Exploring the participation of national and non-national students in foreign language classrooms : a comparative study

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate classroom participation in Malta’s multicultural context. Through a comparative analysis approach, this study identified the differences and similarities between the forms and levels of participation between Maltese nationals and non-nationals. It also sought to understand the factors which lead to more participation in a foreign language (FL) classroom and uncovered factors which hinder it.The research was carried out within a specific social context, the foreign language classroom. Three data collection methods were used to gather information. Semi-structured interviews and questionnaires revealed the teachers’ views about factors which influence learners’ participation. Classroom observations constituted the third data collection instrument and were conducted in French and Italian classrooms in three government Middle Schools. Data from the observations led to an investigation about the effects of pedagogical strategies on learners’ participation. Analysis of this data also showed which kind of interactions are more conducive to dynamic language learning experiences. Findings from the study indicated that classroom participation in a multicultural class is largely influenced by teaching strategies, the languages of instruction, learners’ personality traits and even parental support. Teachers often make use of cooperative teaching strategies and classroom technologies to motivate learners to express themselves in the target language. The use of English and Maltese is pivotal in foreign language teaching since most teachers do not make exclusive use of the target language during instruction. Code-switching from the target language to English and Maltese serves as a mediating tool to ensure that learners who are competent in one or both these languages understand grammatical concepts and task instructions. However, the study also revealed that the use of code-switching from the target language to English could be ineffective to promote participation among non-English speaking students. The results of the study indicated that the growing presence of non-nationals presents new challenges to foreign language teachers in their attempts to increase the level of participation among all their learners. Embracing innovative plurilingual pedagogies may be the key to address a linguistically diverse classroom and promote a supportive classroom environment.