Investigating the perceptions of students on the use of L1 in departmental courses in a Turkish EMI university

Abstract

This paper reports on an investigation of Turkish English-medium university students’ perceptions of the use of L1 in departmental courses in a Turkish foundation university, where the medium of instruction is English. Results revealed that 1) students think English-medium instruction should be adopted since it is fundamental to their career 2) both students and lecturers feel the need to resort to L1 during the lessons despite the language policy of English-only 3) although students believe that the medium should be English, they feel that using Turkish in EMI context can contribute to the learning of the subject matter. These findings suggest insightful implications for English-medium universities in Turkey and all around the world.