For their communicative needs, bilinguals access their
language repertoire, in which languages are not discrete and separate,
but form an integrated system. This has led to pedagogical practices
which consider bilingualism as a strategic asset rather than a source of
interference of the L1 upon the target language (TL). Competence does
not consist of the total mastery of each language. Rather, bilinguals need
to build proficiency by developing abilities in the different functions
served by different languages. This new understanding clashes with the
pedagogical tradition that theorizes competence in terms of monolingual
norms, advocating exclusive use of the TL in the Foreign Language (FL)
classroom. Given that it has been shown that FL teachers do frequently
use the L1, and that the L1 can support the learning of French as a FL,
this study investigates Maltese teachers’ attitudes and classroom
practices in relation to translanguaging in the French classroom. A
questionnaire for teachers allows a better understanding of the functions
for which the L1 is put to use, whether teachers received training in
language use and whether there are consensus viewpoints about when
L1 use may prove more beneficial.peer-reviewe
