The Importance of Linguistics to EFL Teachers By Hedyan Putra (NIM. 0601 – 26 26 – 81418 81418 – 024) 024) (2015) (2015) Student of Graduate Program of Sriwijaya University ABSTRACT This paper paper was was intended intended to explore explore the importanc importancee of linguistics linguistics to EFL teachers. To achieve the objective, this paper presented a brief theoretical overview for answering the inquiry question; “What do EFL Teachers need to know about the role of linguistics in teaching English as a foreign language?.” language?. ” Based Based on the purpo purpose se and inquiry inquiry questi question on of of this this paper, paper, there there are are two two key topics topics will will be discus discusse sed; d; (1) teaching teaching English English as a foreign foreign language language (TEFL), (TEFL), and and (2) the contributio contribution n of of lingu linguistics istics in language language teaching. teaching. Hopefully Hopefully,, this this paper paper can appropria appropriately tely encourage encourage EFL teachers teachers to naviga navigate te the the endless work in an effort to integrate knowledge of linguistics into the classr classroom oomss for for guid guiding ing studen students ts to have have meanin meaningfu gfull Englis English h learning. Key Words: Linguistics, Words: Linguistics, EFL Teachers. Teachers. A. Int Introduction
Language plays important roles in daily life for human beings. Dalilan (2010:1) said that “in our daily communication with other people, we use a language. Even, some people probably use more than one language in their communication” communication”. People use use language language as communic communication ation tool tool to share ideas, ideas, expressions, and information each other. By using language people can express their ideas and feelings, and share it with others orally or written communication which enables people all over the world to interact and connect with one to another. Linguistic Linguisticss is often called called the scien scientific tific study study of language language.. According According to Lado (1964:18), “Linguistics is the science that describes and classifies languages”. languages”. Language teachers have begun to feel that linguistics provided them with the help help for improving improving both content content and methodology methodology in their teaching teaching process process.. The real fact is that linguistics linguistics is a science, science, it seeks seeks to study how language works. works. Though, linguistics study study is surely not concerned with with providing evidence about the most effective procedures for language teaching. teaching. As it is stated
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that “linguistics ... , while not directly concerned with skill development and learning theories, have formulated some assumptions and principles related to languauge acquisition which warrant serious consideration” (Finocchiaro and Bonomo, 1973: 12). Linguistics is a required college course for many students in learning the target languages, especially in learning English as foreign language. Explaining to them precisely what linguists do when they do linguistics is not easy, and showing them is not much easier. The best way for students to learn what linguistics is all about is by doing it themselves, by working with real language data and discovering for themselves regularities of the kind that linguists have come to expect. Thus, linguistics is a rather esoteric discipline in which students to find it hard to come to grips with. As a matter of fact, linguistics is regarded very useful in learning a language, especially English. In fact, it may curious to characterize language as “linguistics”, or that the term linguistics is being used in a rather special way. In a word, EFL teachers should have knowledge of linguistics so that they can make themselves more aware of linguistic facts of the language of their students in order to understand the particular problems they will have in learning the target language (English). In order to understand language more fully and to reflect understanding in teaching, the teachers of English might familiarize himself or herself with linguistics, which English language has undergone in its teaching and learning process. In fact, that linguistics serves as one of the pillars which supports the concept teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL). B. Contents 1.
Teaching English as Foreign Language (TEFL)
Teaching is defined as an activity of transferring knowledge and skill from the teacher to the students. It means that teaching is a process that is done by the teacher to make the students understand the lesson. It is line with what Pica (1992:4) as cited in Saleh (1997:19) says, “teaching is an inter active process between the teacher and students and among students themselves”. In addition, Brown (2000:8) in his Principles of language Learning and Teaching argues that
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teaching is guiding and facilitating learning, enabling the learner to learn, setting the condition for learning. Based on this statement, teaching is to guide and facilitate students in learning process to accomplish the goal in an efficient way. Moreover, Arends (2009:16) said that the ultimate of teaching is assist students to become independent and self-regulated learners. In line with this, Teaching has been recognized as a profession because it is an occupation that requires advanced education and special training. The Instruction of English as a foreign language may occur in any country whether English speaking or not. Learners of EFL study English with different purposes; passing the examination, career developmen, pursuing their education, etc. In most countries, English as a Foreign Language (EFL) is part of the educational curriculum, particularly in schools. In some countries like Indonesia, Vietnam and China, English is regarded as a foreign language. Therefore, it is common to consider the context of English learning in these places as EFL (English as a Foreign Language) context. People do not use it as lingua franca or the means of communication in several formal situations such as educational activity, governmental activity and law. Moreover, as a foreign language teaching English is meant to increase ease of contact with foreign language speakers in or outside the country and to provide a means of accessing to the world information. Teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) is sometimes called teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) too, it involves teaching English to those whose first language is not English, either in the UK or overseas in different types of organizations such as language schools, further education institutions or universities. In line with this, Crystal (2003:5) stated that “English can be made a priority in a country’s foreign-language teaching. It becomes the language which children or adults are most likely to be taught in school”. Thereby, teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) usually describes English being taught to non-native English students in their home countries. In terms of teaching English as a Foreign Language, a teacher plays a crucial role in building the students’ awareness in learning English as a foreign
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language. According to Harmer (2007:200), the role of the teachers depends on large extent on the function he or she performs in different activities. In addition, Luis (2004:2) commented that the students need to be taught and mastered a foreign language as an essential tool for establishing meaningful communication and working in today’s global context. It was caused by the effect of economic and political demands in almost all trades and professions around the world that require the students to have a good command of a foreign language, especially English. Moreover, it is the main concern that teachers hold the great responsibility in teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL). The teachers should have a clear perception of the aims, broad objectives, and the essential nature of the content of each curriculum area, and of course the knowledge of linguistics which will enable them to provide relevant and effective teaching and learning experiences for the students in the use of the target language. 2.
The Contributions of Linguistics in Language Teaching
An overr-all view of language based on linguistics, as well as in the teaching and learning languages. This view is independent of any particular science, since language existed with its structure units and patterns. Thus, language teachers shall look at linguistics as of the description of language. As the scientific study of language, and many topic are studied under linguistics. It investigates the search for the unconsious knowledge that human have about language and how it is that children acqiure it, an understanding how language influences the way in which we interact with one to another. By learning linguistics, it can give us as EFL teachers insight into aspects of human knowledge and behaviour. As an EFL teacher, he or she will learn about many aspects of human language, including phonetics/phonology (for the study of human speech sounds), morphology (for the patterns and parts of words), syntax (for the arrangement and the form of phrases and sentences), and semantics (for the study of language meaning). Besides, It can involve (1) how language varies from situation to situation, group to group, and place to place, for the study of relationship between language and society (sociolinguistics), (2) how people use
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language in context (pragmatics), (3) how people acquire or learn language (language acquisition), and (4) how people process language, for the study of relationship between language and the mind (psycholinguistics). The use of linguistics theory to describe language is not itself counted as an application of linguistics. If a language, or a text, is described with the sole aim of finding out more about language, or that particular, this is a use of linguistics theory, but this is not an application of linguistics. It is supported by what Halliday, et. al. (1964:138) said that linguistics starts when a description has been made, or an existing description used, for further purpose which lies outside the linguistics sciences. The application of the teaching of descriptions of a language in a pedagogical context called applied linguistics. This means that the teachers use linguistics for something, not just ponder it. He or she tries to make a language accessible to students by teaching them its lingustic structures, so that the learners can generate the correct sounds, forms and sentences of a language as accurately as possible, using, of course, information and research on the language already extant. In 1970s, a group of scholars including Oller (1970) and Widdowson (1978), who were linguists in their own right but at the same time closely in touch with teaching practice, gave language teaching and language pedagogy the linguistic direction they regarded as necessary. Since they were in a good position to create a link between linguistic theory and language teaching practice, they placed emphasis on real language use. As an example. Oller (1970:507) claimed that pragmatics has implications for language teaching; it defines the goal of teaching a language as prompting the students not merely to manipulate meaningless sound sequences, but to send and receive messages in the language context. In our field of English language teaching (ELT), we obligated to master EFL (English as a Goreign Language). Therefore, for it requires the teacher of English to be fully quallified in EFL. Thus, we believe that linguistics cannot be separated from language teaching, for a linguistics is essential for language
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awarness in the language teacher. But once again, we should highlight the fact that having a good linguistics basis helps the teacher, whether native or nonnative, to better understand the workings of the language and how to explain the language to the students. In every language teaching and language planning situation, language teachers set up certain objectives in terms of what they decided in which the skills (active/passive) are to be given the highest priority. The relevance of linguistics information and training for the English as foreign language (EFL) teachers should be self-evident from the fact that linguistics provides the description of the sounds, words, and sentences that the teachers must teach and help the students in understanding the linguistics problems. Summing up, linguistic knowledge, that is knowledge about languages in general and about a specific language, and consequently the ability to talk about it, has always been fundamental to language teaching. Linguistics is engaged developing techniques to provide a scheme of description which goes beneath the surface form of language and enables us (teachers) to gain an insight into what a person must know in order to speak a language. C. Conclusion
A background in linguistics is very important to English as foreign language (EFL) teachers. It can help the teachers of English to know how to use language well in English language teaching (ELT) and it can help them to be better and good teacher as well. The teachers’ awaereness in linguistics should not only understand how language works, but also how the student struggles with language so that he or she can be sensitive to errors and other features of the learners’ foreign language development. Thus, it is important for linguistics training to also include knowledge about how languages are learned. Of course, English as foreign language (EFL) teachers should not only possess a sophisticated knowledge of language but also the ability to make this knowledge accessible and comprehensible to the learner.
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