Abstract
Discussions of how to develop literacy with young learners of English as a foreign or second language have until very recently tended to reflect the deep-seated emphasis on monolingualism in the field of TESOL (May 2011). This has tended to result in the practice of immersing children in foreign language (FL) literacy after first having received instruction on literacy practices in their native language (NL). Little recognition has been given to drawing upon children’s existing linguistic and cultural repertoires as a resource that can support the development of their FL reading literacy (Garcia 2009; Hornberger and Link 2012). This situation has prevailed despite a vast amount of international scholarship, spanning over 30 years, which has showed that such approaches to teaching literacy are counter-productive and are invariably linked to delayed reading abilities in both the native language and the target language (Goldenberg 2008; Makalela 2012).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Alptekin, C. and Ercetin, G. (2011). Effects of working memory capacity and content familiarity on literal and inferential comprehension in L2 reading. TESOL Quarterly, 45 (2): 235–266.
Barnett, M.A. (1986). Syntactic and lexical/semantic skill in foreign language reading importance and interaction. Modern Language Journal, 70: 343–349.
Berhardt, E.B. and Kamil, M.L. (1995). Interpreting relationships between LI and L2 reading: Consolidating the linguistic threshold and the linguistic interdependence hypotheses. Applied Linguistics, 16: 15–34.
Bossers, B. (1991). On thresholds, ceilings and short circuits: The relations between L1 reading, L2 reading and L2 knowledge. In Hulstijn, J.H. and Matter, J.F. (eds) AILA Review, 8: 45–60.
Carrell, P.L. (1991). Second language reading ability or language proficiency? Applied Linguistics, 12: 159–179.
Chiappe, P. and Siegel, L.S. (1999). Phonological awareness and reading acquisition in English and Punjabi-speaking Canadian children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 91: 20–28.
Clark, M. (1979). The short circuit hypothesis of ESL reading — or when language competence interferes with reading performance. The Modern Language Journal, 64: 203–209.
Cottardo, A., Yan, B., Siegel, L.S. and Wade-Wooley, L. (2001). Factors related to English reading performance in children with Cantonese as first language: More evidence of cross-language transfer of phonological processing. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93: 530–542.
Creese, A. and Blackledge, A. (2010). Translanguaging in bilingual classroom: A pedagogy for learning and teaching? Modern Language Journal, 94: 103–115.
Cummins, J. (1979). Cognitive/academic language proficiency, linguistic interdependence, the optimum age question, and some other matters. Working Papers on Bilingualism, 19: 197–205.
Duvfva, M. and Voeten, M. (1999). Native language literacy and phonological memory as a prerequisite for learning English as a foreign language. Applied Psycholinguistics, 20: 329–348.
Fitzgerald, J. (1995). English as a second language learners’ cognitive reading process. A review of research in the United States. Review of Educational Research, 65: 145–190.
Garcia, O. (2009). Bilingual Education in the 21st Century: A Global Perspective. Malden, MA: Wiley/Blackwell.
Gholamarin, M. and Geva, E. (1999). Orthographic and cognitive factors in the current development of basic reading skills in English and Persian. Language Learning, 49: 183–217.
Goldenberg, C. (2008). Teaching English language learners: What the research does — and does not — say. American Educator, 33 (2): 8–44.
Hornberger, N.H. (2002). Multilingual policies and the continua of biliteracy: An ecological approach. Language Policy, 1: 27–51.
Hornberger, N. and Link, H. (2012). Translanguaging and transnational literacies in multilingual classrooms: A biliteracy lens. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 15: 261–278.
Hunt, A. and Beglar, D. (2005). A framework for developing EFL reading vocabulary. Reading in Foreign Language, 15 (2): 23–59.
JimĂ©nez, R.T., GarcĂa, G.E. and Pearson, P.D. (1996). The reading strategies of bilingual Latino/a students who are successful English readers: Opportunities and obstacles. Reading Research Journal, 27: 427–471.
Langer, J.A., Bartolome, L., Vasquez, O. and Lucas, T. (1990). Meaning construction school literacy tasks: A study of bilingual students. American Educational Research Journal, 27: 427–471.
Makalela, L. (2012). Developing L1 and L2 reading literacy among fifth graders: Implications for research-based teacher education. In Osman, R. and Venkat, H. (eds) Research-led Teacher Education. Cape Town: Pearson, pp. 127–144.
Martinez, R. and Murphy, V.A. (2011). Effect of frequency and idiomaticity on second language reading. TESOL Quarterly, 45 (2): 267–290.
May, S. (2011). The disciplinary constraints of second language acquisition and TESOL: Additive bilingualism and SLA, teaching and learning. Linguistics and Education, 22 (3): 233–247.
Nation, I.S.P. (2001). Learning Vocabulary in Another Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Oller, D.K. and Eilers, R.E. (eds) (2002). Language and Literacy in Bilingual Children. New York: Multilingual Matters.
Ovando, C.J. and Collier, V. (1998). Bilingual and ESL Classrooms: Teaching in Multicultural Contexts (2nd edn). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Paran, A. and Williams, E. (2007). Editorial: Reading and literacy in developing countries. Journal of Research in Reading, 30 (1): 1–6.
Pretorius, E.J. and Mampuru, D.M. (2007). Playing football without a ball: Language, reading and academic performance in a high-poverty school. Journal of Research in Reading, 30 (1): 38–58.
Service, E. and Kohonen, V. (1995). Is the relationship between phonological memory and foreign language learning accounted for by vocabulary acquisition? Applied Psycholinguistics, 16: 155–172.
Sparks, R. and Ganschow, L. (1991). Foreign language learning difficulties: Affective or native language aptitudes differences? Modern Language Journal, 75: 3–16.
Street, B.V. (1984). Literacy in Theory and Practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Williams, E. (2006). Bridges and Barriers: Language in African Education and Development. Manchester: St Jerome Publishing.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2014 Leketi Makalela
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Makalela, L. (2014). Rethinking the Role of the Native Language in Learning to Read in English as a Foreign Language: Insights from a Reading Intervention Study in a Rural Primary School in South Africa. In: Rich, S. (eds) International Perspectives on Teaching English to Young Learners. International Perspectives on English Language Teaching. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137023230_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137023230_8
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-137-02322-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-02323-0
eBook Packages: Palgrave Language & Linguistics CollectionEducation (R0)