Examining the Practice and Beliefs of Swedish and English Use in EFL Teaching

Abstract: There has long been a debate regarding how much Swedish and English can and should be used in the EFL classroom. Some favor using only English, whereas others prefer using a mixture of languages i.e. translanguaging (Garcia, 2012). This study explores the language used by EFL teachers in Sweden. Through observations, we looked into the extent and functions of English and Swedish used by four EFL teachers in Southern Sweden. By conducting interviews, we were also able to ascertain the teachers’ beliefs about teachers’ language use and what factors they perceive to have affected those beliefs. The results were compared to previous research related to the two approaches and they were also related to the steering documents for Swedish secondary schools. The results show that teachers used predominantly English in their teaching and that this usage also corresponded to their beliefs. Some discrepancies were found between their beliefs in using Swedish and their actual practice. Furthermore, the participants' beliefs were found to be mainly affected by their teacher education, research, and their personal language learning experience.