In China, code-switching (CS) is frequently used in English as a foreign language (EFL) classrooms. However, the functions of CS in Chinese secondary schools remain unclear. Moreover, student perceptions have rarely been considered in previous studies. This paper therefore sets out to examine why English teachers code-switch in EFL classrooms. In…

This paper examines how the nature of language is represented in science lessons taught through English, and is part of a project investigating the challenges of bilingual education in Hong Kong's junior secondary classes. Educational linguistics, particularly work drawing on systemic functional linguistics, sees language as text and as dialectic.…

The role of students' first language(s) in foreign language classrooms has been hotly debated in the last decades. Although this line of research has advanced our understanding of language choice in the L2 classroom, it has mostly dealt with adolescent and adult learners. From a contextual perspective, then, more micro-analytic research that…

This article reports on the outcome of utilising a multilingual strategy that promotes translanguaging to support primary grade learners and the enablers and constraints of the implementation of such strategies. Purposive sampling was used to select two schools. Grade 5 and 6 learners (N = 162) and their teachers (N = 3) participated in the study.…

Research focused on learning mathematics in a 2nd language is generally located in individual 2nd-language contexts. In this ethnographic study, I investigated mathematics learning in 4 different second-language contexts: a mainstream classroom, a sheltered classroom for Indigenous students, a welcome class for new immigrants, and a…

English Medium Instruction (EMI) in universities continues to grow as an educational phenomenon and increasingly is attracting the attention of researchers, particularly researchers who are applied linguists. Starting with a definition of EMI and with the challenges that any working definition poses in the many contexts in which EMI is said to be…

The first language (L1) of language learners is a rich source of language knowledge that bilingual teachers and learners can bring to classrooms to facilitate second-language (L2) acquisition. While previous research suggests that L1 can provide learners with cognitive, pedagogical, and psychological benefits, what functions that it performs and…

This article assesses the position of post-colonial societies within a neoliberal paradigm through an analysis of the role of language in education and the importance of adequate academic preparation for social development. Generally, teacher-student interactions constitute the foundational substance of learning processes. Since education revolves…

Research on Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) programmes has yielded mixed results regarding their impact on students' language learning, drawing attention to the role of CLIL teachers. This study draws on teacher language awareness research to explore secondary subject content teachers' language-related pedagogical practices when…

Education for multilingual Physics students in South Africa still has a monolingual bias despite such pedagogy being repeatedly identified as the key factor in students' academic underachievement in the subject. The paper reports on the pivotal role language plays in the comprehension and subsequent academic performance of students in science…

The use of first languages (L1) in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom in Japanese universities is often a source of robust debate. In recent years, there has been an increase in counterarguments against the L2 monolingual EFL classroom and a strengthening of support for L1 usage. This study examines the views of students receiving…

This article reports on a collaborative action research project, conducted in a pre-primary school in South Central Uganda, which explores the opportunities for children to draw upon and integrate their home and community-based knowledge and experiences through mother tongue (MT) instruction and resources. We use the funds of knowledge (Moll,…

The language in education policy in Kenya recommends mother tongue education in primary school learning. The purpose of this study was to explore the development of mother tongues as academic languages at the lower primary section in which the languages are supposed to be used. The exploration was on the functions they play in classroom…

This study investigates pupils' anxiety and enjoyment in the classroom when learning a second or foreign language. The particularity of this study lies in the comparison of two target languages (English and Dutch) in two educational contexts (CLIL and non-CLIL) at different instruction levels (primary and secondary education). While most research…

The role of a mother tongue (L1) in the teaching and learning of a foreign language (FL) has been the subject of much debate and controversy. This paper reports on a piece of research carried out in our own teaching environments (at universities both in Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia) and presents an analysis of the attitudes of students and teachers…