| dc.description.abstract | Language use in the L2 English classroom has been the subject of ongoing debate and previous research has found considerable variation in L1 use in L2 English classrooms. The present study is a part of the LISE (Linking Instruction and Student Experiences) project and aims to investigate language use, and functions of language use, comparing it to previous research within the project in order to add the perspective of time. This study aims to further investigate the aforementioned variation in language use between classrooms by comparing the findings of the present study to previous research in order to identify possible patterns for variation. The overarching research question for this study is therefore: What characterizes use of L1 in five L2 English lower secondary classrooms in Norway over time? Note that the findings and discussions of the present study focus mostly on the language choices made by the teacher, although students’ language are also part of the analysis. In order to investigate my research question, I have analyzed video data from five lower secondary schools in Norway by: (i) time stamping according to languages used, and (ii) revisiting instances of L1 to investigate their functions. At each school, four to five consecutive lessons were filmed each school year. The five schools also participated in Brevik and Rindal’s (2020) study, allowing for comparison between data collected in 2015-17 and 2019-21. The findings revealed that language use during English lessons has stayed largely the same across five years (2015-20), suggesting that the variation in L1 use in L2 classrooms are to a certain extent patterned. Although the findings to a large extent confirms the findings of Brevik and Rindal (2020), the present study reveals details in the language practices of the English teachers. As in Brevik and Rindal (2020), English remains the dominant language used, and considerable variation between classrooms was identified. The comparison between classrooms revealed variation to be tied to individual teacher choices and not school cultures. In line with prior research, this study found limited evidence of references to languages other than L2 English and L1 Norwegian. The findings also showed that the distribution of functions for L1 use remained largely the same over time, however, there was less evidence of metalinguistic explanation and more empathy/solidarity, suggesting that choices regarding L1 use are made strategically to respond to different student groups. A closer look at one school in which the same teacher was filmed across eight years, teaching three different classes, revealed differences in language use between grades 9 and 10. Although the amount of L1 used was the same in both grades, the teacher made use of more functions for the L1 in grade 9 than in grade 10, suggesting a strategic development of language use across time for the same student group. These findings indicate that variation in L1 use in L2 classrooms is due to teachers responding to student needs, as hypothesized by Brevik and Rindal (2020). The patterned variation in L1 use revealed in this study highlight the importance of teacher awareness of their own language practices and of research related to judicial use of L1 in L2 classrooms. The findings show that the teachers in the present study largely accomplish such strategic use of the L1, but not so much with other languages that might be represented in students’ linguistic repertoires. | eng |