Learners' Experience of Teaching and Learning in a Second or Third Language

Abstract

Overview and Rationale Political changes in South Africa have also brought about changes in the country's educational system. Reflections of the change in the educational system are becoming more evident in the schools and classrooms. Learners from different cultural and language backgrounds are found in the same classroom. This diversity and multilingualism poses a great challenge for teachers. One of the greatest challenges teachers are faced with is the teaching of learners who are being taught in a second or third language. Second language teaching is not an unfamiliar phenomenon and is in practice across the world. In America, where teaching is conducted mainly in English, it is found that more than one fifth of school going children are from families where the home language is not English (McDonald, 1991:2). A similar study has not yet been conducted in South Africa. Bilingualism and the acquisition of a second language are widely published in educational literature. According to Piper (1993:9) most children acquire a second language from birth through listening to their parents talking. Descriptions of the experiences of learners who are being taught in a second or third language though are not widely published in educational literature. South African schools are currently faced with the scenario where learners find themselves in classes where the language of instruction is different from their mother tongue. Although the South African Schools Act of 1996 regulates that the governing body of a school should determine the language of instruction for the school, this language policy cannot exclude learners from different language backgrounds. Parents who prefer their children to be taught in English may enroll their children in a school where the medium of instruction is English. Schools are thus expected to cater for second or third language learners. Diedericks (1997:1) describes English, in the South African context, as the common medium of communication because it is widely used in the media. Crawford (1993:8) highlights the fact that teachers should recognize the differences of each learner during the teaching process. Teachers should therefore also take into consideration the language differences their learners have. This is posing a problem for teachers because they are unaware of their learners' experience of teaching and learning in a second or third language. According to McLaughlin (1978:9) the learners' needs should get preference during the teaching process. The author points out that learners who are not fluent in the language of instruction are commonly identified as learners with learning disabilities. The emphasis is thus placed on the learners' language proficiency rather than the learners learning abilities. Piper (1993:18) defines the language of teaching and learning as an academic language that should be used for cognitive development. The author emphasizes that there should be a correlation between the learners' mother tongue and the language of instruction. Second or third language of instruction may cause a lack of understanding because the learner does not use the language as a form of basic communication. The language of instruction is thus not meaningful for the learner. A lack of understanding and the interpretation of the language of instruction also places unwanted pressure on the learner to make sense of the learning process. Byram and Brumfit (2000:352) describe making sense of the learning process as metacognition. This is the ability to understand the aim and purpose of an assignment. This research aims to explore and describe learners' experience of teaching and learning in a second or third language. Problem statement A concern was raised by the teachers from the two primary schools included in this study that the learners do not understand the language of teaching and learning. They were concerned about the ineffective support that they were giving to these learners to enable them to cope with learning in a second or third language. …