Importance Of Mother Tongue

Title

The Role of Mother Tongue in Second Language Learning

Preamble

The process of learning and teaching is continuously affected by many different factors of different nature among which are learner characteristics, teacher characteristics, teaching materials, methods of teaching. One of the early recognized important factor is the mother tongue positive and negative interference in the learning process of the target language. In the heyday of structural linguistics and pattern practice language teaching methodology which derive insight and justification from linguistic description nothing was more important for them than comparing and contrasting the rules and structures of the mother tongue with that of the target language. If one

Habits conducts, values, virtues, customs and beliefs are all shaped through the mother tongue. Needless to say, weakness in the mother tongue means a paralysis of all thought and power of expression. Role of Mother tongue in child’s education, Early Childhood Care, and Education UNESCO (2007) points out the overlooked advantages of multilingual education in the early years. When children are offered opportunities to learn in their mother tongue, they are more likely to enroll and succeed in school and their parents are more likely to communicate with teachers and participate in their children's learning. Mother tongue-based education, especially benefits disadvantaged groups, including children from rural communities and girls who tend to have less exposure to an official language. They tend to stay in school longer, achieve better and repeat grades less often when they are taught in their mother tongue. Most children speak a home language that differs from the language of instruction in education programs. Research also confirms that children learn best in their mother tongue as a prelude to and complement of bilingual and multilingual education. Whether children successfully retain their mother tongue while acquiring additional languages depends on several interacting factors. Mother tongue's influence on second language influence in L2 learning Studies show that six to eight years of education in a language are necessary to develop the level of literacy and verbal proficiency required for academic achievement in secondary school. To retain their mother tongue, children whose first language is not the medium of instruction must have: Continued interaction with their family and community in their first language on increasingly complex topics that go beyond household matters. Ongoing formal instruction in their first language to develop reading and writing