A Survey on Primary Students’ Attitude toward Teachers’ Use of Mother Tongue in English Classrooms at Primary Schools in Binh Duong

Abstract

It is a controversial issue whether to use or not to use mother language in teaching English in primary classrooms. The purpose of this research paper is to investigate the reality of speaking Vietnamese in English classrooms in several primary schools in Binh Duong province. 23 primary students in Binh Duong were asked to answer a list of questions to learn about their attitude toward L1 in L2 lessons. It turned out that nearly 70% of teachers at primary schools in Binh Duong usually used L1 in their L2 classes to explain new words and difficult terms. The majority of primary students preferred L1 use and had a positive attitude toward teachers’ use of Vietnamese when appropriate use of L1 to support and facilitate EFL classroom. We recommend that the teacher’s intensity of using L1 in L2 context should be taken into consideration in accordance to the students’ proficiency.