Eltam journal no 2 8th eltam iatefl tesol international biannual conference managing teaching and learning

4. Own language use and code-switching in class 
Incorporating cross-lingual strategies and own-language use are inseparable from translation 
and interpreting activities in class. Research has identified some important pedagogic functions 
of own-language use by teachers, among which are grammar instruction, classroom 
management and administration,demonstrating empathy or showing solidarity with the 

---

14 
learners, providing translations forunknown words and compensating 
for learners’ apparent 
lack of understanding or responding to learners already speaking in their own language (Polio 
and Duff 1994). Among other reasons for using students' own language are its reassuring role 
in class to minimize the potentially alienating effects of monolingual teaching (Littlewood & 
Yu 2011).Another benefit of own language use is in neutralising anxieties which naturally arise 
in mixed-proficiency classes where some students avoid contributing to discussions not because 
they don't have much to say but because they don't have the language to express themselves. 
As Allwright and Bailey (1991:173) observed,"
banishing the learners’ first languagedeprives 
them oftheir normal means of communication and so of the ability to behave fully as normal 
people".
Translation and code switching activate the potential of cross-lingual transfer, which is one of 
the main prerequisites for the development of students' interlanguage. Cummins (2007) 
identifiesfive types of cross-lingual transfer depending on thesociolinguistic and educational 
context: 
transfer 
of 
phonological 
awareness; 
pragmaticaspects 
of 
language 
use;metacognitiveand metalinguistic strategies, such as vocabulary acquisition strategies; 
specific linguisticelements; conceptual elements. Thus Cummins emphasizes that learning is 
likely to be moreefficient if teachers draw learners’ attention to the similarities and differences 
between theirlanguages, coordinating and reinforcing learning strategies across languages. 
Although contrastive analysis has lost its popularity within the intralanguage paradigm it gains 
new recognition in the revival of form-focused instruction and translation as relevant classroom 
activities. Recent research shows that learners taught unfamiliar vocabulary items via 
translation did better in a subsequent retention test than those taught solely through meaning-
focusedinstruction and, what is more, produced better translations (Laufer & Girsai2008).
To sum up, there are important advantages in incorporating intralingual and crosslingual 
strategies and approaches in teaching students of various age and proficiency levels. Own 
language use has always been present in foreign language classrooms with a different degree 
of intensity, but it would be interesting to look into students' and teachers' attitudes to it in order 
to decide if there is a principle change in its status in contemorary teaching methodology. 
Although there has been some recent revival of interest in contrastive form focused crosslingual 
instruction and translation,and their effect on learners' achievement in class, the area still needs 
to be researched further in order to obtain more conclusive evidence.