English language teaching, as a foreign language, has been introduced to the 4th and 5th classes of the primary schools in 1997 in Turkey. Even though it was in principle decided that English language teachers should carry out the task, it has been seen from time to time that teachers of various other disciplines and generalist class teachers handled the responsibility, due to English language teacher shortages. This situation causes complicated practices and thus constitutes a major problem in the effective teaching of English. It is suggested in this article that this situation may disappear given that the generalist class teachers take responsibility for teaching English in the 4th and 5th classes. The advantages and disadvantages of English language teachers and generalist class teachers are evaluated through "literature review model" in this context. The most apparent advantage of English language teachers stems from their expertise in linguistic knowledge. The most apparent advantage of generalist class teachers on the other hand stems from their expertise and experience in primary pedagogy as well as from the strong relations with their students. If the skills and competences that the generalist class teachers need are restricted with the aims of the 4th and 5th class English language curriculum, effective results can be obtained in a short time. Most of the generalist class teachers working in Turkey today already possess certain levels of English. This is a source that has to be fully exploited. As in most of the European countries, generalist class teachers, if needed, should take responsibility for the teaching of modern foreign languages and scientific research on this topic should speed up.
Understanding language learner beliefs, in other words understanding what language learners accept as true or real, has recently been stressed in educational research. This is mainly because language learning beliefs are regarded as fundamental in the language learning process and in learners progress. Therefore, finding out language learner beliefs about language learning will not only be helpful in forming effective learning methods but also provide guidelines for language teachers, syllabus planners and policy makers to suit their teaching methods, syllabuses, and policies to meet learner beliefs and expectations. This paper reports on a descriptive study of language learning beliefs held by 296 university vocational school students studying in the two-year associate degree programs at Mehmet Akif Ersoy University (MAKÜ), Gölhisar Vocational School and Gölhisar Health Services Vocational School. Horwitz BALLI (Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory) was used to assess learners" beliefs. The data were analyzed descriptively and the results were provided in tables with their relevant percentages. The results of this study demonstrated that university vocational school learners have a range of beliefs both similar to and different from those revealed by previous research on learner beliefs about language learning. The study concludes with suggestions that the identification of learner beliefs about language learning may lead to increased awareness on the part of the learners themselves, syllabus planners and policy makers.
There are various opinions about using students" mother tongue in foreign language classes. While most of the foreign language teaching methods suggest that only the target language should be used in foreign language classes, the others suggest that mother tongue can aid in the teaching of modern foreign languages. The recent studies on the subject reveal that a judicious and limited use of mother tongue is necessary and has a facilitating role in the teaching of modern foreign languages. The subject of this study is whether Turkish should be used in English langauge classes and the reasons for this. The views of foreign language teachers and students are taken. A total of 10 English language teachers and 148, 9th grade students participated in the study. The study was carried out by administering a questionnaire at the end of the second term of the academic year. The data obtained from the study show that most of the teachers and students are not against mother tongue, and that mother tongue contributes to language learning towards various aims and at different levels. As a result, it is suggested that being conscious about the subject and making use of the positive effects of the mother tongue is a better attitude than being totally against the use of mother tongue. 100 SUMMARYIntroduction: Using mother tongue in foreign language (FL) classes has long been seen as a taboo both by foreign language teachers and by researchers. The main reason for this is the theoretical underpinnings of FL approaches and methods. The two main aproaches which determine the extent to which mother tongue should be used in FL classes are; monolingual and bilingual approaches. As can be understood from the terms, the monolingual approach suggests that the only medium of in-class communication should be the target language but nothing else. Whereas the bilingual approach suggests that mother tongue can and should be used to certain extents in FL classes. Deller and Rinvolucri (2002) claim that there has been a shift in FL methodologies recently, and that the mother tongue is indeed "the mother" of a second, third or fourth language. They favour using mother tongue in FL classes in clearly defined situations and with carefully chosen activities. There are also some other scholars (names mentioned in the body of the article) who suggest that the monolongial approach has lost its appeal especially in the past 15 years. Another dimension for the subject is raised by Nunan and Lamb (1996) when they suggest that FL teachers who teach at beginner levels find it practically impossible to ban mother tongue altogether from FL classes. It is also suggested that mother tongue can aid and ease the teaching of FLs. Under the light of such scenerios FL teachers and researchers have started to re-examine the role of mother tongue and to explore how mother tongue can be effectively used in FL classes.
Sorular Aristo'nun zamanından beri eğitim araştırmalarına konu olmuştur. Eğitimcilerin birçoğu, soruların her türden eğitimin temelini oluşturduğu görüşüne katılmaktadır. Sorular üzerine yapılan araştırmalar zaman zaman soruların sınıflandırılması ile ilgilidir. Bu nedenle bu çalışmada soruların sınıflandırılmasına değinilecek ve farklı tipteki soruların öğrenci cevaplarını nasıl etkilediği tartışılacaktır. Bunun yanı sıra, eğitim süreci içerisinde soruların merkezi yeri tartışılacak ve öğretmen davranışlarına değinilecektir. Ancak, soruların sınıflandırılması eğer farklı soru tipleri farklı dünyalara aitmiş gibi ele alınırsa yanlış anlaşılabilir. Oysa ki farklı tipteki sorular birbirlerine güçlü bir bağla bağlıdırlar ve birbirlerini tamamlarlar. Bu nedenle bu çalışma farklı soru tiplerinin birbirlerinin yedeği olarak değil, bir bütünün parçaları olduklarını göstermeyi hedef almaktadır. Çalışmada farklı soru tiplerinin farklı hedeflere hizmet ettikleri ve hiç bir soru tipinin bir diğerinden üstün olmadığı iddia edilmektedir. Son olarak ise, soru tipleri ile öğretmenlerin soru sorma davranışları arasında olası bir ilişki olduğu tartışılacaktır.
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