A Comparative Study of Teaching English as a Foreign Language in Primary Schools versus Middle Schools.

Abstract

This comparative study aims to determine the optimal phase for introducing English as a second foreign anguage in Algerian schools. It attempts to investigate the adequacy of the recent ministry’s decision to introduce English language instruction in primary schools along with the French language. Two ideas are suggested: one says that introducing English in primary schools was a wise and beneficial decision, and the other proposing that primary school pupils are too young to manage the workload of studying eight subjects along with two foreign languages, making it more appropriate to postpone English instruction until middle school. A quantitative, descriptive research approach is used to examine and compare the teaching and learning processes of English in primary and middle school. In order to obtain the necessary data, an interview and a questionnaire are used as a research tool. The study involves 52 EFL (English as a Foreign Language) instructors with different levels of experience and 95 pupils, with equal representation from first-year and third-year middle school pupils. The aim is to explore and compare the pupils’ and teachers’ experiences, eferences, and suggestions. The major research findings indicate that primary school is the most appropriate phase for the English language introduction, thus supports the first idea suggested. The data analysis shows that a large percentage of the studied samples acknowledges the importance of English and expresses strong agreement that it should be taught starting from the third grade of primary school. It also reveals that the main challenges faced by the teachers are the lack of materials and the limited technology access. Eventually, some edagogical recommendations are offered to the Algerian policy makers and educators with the purpose of enhancing and improving the effectiveness of the English language education in Algeria.