Investigating teachers‟ preferences for eclecticism in the teaching of English in Bangladesh

Abstract

This study investigates elementary level English language teachers‟ preferences for practicing eclecticism in Bangladesh. Both qualitative and quantitative data were used for this study. There is a growing debate about the appropriate English language teaching methodology in Bangladesh. The Grammar- Translation method was the preferred method of teaching English for a long time. Then Communicative Language Teaching method was adopted as the preferred method of teaching English. However, it seems none of the methods is very successful in case of teaching English in Bangladesh. Thus choosing the best method, which is also known as eclectic method, is getting popular now a days. Thus, this study aims to explore to what extent eclectic method can be a suitable language teaching method in Bangladeshi context. The findings suggest that to implement different teaching methods in an EFL classroom, a teacher should have the knowledge of those teaching methods as well as their functions in attaining students‟ attention. This research also finds out that eclectic method can facilitate and maximize learning opportunities in Bangladeshi EFL classrooms. One of the main aims of this research was to observe and estimate the effectiveness of the eclectic method of teaching English in Bangladeshi EFL classrooms. This research also reveals that eclectic method is beneficial for the learners‟ for learning and also convenient for the teachers‟ as this method can easily grab students‟ attention. This research also indicated that mixed strategy is progressively effective, helpful, feasible and fruitful in teaching and learning when contrasted with the traditional learning approach at the elementary level.