The impact of Saudi Arabian Teachers’ Beliefs on their use of L1 or L2 in the Classroom in the Context of Communicative Language Teaching: A Literature Review

• Published in: Arab world English journal 2019-12, Vol.10 (4), p.344-355
• Main Author: Alharbi, Ahmed O
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Communicative Competence (Languages); English (Second Language); Foreign Countries; Grammar; Language Teachers; Language Usage; Native Language; Second Language Instruction; Second Language Learning; Teacher Attitudes; Teaching Methods; Translation
• ISSN: 2229-9327; 2229-9327
• DOI: 10.24093/awej/vol10no4.25

Different pedagogies employed in English language teaching (ELT) show varying degrees of use of first language (L1) and second language (L2). The choice is between teaching L2 through L2, teaching L2 through L1, or teaching using a mix of the two. Communicative language teaching (CLT) is a second language teaching approach that aims to create opportunities for the productive use of L2 in the classroom. CLT has been officially implemented in the Saudi Arabian context since 2004, where the use of L2 in the classroom is now encouraged. However, it is important to consider how well teachers' beliefs align with the specified use of L2 or L1 in the classroom. Importantly, this alignment is not generally taken into account, and so there is potential for resistance to this official pedagogy among teachers. This paper aims to explore the impact of Saudi teachers' reported beliefs on the use of L2 in CLT in observed practice. The methodology this paper employs is a systematic review of the related studies from 2014 to 2019 that examine teachers' beliefs and their alignment with their actual practice in the Saudi Arabian education setting. The results of this review of the studies show that SA teachers believe Arabic is still useful in the typical Saudi Arabian classroom where CLT has been officially adopted.