How much target language should I use in class?

Like almost everything, the answer lies between the extremes.

Monsieur Prof is an English teacher working in France. He has over 800 thousand followers each on Instagram and TikTok and is building a YouTube following as well. He was the TikTok 2023 viewer’s choice award winner. My colleague Gloria Amerson got me hooked.

See what all the buzz is about!

It’s obvious why he’s so popular; he is informative, engaging and funny. 

Even so, he does a lot of things we’re not supposed to do. He speaks kids’ L1. A lot. He intermixes English and French. He uses choral questioning, direct instruction and teaches skills in isolation.  He gives explicit grammar lessons and drills kids on the right answers. 

Also, he’s hilarious and effective. He clearly has a great rapport with his students. I’m guessing they love coming to class and want to continue learning English after studying with him.

Watching Monsieur Prof raises an important question.  What is the “right” way to teach language?

Answer: There isn’t one right way.  

In my last two blog posts I shared how I’ve tried - and ultimately failed - to teach my students using 90% target language. While I strongly agree with the goal of fostering language proficiency, I’ve learned there is more than one way to do this. And while I’m not criticizing anyone else’s beliefs or approach, I’ve come to an important and very freeing realization.

90% doesn’t work for me. 

Here’s what I do instead.

Level 1 (Total Beginners: the first 150 hours of study)

I begin French class with a focus on relationships and solid classroom procedures. This will look different in different school settings; in my challenging setting, the classroom routines are extremely important and we practice them a lot.

I introduce some French relative to these procedures, and I also have moments in class where everything is French. I’ll warn kids, “For the next 10 minutes you’re going to hear only French from me. See what you can figure out, and then we’ll talk about it!”  This frames the French learning as a challenge with a concrete start and end point. The kids lean into it and end up being proud of themselves - not frustrated. I use some TPR on the first days to teach numbers (read how here) and common classroom commands. We do a little bit each day as we practice and reinforce classroom procedures.

Throughout level 1, I gradually increase the amount of French I speak. For some activities this is 100%. Kids must respond in French for some activities where appropriate scaffolding and instruction has occurred. At other times, they may speak English. For me, level 1 is about laying a foundation of vocabulary along with establishing good language learning habits and learning to enjoy the process. I love giving kids that first exposure to language - the first step is so critical!

This approach works for me, and the kids succeed at it. One student told me, “At the beginning when you only spoke French I thought you were crazy. But I actually figured it out and now I like it.”  Another day, multiple students complained when I wrote the classroom agenda in English instead of in French as usual. All of this student feedback was given in English, but showed students’ commitment to making progress in French. I never had similar levels of buy-in with a French-only approach.

“ I care about what works for my students more than I care about any instructional philosophy.”

Moreover, shortly after I wrote this post I had two different classroom observers comment independently that a LOT of my level 1 classes are in French. It’s funny; when I freed myself of the rigidity of 90% target language, the French use became a lot more comfortable and less strained for me. 

At the end of level 1, my students are novice speakers who are used to a communicative approach. They know a little bit of grammar, they understand that French is not just translated English, they are used to working with authentic target language texts, and they know that they don’t have to understand everything to be successful.

Level 2  (150-300 hours of study)

In 2nd year, we continue building using similar methodology from level 1. Classroom routines are conducted entirely in the target language, as are most activities. Explaining instructions and analytical tasks are conducted in English. Student production depends on the task.

We use the target language a lot. We learn about the language, and we also use the language. We do a variety of activities ranging from vocabulary practice (on the low end of Bloom’s taxonomy) to using the language to complete concrete tasks (middle of Bloom’s) to evaluating the use and application of language (top of the Bloom’s pyramid).

By the end of level 2, my students have a foundation of high frequency words in their productive vocabulary and are moving into intermediate low proficiency. 

Level 3 (300-450 hours of study)

In level 3, I speak almost exclusively in the target language. Students use the target language increasingly, up to about 75% by the end of level 3. At this point they are operating at an intermediate-low to intermediate-mid proficiency level.

Level 4  (450-600 hours of study)

In level 4, I require students to use the target language exclusively from bell to bell. There is one exception: students complete a twice monthly reflection on their progress and set goals for the following two weeks. This self-analysis piece is done in English and is key in students taking charge of their own language progress (Here’s how it works)

Making the leap to 100% target language is a challenge no matter when it happens. I find that at this level, students have both the motivation and the language foundation to successfully express their ideas in the language.

Here’s what my students have to say:

 “I think the coolest thing is how I am able to just speak what I am thinking now,”

 “Speaking is getting easier to the point where I can add in more of my personality in the conversation”. 

““I really notice how much more comfortable (my partner) got as we spoke more. At first it was nerve wracking, but she got way more fluent after the first round.”

So, clearly, there is more than one way to achieve target language proficiency. Come to think of it, I learned with a purely grammar-driven, textbook-based approach, and here I am: an advanced proficiency speaker with a lifelong investment in the language and culture.

One final caveat. I am not advocating for a ‘drill and kill’ approach or a heavy focus on memorization. If there is a scale with that at one extreme and 100% Comprehensible Input at the other, I’m probably 80% toward the CI end. 

“When I freed myself of the rigidity of 90% target language, the French use became a lot more comfortable and less strained for me. ”

So here’s my approach in summary: In this class, we speak French. We speak it a lot. We learn French using authentic sources as our model. We work toward completing tasks, and we study vocabulary and grammar in service of the ability to complete those tasks. We use a variety of techniques and activities, some of which any particular student will probably like and some which they may not. Students work in French every single day. We laugh together, struggle together, and get to know each other very well. We use less and less English as time goes on, but I am not doctrinaire about the use of English because I care about what works for my students more than I care about any instructional philosophy.

This gradual, intentional approach works for me. Because at the end of the day, I don’t teach middle school and I don’t teach French. I teach students. And sometimes I teach them in English.