Role of Native Language in Learning English

• Main Authors: Galina Kavaliauskienė, Viktorija Mažeikienė, Giedrė Valūnaitė-Oleškevičienė
• Format: Article
• Language: deu
• Published: Vilnius Gediminas Technical University 2011-04-01
• Series: Coactivity: Philology, Educology
• Subjects: learning English for Specific Purposes; learners’ perceptions; role of native language
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.3846/coactivity.2010.12

A revival of interest in using a native language in the English classroom is caused by learners’ needs of improving language accuracy and clarity. This paper aims at examining perceptions of the use of mother tongue and translation in various linguistic situations. The activities that help raise learners’ awareness of language use are described. The findings demonstrate that all learners need support of mother tongue in English classes, but the amount of the native language needed depends on students’ proficiency. The statistical significance of the research results was calculated by employing the SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) software.