JIA ONG (SHAH ALAM PRE-UNIVERSITY COLLEGE)

HAS IT CHANGED? A TEACHER’S TRANSLANGUAGING PRACTICE IN A MALAYSIAN PRE-UNIVERSITY ENGLISH CLASSROOM : PLURILINGUALISM AND TRANSLANGUAGING

The study delineates an empirical investigation aimed at elucidating the deployment of the first language (L1) by an educator in an urban, pre-university ESL classroom. An examination of the extant literature unveils an emerging consensus on the instrumental role of L1 in facilitating second language (L2) acquisition. Study includes recording approximately 320 minutes of instructional sessions conducted by the teacher, followed by a systematic coding and categorization of L1 usage, employing the analytical framework proposed by Sali (2014). The coding process unearthed a predominant utilization of L1 for academic and managerial functions, with a pronounced emphasis on instructional delivery, pedagogical discourse, and the elicitation of learning objectives. Teacher is also found to use L1 in an elicit-explain frequently. The study advocates for the extension of this research on a broader scale to corroborate the findings and to forge a principled framework for L1 utilization tailored to the needs of ESL/EFL educators in Malaysia.

Dr. Jia Wei ONG holds a Ph.D in applied linguistics. His research interest includes translanguaging, computer assisted language teaching, and AI in education.