Acquisition Classroom Memo: #31
We are the experts
September 15, 2019
Research Says. . .
The most marked difference occurred at the
highest level of usage with only 10.5% of the
instructors reporting actual utilization of the
target language 90-100% of the time compared
to 40.9% stating this rate as their goal. Similar
numbers of respondents reported actual target
language use for nearly all rate ranges (p. 4). of teacher training (see 2nd quote above).
According to the qualitative data from this
study, the overriding factor hindering
instructor decisions to provide target language dealing with students’ varying abilities.
input for their students involve areas that
show lack of teacher preparation and training
(p. 7).
In a Nutshell
Regardless of theoretical perspective,
researchers would agree that most of class
time should be spent in the second language
(L2). ACTFL’s position is that 90%+ of
language use should be in the second
language.
In a 2008 survey of 3,670 US schools, 42% of
elementary schools reported that their
teachers use the L2 less than half of the class
time. Only 36% of high schools reported 75%+
use of the L2 (Rhodes & Pufahl, 2010).
Ceo-DiFrancesco (2013) surveyed 237 teachers
from Kentucky, Ohio, and Pennsylvania who
were attending conferences. Teachers were
from all levels, elementary through university,
but the majority (74.3%) taught at high
schools. Teachers reported goals and use of L2
on a scale that started at 20-30% and increased
by 10% intervals. The results revealed a
discrepancy between reported use and goals
(see 1st quote above). 82.7% reported a goal of
70%+ L2 use, whereas only about 38% reported
actually using the L2 that much during class
time.
The teachers also wrote what they considered
to be obstacles to increasing L2 use. The
greatest obstacle (57.3% of responses) was lack
Among the most common problems related to
teacher training were how to teach grammar
in the L2, trying to cover the curriculum, and
The other major category of obstacles (31.4%
of responses) pertained to student factors (e.g.,
negative attitudes, lack of motivation, and
frustration).
A Critical Look
This is self-reported data (actual L2 use may
differ and previous studies have found that
teachers overestimate L2 use) and Ceo-
DiFrancesco did not randomly sample teachers
(these were teachers at conferences).
It is not enough to provide input. It needs to
be communicative and comprehensible. Recall
Memo #14 in which a study of English second
language (ESL) teachers found that teachers
asked a lot more display questions (about
known info, e.g., “What color is your shirt?”)
than referential questions (about new
information, e.g., “What do you like to
wear?”). The reverse was the case of L2
conversations that occurred with learners
outside of the classroom. The purpose of
display questions is not communicative.
Rather, it is to teach and test language. Long
and Sato (1983) concluded that
“communicative use of the target language Stewart, 1994). In other words, translation
makes up only a minor part of typical happens whether we want it to or not.
classroom activities” (p. 280). Do you think
that is true of contemporary L2 classrooms? Teacher Take-aways

Contrary to what Ceo-DiFrancesco implies, Generally speaking, teachers understand that

first language (L1) use should be encouraged
when it facilitates communication and
relationship-building that happens in the L2.
Savignon (1997), one of the founders of
communicative language teaching, said of her
famous 1972 study that greater group rapport
was established by allowing occasional use of
the L1. In my beginner classes, I often drop in
jokes in the L1. Also, I sometimes give
instructions in the L1 for new activities, so
that more time is spent on the communicative
activity, which also makes expectations clear
and can lower student anxiety. Issues of
identity also play a role and we should
embrace the fact that students are bilinguals.
Of course, that doesn’t mean we translate all,
not even most, of the utterances made in the
L2. A small amount of L1 use, like quick
glosses of new or forgotten words, can make
acquisition more efficient (learning an
accurate meaning of a word is not delayed)
and can make class more enjoyable.
Certainly, L1 use is stigmatized. One reason
for this is a conflation of internal and external
factors. To say that L1 and L2 acquisition are
fundamentally similar (internally speaking)
Ceo-DiFrancesco, D. (2013). Instructor target language
does not mean that conditions for L2
acquisition should be identical (input in the L1 Dhonau (Eds.), Multitasks, multiskills,
and L2 is external to the learner). In fact,
researchers find that the L1 is automatically
activated during L2 use and some evidence
suggests that lower proficiency L2 learners
access meaning through their L1 (e.g., Kroll &
most of class time should be in the L2, but
need training and support to increase L2 use
in their classrooms. If that input is not
communicative (and comprehensible), then
classroom management will always be a
challenge. Ceo-DiFrancesco’s
recommendations for teacher strategies boil
down to use of visual supports (e.g., gestures
and charts). In my view, what teachers
primarily need are activities and content that
interest students and that build relationships
in the L2. This is difficult, and likely
impossible in some teaching contexts, if
teachers are teaching and testing textbook
grammar rules and long lists of vocabulary
sets (contrary to Ceo-DiFrancesco’s
recommendation to “teach grammar in the
target language”). Speaking of rule-based
instruction, how do you think teachers
reconcile the potentially conflicting belief in
the importance of input to acquisition and the
belief in the the need to learn and practice
textbook rules?
Primary Reference
use in today’s world language classrooms. In S.
multiconnections: Selected papers from the 2013
central states conference on the teaching of foreign
languages (pp. 1-20). Richmond, VA: Robert M. Terry.

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