that having classmates who spoke first language
would not improve their English ability. Participant D had his own opinion, he said
“If she (his classmate who speaks their first language) sits next to me, I cannot
improve my English because she always talk using Bahasa Indonesia to me.”
10
Figure 3 The participants’ perception toward English only policy
Item 3; Only English is allowed in class
Positive
Negative
From this data, we can see that more than 80% of the participants agreed on
the use of an English-only policy in English classroom. This finding was
contradicted with Auerbach (1993) & Izumi (1995) (as cited in Thompson, 2006)
who stated that many ESL/EFL teachers around the world felt impossible to totally
avoid the usage of the L1 in the classroom. Participant E had her opinion about this
statement. She said that English is funny, so she preferred to use English all the
time.
Besides, only 15 participants (19%) thought negatively to this item. Some of
them have their opinion. Such as “We do not want to be forced to use English,
because we are still learning.” (Participant F & Participant G). Further, the negative
reason also came from participant H who said “Using English all the time in the
classroom may cause misunderstanding.” In general, there are similarities between
the reason expressed by the students in this study and those described by Auerbach
11
(1993) who argued that the bilingual policy is not only effective but also necessary
for adult ESL.
Figure 4 The participants’ opinion about speaking English
Item 4; I am becoming more comfortable to speak
English
Positive
Negative
From this data, we can see in item 4, 68 participants (85%) felt that they were
more comfortable speaking English in their classroom as they were improving their
English.
In contrast to the earlier findings, however, around 15% of the students
thought negatively about the use of English itself. This negative reason came from
participant I and participant J who said “We also have to develop our speaking skill
outside the classroom.” Manara (2007) also gave her opinion, she stated that
students were probably wish to have more exposure by listening to the teachers who
spoke English.
12
Figure 5 The participants’ opinion about speaking first language
Item 5; Speaking my first
language when I feel I need
to
Item 6; Speaking English to
complete the course only
Positive
Positive
Negative
Negative
From this data, we can see in item 5, 61 participants (76%) had positive
perceptions towards the use of their first language or Bahasa Indonesia in the
classroom when they needed to while the rest of them or 19 participants (24%) had
the opposite perceptions. The reason from participant K is if he talks using Bahasa
Indonesia, it will disturb his friends. It shows that participants were preferred to use
their first language only when they need to.
Further, in response to 63 participants (78.75%) thought negatively about the
use of second language only to complete the courses. Participant L said “I need to
be able to speak English to prepare for my future.” In general, the participants felt
that they needed to use English in classroom not only for completing the course,
but also to improve their ability in speaking the second language. This finding is
contradictory to the response to item 3 which stated that more than 50% students
agreed about English only policy in the classroom.
13
Figure 6 The participants’ opinion about the use of dictionary
Item 7; The use of dictionaries or resources in first
language should be allowed
Positive
Negative
What is interesting in this data is in item 7 which discussed whether the
participants needed dictionaries and resources in first language or not. In fact, 75
participants (93%) stated that the use of dictionaries in their first language were
really needed because the participants thought they were in the beginning of their
study. “I use dictionary to avoid mistake and misunderstanding between me and my
friends.”, said participant M. Strong evidence of dictionaries use was found by
Broadhurst (1978) said if students use their English dictionaries as crutches, looking
up every word they do not know will get many advantages of using it, such as; will
know the meaning easier and faster.
Besides, only 5 participants (7%) thought that they do not need EnglishIndonesian dictionaries. The reason from participant N was if they need to try use
English without dictionaries.
14
Figure 7 The participants’ feeling about speaking in English
Item 9; Speaking English in classroom makes me feel
nervous
Positive
Negative
From the data above, in item 9, 45 participants (56%) felt nervous when they
had to speak English in classroom and the rest of them which is 35 participants
(44%) do not make them feel nervous like participant O who mentioned “I am afraid
of making mistake, I am also afraid if the listeners will not understand what I am
talking about.”
15
CONCLUSION
This research has investigated the students’ perceptions toward L2 use in
classroom. In general, there were various reason for using first language and second
language in the classroom. We can conclude that; First, participants in open-ended
questionnaire agreed that they sometimes used the first language to explain and ask
about the new ideas and concepts presented in English class. Participants in
previous study (Sharaeai, 2012) also said they sometimes use their first language,
and they would prefer having their first language used a little in the English
classrooms. Second, most of the students agreed to have the teachers and classmates
who spoke their first language. Third, most of the participants agreed with the
English only policy in their classroom. Fourth, as their language improved, they
also feel more comfortable using English in English classroom. However, that
contradicted to the finding which showed that students felt nervous when they
needed to speak English in the classroom.
In fact, these findings were in the contrary to my pre-understanding that
students will prefer to have the teacher that use English during the lessons. It refers
to Ellis (1988) that claimed in the EFL classroom, the English used for these
functions is inevitable. Furthermore, a bit implications might be given for EFL
teaching and learning in Indonesia. As EFL teaching and learning process in
Indonesia still rely on the use of Bahasa Indonesia as a language of instruction these
results may help the teacher to understand the students’ perceptions towards English
and students may also have better understanding why they tend to use their first
language.
16
Finally, the suggestion comes to the teachers as well as the students who
learned English as their foreign language. Hopefully, this suggestion can help them
improve their English learning and teaching. First, this suggestion is for teachers
such as they can change their styles in teaching by using direct method to force the
students use English in learning; speak English during the class also they can reduce
the amount of first language use. Next, the suggestion for the students in this faculty
is they need to change their mind set to use English in every situation; not only
when they ask for the explanation from their teachers but also when they talk with
their classmates. Considering they will be a future English teacher, they need to
accustom themselves with English.
Lastly, there was a number of limitation to the current study that would need
to be addressed. Such the statement of the questions was too long and they need to
write their own reason to each answer, it might be made them felt bored so it made
them not interested to the statement in questionnaire.
17
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank;
1. My Savior Jesus Christ who gives me strength and never leave me alone until
I can finish writing this thesis.
2. My super mama Melanie Wulandari who always reminded and asked about the
progress of this thesis before she leaves. I believe you can watch my effort from
above and I promise I will make you proud. “Yes, akhirnya skripsiku selesai
ma, aku S1 lho. I miss you a lot, ma..”
3. My supervisor Victoria Usadya Palupi, M.A-ELT who supervised me well.
4. My thesis examiner Yustinus Calvin Gai Mali, M.Hum. who gave the best
solution when I face many difficulties during the writing process.
5. My papa, Richard Budiarto who gave me support (moral dan material). My
grand-mom, Corry Indrawati who always waits for me to come home. My
beloved sissy and my mentor, Priskila Kristanti Budiarto. My older brothers,
Yonatan Oktavianus Budiarto and Andreas Kristian Budiarto. My sissy in law,
Elizabeth Hanna Eka Christy. My beloved niece, Joanne Dominique Budiarto,
thank you for always make me smile. I love you all.
6. My lovely friends, Theodora Adeline and Margareta Cartona, Makasih yaaa.
Someday, aku pasti bakal sampe ke rumah kalian di Pangkalan Bun sana.
7. My Ibu dan Bapak Kost, Mbak Yuni and Mas Yoki and your cute son Abe, I
will miss your advice.
8. And the last, my super boyfriend, Bernardus Rexy Kurniawan Widjaja who
always supports, cheers and gives me so many advice when I feel lazy to finish
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my thesis. “Akhirnya aku nulis namamu di sini oh.. Makasih ya.. I love you lho
..”
19
REFERENCES
Al Sharaeai, W. A. A. (2012). Students’ perspectives on the use of L1 in English
classrooms. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Iowa State University, Iowa.
Alenezi, A., A. (2010). Students’ language attitude towards using code-switching
as a medium of instruction in the College of Health Sciences: An exploratory
study. ARECLS, 7, 1-22.
Channa, M. A. (2012). Teachers’ perceptions towards English Language as medium
of Instruction in Pakistan. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary
Research in Business, 4 (5), 759-764.
Dickson, P. (1996). Using the target language a view from the Classroom. National
Foundation for Educational Research.
Hanna, N. H., & Majeda, A. (2012). The use of the first language in second
language learning reconsidered. College Student Journal. 46 (1), 1-13.
Hartono, D. A. W. (2013). Teachers’ perception about the use of English and
Indonesian in the EFL Classroom. Unpublised bachelor’s thesis, Satya
Wacana Christian University, Salatiga, Central Java, Indonesia.
Manara, C. (2007). The use of L1 support: Teachers’ and students’ opinions and
practices in Indonesian context. The Journal of Asia TEFL, 4 (1), 145-178.
Mohebbi, H., & Alavi, S., M. (2014). An investigation into teachers’ first language
use in a second language learning classroom context: A Questionnaire-based
study. Bellaterra Journal of Teaching & Learning Language & Literature, 7
(4), 57-73.
Nilsson, M. (2013). Target language in the primary classroom. Unpublished
doctoral dissertation, Stockholms Universitet.
Permatasari, R., R. (2014). Students’ perceptions toward teachers’ use of Bahasa
Indonesia in English learning classroom. Unpublished bachelor’s thesis,
Satya Wacana Christian University, Salatiga, Central Java, Indonesia.
Rabbidge, M., & Chappell, P. (2014). Exploring Non-native English speaker
teachers’ classroom language use in South Korean elementary schools. The
Electronic Journal for English as a Second Language, 17 (4), 1-7.
Thompson, G. L. (2006). Teacher and student first language and target language
use in the foreign language classroom: A qualitative and quantitative study
of language choice. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, The University of
Arizona.
Tsukamoto, M. (2011). Students’ perception of teachers’ language use in an EFL
classroom. Unpublished doctoral dissertation.
20
Walkinshaw, I., & Duong, O. T. H. (2012). Native-and Non-Native Speaking
English teacher weighing the benefits. The Electronic Journal for English as
a Second Language, 16 (3), 1-17.
Zheng, H., & Wang, X. (2016). The Use of electronic dictionaries in EFL
classroom. Studies in English Language Teaching, 4 (1), 144-156.
21
APPENDIX
Dear Friends,
In order to continue my thesis, I need your help to fill in this questionnaire honestly.
This questionnaire is to answer the research question: ‘What are the students’
perceptions toward the use of L2 in ESL classroom?’ Your response to the
questionnaire will not affect your grade and will be kept confidential. Feel free to
fill it in Bahasa Indonesia. Many thanks.
A. Demographic information
NIM :……………………..
Gender: Male/Female (circle accordingly)
B. Put a check mark () in the appropriate option.
1. In English class, it is best to have a teacher who can understand my first
language.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
2. I would prefer to sit next to a classmate who speaks my first language in
English class.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
___________________________________
Disagree
___________________________________
Strongly disagree
___________________________________
3. I think my English class should have an “English Only Policy.” (This
means only English is allowed in the English classroom.)
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
__________________________________
Disagree
__________________________________
22
Strongly disagree
__________________________________
4. As my English improves, I am becoming more comfortable speaking only
English in English class.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
5. I want to be able to speak my first language in English class when I feel I
need to.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
6. It’s not important to speak only English in class as long as I am
completing the course tasks.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
_________________________________
Disagree
_________________________________
Strongly disagree
_________________________________
7. Using dictionaries and resources in the first language should be allowed in
English class.
Strongly agree`
Reaason :
Agree
__________________________________
Disagree
__________________________________
Strongly disagree
__________________________________
8. Speaking my first language with my classmates between and during class
activities should be okay as long as the course is not a speaking class.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
__________________________________
Disagree
__________________________________
Strongly disagree
__________________________________
23
9. Having to speak English only in class makes me feel nervous.
Strongly agree
Reason :
Agree
___________________________________
Disagree
___________________________________
Strongly disagree
___________________________________
C. Consent form
If I need more information on your questionnaire, can I contact you for an
interview? Yes/No (circle one)
If you say Yes, complete the following information:
Name: …………………………………….. Email:………………………………
HP: ………………………………………
Thank you
24