An Exploratory Study of Own-language Use in Tunisian EnglishLanguage Classrooms: Teachers’ Perspectives

This study explores the practices and attitudes of Tunisian English language teachers regarding the use of Arabic (own-language) in English language classes.Data were collected by means of an online self-report questionnaire, created through Google Form and posted to a Facebook group controlled by non-profit professional organization for Tunisian teachers of English.The online self-report questionnaire was completed by 40 in-service Tunisian English language teachers.Results revealed that: a) most of the Tunisian participant teachers used Arabic in English language lessons with varying degrees of frequency and for a variety of functions, b) the majority of the teachers held unfavorable attitudes towards using Arabic in English language classes, c) the great majority of the surveyed teachers encouraged their students to use English in EL classes (e.g. by responding in English to students who talked to them in Arabic), and d) some of the surveyed teachers' attitudes towards the use of Arabic in the English language classrooms had a significant impact on the frequency of their Arabic-language use in such contexts.