The influence of mother tongue (Albanian) in learning and teaching EFL

Abstract

Using first language (L1) as a necessary and facilitating role in the second /foreign language (L2) classroom, has been a very hotly debated issue among teachers of English. This paper aims at examining students’ and teachers’ perceptions of the use of mother tongue and translation in various linguistic situations. This study examined language transfer while learning and teaching EFL, respectively the language interference in the written English of Albanian students. The study focused on recognizing, describing and explaining transfer-induced lexical and syntactic patterns that occur in essays written by Albanian University level students, and on following a possible change in the quantity and quality of these transfer patterns. The analysis of these transfer patterns aims at explaining the written English production by Albanian students, namely, how it is influenced by their mother tongue and what types of changes have taken place in it. The activities that help raise learners’ awareness of the language use are described. The findings reveal that all learners need a support of mother tongue in English classes, but the amount of the native language needed depends on students’ proficiency in English. This article will report on a piece of research that will be carried out in my own teaching/learning environment at the Language Center - South East European University in Tetova, and will present a comparative study of students’ and teachers’ perceptions regarding the use of L1 in EFL classes in the monolingual classroom.