Avoid using mother tongue while teaching target language
by Rajesh Bharvad
In the traditional classroom scenario a teacher often uses mother tongue to clarify some difficult points or to enable the students to understand some difficult vocabulary items. And it seems that it is an effective technique. But I propose an alternative idea which is creative and innovative and at the same time denies the use of mother tongue in the classroom.
The use of mother tongue in the classroom is suggestive of the teacher’s lethargic attitude which results into the escape from sincere duty by taking recourse to mother tongue while explaining difficult concepts. Similarly, it is merely an excuse when a teacher says that the use of mother tongue is necessary in the classroom.
With the remarkable entry of technology in the arena of teaching, things have changed dramatically. Previously a teacher had only verbalism and pictorial aids to choose from. But with the arrival of computer assisted language learning things have changed. A proactive teacher can have no excuse to use mother tongue as he can teach more effectively with the use of technological aids without taking any help of mother tongue.
There are some abstract and complicated words which are difficult to explain through verbal description. These words can be easily explained through audio video aids. For example, the word ‘emotion’ can be easily explained through some video clips which portray different emotional scenes.
Hence, my point is that the complete reduction of mother tongue in the classroom is possible with the help of technological aids. In doing so, one can generate a better exposure of the target language in the classroom itself.
Ultimately, it will create a better understanding of the target language.
1 comment