Exploring mono/multilingual practices on the CELTA course: What trainers say

This article examines mono- and bi/multilingual practices on the University of Cambridge CELTA (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) course. This course is generally considered to be one of the most popular and widely-recognized initial teacher education programmes in English language teaching worldwide. The article describes a small research project which explored the views of 77 CELTA trainers in relation to the use of the first language (L1) in English language teaching and centred on how this issue is addressed on the teacher training courses they worked on. The study included trainers who use English either as an L1 or as a second language (L2) and both monolingual and bi/multilingual participants. Respondents worked in shared-L1 (where learners share a common language other than English) and in multilingual teaching and training contexts. The need to develop a theoretical framework in relation to L1 use in English language teaching and for a more explicit and considered focus on this issue on the CELTA course was identified, so that both trainers and trainee-teachers can make informed pedagogic decisions around L1 use in their teaching and professional practices. Findings also point to the need for wider discussion within the CELTA community on issues relating to the traditionally monolingual and one-size-fits-all orientation of the course and to the potential added-value of language teachers and educators who bring bilingual skills and perspectives to the classroom, particularly non-native English speakers.