The Communicative Role of the First Language in Second Language Learning

Abstract

This paper is centred on the role of the first language in second language learning. The main thrust of the paper is to x-ray the different communicative roles of the first language (mother tongue) in the learning of English as a second language in Nigeria. One of the on-going debates amongst language teachers is whether or not the mother tongue should be integrated into second language learning and in other language situations. Many ESL teachers advocate the use of the second language only in the learning of the second language, while others advocate the use of L1 in second language learning. Factors which affect these decisions include such things as social and cultural norms, student motivation and goals, whether or not English is a primary means of communication in the environment external to the classroom, age and proficiency of the students, and the linguistic makeup of the class (monolingual or multilingual as relates to L1), among others. One interesting point to mention is that the limited and judicious use of mother tongue in ESL classroom does not reduce students’ communicative ability but can assist in the teaching/learning process. The use of L1 is indeed the reply to a far-reaching cry to restore the dignity and potentiality of the learner’s mother tongue, which is totally ignored and neglected in direct method and in the structural approach. Indeed, it is disheartening to mention that the mother tongue has been neglected and relegated to the background as a result of the more fashionable new comer-English. This paper therefore calls for an integration of the mother tongue into the learning of the second language and will consequently serve as an avenue for the preservation of the mother tongue which is gradually facing language shift/extinction.