Page 265 - Beyond Methods

Ensuring social relevance
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Episode 11.3
T: What is the past tense form of swim? // Come on. // enna piL- LayaL,itu teriyaataa? Poona vakupilai connaiinkaL. What, chil- dren, you don’t know this? You told me in the last class.
S1: swimmed=
S2: =swam
In situations like this, where teachers need to encourage hesitant, frightened, or nervous students, they switch to the less formal and more personal Tamil. This results in “putting students at ease, con- veying teacher’s empathy and, in general, creating a less threaten- ing atmosphere” (ibid., p. 132).
Episode 11.4
T: Trees and vegetation are also used as medicine. Can you mention some trees which are used like that? // Quinine is produced from citronella. What else?
S1: tulasi? T: Yes.
S2: tuutuvalai?
S3: canTi.
As the above episode reveals, on occasions, it is easier to use L1
terms instead of attempting a confusing and misleading transla- tion into the closest English equivalent. As observed by Canagara- jah, by encouraging such answers in the L1, the teacher is able to ensure that the lesson relates well to the cultural background of the learners.
To sum up this section, the interactional episodes from the British and Sri Lankan classes reveal that there are several advantages to using the L1 as a resource in the L2 classroom. They include, but are not limited to,