Role-play in teaching English as second language in early childhood education

Nur Anis Hidayah Mohd Nihazram

Abstract

The major concern of this study is to expose role-play activities in developing children"s English language skills. This paper will explore the level of knowledge of role-play activities among teachers before detailed descriptions about the role-play activities to be further discussed in developing and enhancing the children English language skills as well as the challenges faced by teachers when conducting the activities. This research uses a qualitative method. The researcher has conducted a semi-structured interview with three preschool teachers from Bachok district schools. A set of 16 questions based on the research question is used as the research instrument. The data from the interview is analysed using thematic analysis where themes were picked from the interview with the respondents. First, this study is aimed to help teachers to plan and conduct role-play activities in preschools and kindergarten. The findings show that the teachers are well-versed with the role-play method and also have been practising the method for some time now. The findings also indicate that the roleplay method indeed has an influence in helping the children learn English as Second Language. This research also helps teachers to understand better and reflect about their role-play sessions that they have done before and figure out the problems and ways to overcome them and improvise for better outcomes. Hence, this study helps reader to understand that role-play activities are related to children"s development especially in social, emotional, physical and cognitive of the children and the best technique to guide the children learn English as their Second Language.

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