Teachers’ and Students’ Perception of Using Translation (L1) for Developing Reading Skill

The role of using translation in teaching and learning English as a second language has always been a much-debated issue. Practitioners who opt for bilingual approach suggest that the use of L1 in learning English as L2 benefits students to learn more efficiently since it’s directly associated with their ambiance and circumstances, the learning ensues quickly and effortlessly, wherever the supporters of monolingual approach propose that the single use of L2 in classroom assists and motivates students thinking competencies and increases their proficiency level. The use of L1 has also played a significant role in developing the reading skill for EFL/ESL learners. This quantitative study discusses the extent to which the faculty members of the University of Asia Pacific (UAP) use translation in teaching language courses for 1st-year students of 6 different departments at the tertiary level of education, mainly in clarifying new vocabulary, discussing grammatical rules and explaining reading and listening passages to develop reading skill in L2. The study also assesses students’ viewpoints of using translation in developing reading skills in English. The study concludes that most instructors and students consider using translation as it is very operative in developing the reading skill of English as L2 and suggests a guideline for teachers and learners as well.


Introduction
A debate is going on for a long time, whether in the EFL/ESL classroom, teachers should use learning activities based on the translation or not. Harmer, as well as Ellis, note that it can be considered a suitable pedagogical tool, especially in an EFL/ESL environment, and this tool needs to be explored and used (qtd. in Calis and Dikilitas 5080). In the use of translation as a tool for teaching English as L2, some teachers and learners who support the bilingual method have a positive approach as they consider it accelerates learning English. Current researches by Atkinson; Cook; Garcia; Kumaravadivelu and Macaro highlighted that use of L1 has a role in the second or foreign language classroom (qtd. in Ghorbani 1658).
Nevertheless, practitioners supporting the monolingual approach argue that it primarily hamper the learning process. According to Newson, translation as a teaching-learning tool has four drawbacks as it stimulates thinking in one language and then transferring to another, both teacher and learner are deprived of working within a single one, offers a false belief of the idea that there is an impeccable one-to-one correspondence between two and does not assist the achievement of generally accepted aims, for example, an emphasis on spoken language (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 65). This study attempts to discuss the extent to which the faculty members of the Department of English, University of Asia Pacific (UAP) use translation on teaching language courses specifically in clarifying vocabulary, discussing grammatical rules, and explaining reading and listening passages at the tertiary level of education to develop the reading skill of the students. This study also attempts to evaluate the standpoints of students in the use of translation in developing the reading skill of English as L2, along with a practical suggestion.

Definition of Translation
The translation can be considered as a perceptual activity in which the meaning and comprehension of given linguistic discourse are extracted from one language to another. It is the act of transferring the linguistic entities from one language to their equivalents another language (Osman). The idea of translation is stated by Foster as an act through which the knowledge of a text is transferred from one language to the target language (qtd. in Osman).

Purpose of the Study
The purpose of the study is to shed light on: • What is the effectiveness of using translation in language learning and teaching to develop a reading skill? • The extent to which the teachers use translation in teaching the English language courses to develop the reading skill of the students? • What are the students' viewpoints of using translation in developing the reading skill of English?

Statement of the Problem
Some practitioners opt for the bilingual approach suggests that the use of L1 in learning English as L2 benefits students to learn more efficiently. Since it's directly associated with their ambiances and circumstances, the learning occurs swiftly. Nevertheless, supporters of the monolingual approach advocate that single use of L2 in the classroom supports learning stimulates students thinking competencies, and increase their proficiency level. Moreover, the use of L1 has also played a substantial role in developing the reading skill for EFL/ESL learners. Therefore, this study attempts to identify the opinion of the instructors of UAP regarding the effectiveness of using translation in language teaching and the extent to which they use translation in teaching the courses for 1st-year students of six different departments of UAP, mainly clarifying new vocabulary, discussing grammatical rules and explain reading and listening passages to develop the reading skill of L2. The study also assesses students' viewpoints of translation in developing the reading skill of English as a second language.

Significance of the Study
Among the instructors from the Department of English, some are supporting the use of L1 in EFL/ ESL classroom while some are not although it is considered as a helpful tool if used appropriately. If teachers are aware of the use of L1 in class and a practical guideline is observed, it facilitates the teaching-learning process. In many previous studies, the viewpoints of teachers in this issue of the use of translation in the ESL classrooms were discussed along with the role of L1 in developing the reading skill of L2. Still, this study deals with the perspectives of both teachers and students as well.

Question of the Study
• What are the attitudes of the teachers towards the use of translation in improving reading skills? • What are the areas where the teachers may use translation in language teaching? • What are the students' viewpoints of using translation in developing the reading skill of English?

Hypothesis
In the teaching and learning of English as a second/foreign language, translation to L1 can play a facilitative role to develop the reading skill.

Literature Review Role of the Learners' L1 in the ESL Classroom
The role of the learners' mother tongue in the ESL classroom has become an issue of ongoing debate. Bouangeune; Ellis; Auerbach state that the bilingual approach proposes that it offers one to one communication among the learners, and it might withdraw the learners from receiving valuable L2 input (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 65). But the supporters of the monolingual approach emphasizes that in the L2 classroom, the use of target language only increases the learning of the target language.
According to some researchers, several functions like enlisting and maintaining interest in the task as well as developing strategies to make a difficult task more manageable are performed by the use of mother tongue (Storch and Wigglesworth 760 as well as Wells state the significance of using the learners' mother tongue both by the teachers and learners in situations increase comprehension as well as learning process of L2 (qtd. in Tajgozari 67).
However, some researchers have identified 11 cognitive strategies to learn English and identified that among all the approaches used by beginner and intermediate ESL learners, translation is constituted of 11.3% (O'Malley et al. 34). Kern, while drawing upon the role of mental translation in reading texts in the second language (L2), highlighted the use of L1 as an objectionable supporting pillar considered by teachers and learners (qtd. in Al-Musawi 2). On the other hand, the ability to translate from one language to another is a major constituent of bilingual communicative competence (qtd. in Fernández-Guerra 159).

Importance of Using L1 in L2 Classroom
Butzkamm and Caldwell consider the use of the mother tongue of the learners as the greatest academic resource, which can increase learners' confidence, and focus on meaning (qtd. in Helland 81). Accordingly, Horwitz explored the students' views regarding translation and found that 70% of German-learning students and 75% of Spanishlearning students fundamentally observed learning a foreign language as a matter of learning to translate from English to other languages (qtd. in Al-Musawi 2). Meanwhile, Kavaliauskiene and Kaminskene suggest that the translation activity does not cause any interference by the native language, and it does not hinder learning a foreign language at all (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 65).
Besides Ali also points out that translation stimulates learners of a foreign language to view L2 through their native language so L2 learners always have a natural tendency to use the translation. They either consciously or unconsciously compare both languages involved in the teaching-learning process (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 65) It also increases students' awareness of comparisons and variances between the two speeches, as well as encourages their acquisition of challenging structures and components in the Foreign Language. To highlight the importance, Pan and Pan suggest that translation assists a student to escape the intervention of the mother tongue on the primary step and then, later on, enhance their L2 learning (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 68).
To develop and improve communicative competence, Ross considers translation as a very effective tool, which can also be considered as a fifth skill together with the four other skills (qtd. in Dagilienė 125). At the beginning stage of learning, second language learners are very dependent on their L1. As Widdowson states in this regard, "teachers try to keep the two languages separate, the learners in their minds keep the two in contact" (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 65). Jadallah and Hasan suggest that in EFL/ESl classroom, L1 is used in a purposive way, at suitable times, and in proper places (qtd. in Bhooth et al. 77). Kharma and Hajjaj summarize that the use of the first language should not be over-emphasized and that it should decrease with the increase of the learners' understanding with the second language (qtd. in Tajgozari 65).
Brown states the debate over whether students' mother tongue should be used in English classrooms or not has been an argumentative question for years. Still, the conclusion of researchers toward this issue has not been exclusively convincing (qtd. in Miles 9). Auerbach suggested taking a brief look at the history of using L1 in the L2 classrooms as it reveals periodic changes in how it was observed (qtd. in Tajgozari 64). The rise of an English-only class for political and applied reasons equally brought about the rejection of the student's L1. Philipson identified that teachers often punished or shamed the students who were caught using L1 for doing something wrong (qtd. in Miles 7).
On the other hand, Pennycook states that educators considered the idea of using L1 in L2 classrooms as non-standard from the conviction that native speakers are the best models, and ideal teachers were the outcome of the emphasis on monolingual teaching of English. The idea of using L1 in the EFL/ESL classroom was tangled to political motives, as well as the economics of the global EFL arena. Moreover, Educationalists considered English speakers as the 'ideal teacher' who can control all the employment opportunities (qtd. in Tajgozari 64).
Duff and Polio suggest that the amount of L2 use in the L2 classroom is vital for the improvement of L2. Principally, when there is little chance for learners to be exposed to L2 outside as it is the classroom, which is the limited time and place for the learners where they can be exposed to L2 (qtd. in Cook). Accordingly, many other scholars (e.g., Auerbach; Ellis) argue that students can learn better L2 if they get the maximum exposure within a limited time so that the students can have an improved opportunity to communicate with one another in L2, and to start to think in English which is going to develop their English skills (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 66).
However, Cook introduces "the separation model," which highlights the fact that each language has its system. This model advocates the idea of using L2 exclusively in teaching and learning an L2 with no trace of L1; thus, it can help learners to form the new L2 system (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 66). Moreover, other researcher claims that learners need to practice L2 as their primary language, so in the classroom setting, the instructors should use as much L2 as possible (Turnbull 533).

Significance of Using Only the L2 in ESL Classroom
Regarding the importance of using only the L2 in ESL/EFL class, Careers summarizes the main opinions against the use of L1 in language learning curriculum as 1) it kindles activities related to only reading and writing skills; 2) it motivates the students to think about the L2 through the prism of the mother tongue of the learners; 3) it does not have any application in the real-world of communication; 4) it creates more mistakes than creating correct responses; 5) it is more suitable for literary and grammar oriented students compared to the average learners (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 66).
Nevertheless, some teachers and scholars favor the use of translation in L2 classrooms; others discard that and consider it as not useful. Harbord stresses that the use of L1 may lead to the advancement of an unnecessary dependency on the students' mother tongue (qtd. in Pan and Pan 92). Although being capable of expressing the same idea in L2, students may choose using their mother tongue. It may decrease the students' chance to exercise L2, and they may not comprehend the importance of using L2 for enhancing their language skills in classroom activities. Students may lose confidence in their capacity to communicate in L2 and might receive the idea to understand anything communicated by the teacher is to translate it to their mother tongue. Harbord proposes that teachers chat in L1 before class begins and tell jokes in L1 to decrease student anxiety (qtd. in Pan and Pan 94).

Importance of Using L1 in Improving Reading Skill
While developing reading skills, in the first language (L1) reading, readers use the only language they know, which is the mother tongue. Still, in second language reading, leaners need to deal with at least two languages. Koda (30) notes the differences between learning an L1, and L2, and opines that as there are many differences between learning an L1, and L2, the L2 reader's experiences more challenges compared to the L1 readers.
Carrell and Grabe note that L2 readers employ diverse reading process compared to L1 readers for the following reasons: • L2 reader group has a limited capacity in terms of their linguistic knowledge; • they do not have an idea about common cultural and social knowledge of English context; • they do not have any hold on prior knowledge which is considered as the basis of understanding materials in English; • they study English for innumerable reasons, for example, to accommodate in English speaking countries or to pursue a degree in any English speaking country • they are the user of both L1 and L2 (2002, qtd. in Iwai) Highlighting the importance of using L1 in improving reading skills for EFL/ESL learners, Iwai notes that L2 readers are most likely to take the help of translation from English into their mother tongue as they are incapable of comprehending the meaning of a text without understanding the meaning of each word. It happens especially in the introductory stage of learning an L2. Moreover, Garcia (2003), and Ovando (2005) have recommended the ESL/EFL teachers to use the both L, and L2 languages for the understanding of reading comprehension better (qtd. in Iwai). Additionally, Carrell and Grabe stress the fact that there are significant differences in the learning process of L1 and L2. On the other hand, L2 reading does not require the same process as L1 reading. Furthermore, according to Upton & Lee-Thompson (2001), L2 reading cannot be considered as a mono-lingual event so to understand an L2 reading text, L2 learners use their resources from L1, and it also assists them in developing their reading skill of L2 (qtd. in Ş and Gursoy 38)

Previous Relevant Studies
Many previous studies have explored the use of L1 as a tool for teaching English as L2 in the classroom. Soulignavong and Souvannasy (188) researched in Laos on the use of L1 in English Language classrooms using 169 students of a low proficiency level. The result indicated that using learners' mother tongue (L1) to teach English as a foreign language enhanced their retention of new vocabulary items both in isolation and in context. It was possible because of using L1 to provide clear definitions and explanations, dictation quiz, and translation exercises in the classroom.
In Bangladesh, Islam and Ahsan (215) examined the preference of mother tongue in the EFL classes from the perspectives of teachers and students at the secondary level of education. The researchers conducted the study over 80 students and 16 teachers from 4 secondary schools, and the result states that limited and attentive use of the learner's L1 both by teachers and learners would facilitate the learning process. It would also significantly help the learner linguistically, extra-linguistically, and psychologically.
Whereas Mirza et al. (71) conducted a study on a private university in Dhaka, Bangladesh, to find out whether teachers use Bangla (L1) in teaching English at the tertiary level in Bangladesh and if it is used by the teachers, in which situation and to what extent. The result of the study shows that in some specific situation of English language teaching classes teachers of tertiary level use Bangla (L1 of the students'), and these specific situations are, simplifying difficult grammatical rules, presenting new vocabulary items, making new words familiar to the students while solving reading comprehensions, etc.
Besides, Suchi and Islam (62) observed the role of L1 in teaching and learning of a foreign language in two universities of Bangladesh, and Saudi Arabia, and the researchers conducted the study on 30 teachers and 1000 students. The result of the study suggests that careful and reasonable use of L1 assists, aids and facilitates the overall teaching and learning process, and it also provides the teacher with a pedagogical tool for making the best use of the learning outcomes.
A lot of research has been carried out on the perception of the teachers' and learners' regarding the use of L1 in the EFL/ESL classroom. Sali conducted a study in Turkish EFL teachers use of L1 in their classroom and identified three major functions: academic (to communicate the content of the lesson), managerial (to regulate classroom interactions and providing instructions), and social/ cultural (to shift the focus of the lesson to create bonding with the learners).
Next, Mahmoudi, and Amirkhiz (139) conducted a study on the use of L1 in L2 classes in two randomly selected pre-university English classes in Iran. The result of the study indicated that excessive use of L1 demotivates the leaners, and samples of the study expressed dissatisfaction with untimely use and domination of L1 in L2 classes.
However, Kim Anh researched the attitudes of Vietnamese University teachers towards the use of L1 in L2 teaching. The result of the study showed that in some situations, sensible use of L1 is necessary, and all the participants of the study favored the use of L1 in L2 classrooms as a teaching method. It can facilitate the overall teaching-learning process. This view of using L1 in the L2 classroom is per Atkinson's (241) view of using L1 as a classroom resource.
Some researchers have researched the role of using translation (L1) in developing the reading skill of EFL/ESL learners. One researcher investigated the first language (L1) orthographic influence on cognitive processing involved in the second language (L2) reading. The result of the study highlighted that L2 readers from different L1 orthographic backgrounds employ their L1 strategies in reading English as an L2 (Koda, "The Use of L1 Reading Strategies in L2 Reading" 394 ).
Secondly, Hayashi researched EFL students regarding reading strategies and extensive reading, and the result of the study showed that reading extensively both in L1 and L2 is a furthermost significant factor for improving reading skills, and learners use their L1 in developing L2 reading skill.
Moreover, Cheng and Good researched a total of 135 undergraduate business and engineering students at 4 English proficiency levels studying at a technical university in Taiwan to explore the significance of providing L1 glosses in facilitating reading comprehension and vocabulary acquisition of L2. The result of the study identified that L1 glosses helped the students to learn new words and review learned words.
Additionally, Lee and Macaro examined the effects of teachers' language use L1 or L2 in the classroom on vocabulary acquisition and on two groups of students: elementary school children and adults at university. The result of the study identified that both age groups were highly benefitted on vocabulary acquisition, where teachers made links with the L1, and the younger learners were more beneficial compared to the adult learners.
Besides, Taki researched 52 Canadian and 38 Iranian students to explore if readers from different L1 backgrounds use similar metacognitive online reading strategies and whether reading online in L2 is influenced by L1 reading strategies or not. The result of the study revealed reading online in L2 is influenced by L1 reading strategies.
Furthermore, Tsai et al. examined 222 undergraduate EFL students divided into skilled and less-skilled groups to find out the relationship between L1(Mandarin Chinese) and L2 (English) strategy use in L2 reading comprehension. The result of the study revealed almost no difference is identified in reading L1 material, but reading L2 material, skilled readers used more strategies within various categories from their L1 to increase their comprehension compared to their less-skilled counterparts.

The Study Participants
For this study, seven instructors of UAP who were teaching language courses for 1st-year students of 6 different departments were selected. Fifty random students from 1st year of different departments of UAP where the language courses are offered volunteered to participate in the study. All of the samples used in this study are native speakers of Bangla language.

Methodology
The researcher has divided this qualitative study into two parts: theoretical and practical. The theoretical part of the study is the survey of the literature, and the practical part of the study is covered by using two questionnaires. For data collection, the first questionnaire was given to the instructors and the second one given to the students. The questionnaire for the instructors is divided into four parts, and the questionnaire of the students only had one part. The data collected from the instructors are presented by using tables 1, 2, 3, and 4, whereas the data collected from the students are presented by using table 5.

Discussion
From Table 1, it is observed that all of the faculty members' teaching language courses in 1st-year at six different departments of UAP, their maximum degree is an MA in English, and their experience in teaching is in between 1-5 years. It is found from Table 2 that the entire sample agreed regarding the regularity of using translation in language teaching. From the second part of Table 2, it is identified that the samples of the study use translation in language teaching with various degrees: 14.285% always use the translation, 71.428% sometimes use a translation, and 14.285% rarely use translation. It means that most of the instructors sometimes opt for the use of L1 in language teaching, and they can recognize it by themselves. As Cook notes, being able to translate is a key component of bilingual communicative competence (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 65). So recurrently, the instructors use the learners' L1 in the classroom as it is a component of bilingual competence.
It is found in Table 3 that the samples of the study are supporters of using translation in developing the reading skill of learners. 100% of the instructors contemplate that using translation is cooperative in the process of language teaching and learning, and they found it to be a practical tool. Again, Cook stated that in some situations, the use of learners' L1 by both teachers and learners increases L2 comprehension and education (qtd. in Samardali and Ismael 66). Thus, according to the instructors of the study, use of the learners' mother tongue appears to be a practical instrument in developing reading skills.
However, from Table 4, it is figured that the most popular areas in which instructors use translation in developing the reading skill of learners' are as following: For providing instructions in reading skills, 71.428% of the instructors sometimes use a translation, and 28.571% of the instructors rarely use translation. For clarifying new words and phrases in reading comprehension, 14.285% of the instructors always use a translation, whereas 85.714% of the instructors sometimes use translation. A similar aspect can be found in the results of the research conducted by Islam and Ahsan, as mentioned before, who identified the inclination towards the mother tongue in the EFL classes both by the teachers and the students of the study.
For explaining grammatical issues in reading comprehension, 85.714% of the instructors use sometimes use a translation, and 14.285% of the instructors rarely use translation. The sample responses that for giving feedback to students about their performance in reading skill 71.428% of the instructors sometimes use the translation, 14.285% of the instructors rarely use a translation, and 14.285% of the instructors never use translation. As mentioned earlier, a comparable feature can be identified in the study by Suchi and Islam, which suggests careful and reasonable use of L1 of the students accelerates the pedagogical process.
The findings also show that for checking the students' reading and listening comprehension, 14.285% of the instructors always use the translation, 57.142% of the instructors rarely use a translation, and 28.571% of the instructors never use translation in language teaching and learning. Similar to this phenomenon, we can look at research conducted by Mirza et al. (76), where the researchers identified some specific situations, for example, explaining difficult grammatical rules, presenting new vocabulary, giving instructions, etc. where teachers use translation to L1 of the learners'. This result is also similar to the study carried out by Kim Anh, as mentioned earlier.
From Table 5, it is found that74% of the students opt for the teacher to use the mother tongue in the class, whereas 26% of them do not support the statement. But 94% of the students support the use of the mother tongue by the students in a class; only 6% of the students do not keep up the case.
However, 66% of the sample responses that instructors should use translation while giving instruction, and 34% of them do not support the idea. 64% of the sample responses positively towards the indication that teachers should use translation in clarifying new words and phrases in a reading text, and 36% of the sample have opposed that case. As mentioned earlier, a similar feature was identified in the study Cheng and Good (2009), where providing L1 glosses facilitated comprehension and vocabulary acquisition of L2 of the learners. Furthermore, 76% of the students respond positively to explain grammatical issues of a reading text by teachers, whereas 24% of the students respond negatively. 82% of the sample responses in support of the use of translation by the teachers while providing feedback on students' performance in reading skill, and 18% of the sample responses negatively at that point.
Next, 56% of the sample responses positively that if the teacher uses the only L2 in class, they think their overall competence in L2 is increasing, but 44% of the sample responses negatively to that statement. To conclude, 96% of the sample responses positively to the statement that if the teacher uses L1 in explaining issues related to reading, it helps in improving their inclusive reading skill, whereas 4% of the sample responds negatively to the statement.

Practical Guideline
The translation is a beneficial and helpful tool in language classes. As the discussion parts suggest, it helps both instructors and students in many aspects of developing the reading skill of EFL/ESL learners. It is by Krashan's finding that appropriately designed bilingual programs provide more comprehensible input in English (qtd. in Mirza et al. 75). On the other hand, overuse of the L1 might hinder considerable input and thus obstructs learning along with creating a dependency of using L1. So, to make the use of translation as a tool for teaching and learning reading skills for EFL/ESL learners'', a more helpful, practical, and uniformed guideline needs to be observed.
Teachers should take conscious and extreme care while using translation in class. Teachers should use the mother tongue of the learners as scaffolding, which should be gradually removed over time.
Teachers should consider the difficulty level of the activities before using translation in class as an operative tool for developing reading skills.
Teachers should take into account the difficulty level of the materials used for listening and reading comprehension. While selecting a material/text, the degree of the difficulty should be considered by the teachers. Although, unfortunately, there is not any comprehensive view on determining the difficulty level of material; however, teachers can predict the relative difficulty of a given text/material by comparing it with other texts/materials. Teachers must observe the language level of the piece if they directly collect texts/exercises/materials/ activities from textbooks/internet to be used in the class for developing the reading skill of the learners. Before using it in the classroom, teachers might simplify and modify the texts/exercises/materials/ activities accordingly, so the chances of using translation could be curtailed.

Conclusion
Researchers / educators / teachers / students consider translation as a very operative tool in teaching a second language, as Harmer stated, '… where the teacher and students share the same L1, it would be foolish to deny its existence and potential value.' However, instructors must be aware while using the mother language in developing the reading skill of the EFL/ESL learners and must be careful of not overusing it. Hence, learners can get a better opportunity to use the target language and become proficient in the target language. But the instructors need to keep in mind that they should make the use of translation as the last option and should encourage students to use the target language in the classroom as it will make the students more proficient in the target language.

Suggestions
• Teachers might use translation in L2 classes if and only if both the teachers and students share the same L1. • Teachers should use a translation for simplifying materials that appear to be difficult for the students to understand in a reading text/activity. • Teachers should not overuse translation in L2 classes. If they use it, the purpose needs to be specific, and the use of the translation needs to be conscious and cautious. • Teachers should encourage students to use the target language in the class as the goal of the students is to be proficient in the target language. • Teachers and students might use translation to L1 to facilitate the whole teaching and learning process of developing reading skills.