The monolingual, bilingual or multilingual English classroom?

Within English language education there are three main approaches to use of instructional language: a monolingual approach (using English only), a bilingual approach (using English as well as the dominant L1, in our case Norwegian), and a multilingual approach (allowing the use of any language). There is no general agreement about which approach is better, and there is a lack of research about how languages are actually used in the English classroom, a gap addressed in this paper.

The main aim of the study presented here was to measure the time spent on different languages in Norwegian classrooms, and identify the functions of switching language during instruction. English language instruction in seven lower secondary classrooms in 9th and 10th grade were video-recorded, a total of 60 lessons. In addition, student surveys concerning the language use in these lessons were collected. The video design relied on two cameras in each classroom and microphones capturing teachers and students. All language occurrences were time-stamped using InterAct, and deeper analyses of language use were conducted using an abductive approach, with transcriptions of relevant discourses.

Findings showed that 77 % of the time teachers and students spoke English, using Norwegian 16 % of the time, both languages interchangeably in the remaining 7 % of the time, with no use of other languages. Eight specific academic and non-academic functions of L1 use were identified. The results show a monolingual ideal in these classrooms, suggesting that multilingualism does not affect the language ideals offered in the English subject in Norway.