Teachers’ and Students’ Attitudes towards the Impact of Class Size on Teaching and Learning English as a Foreign Language

Abstract

This paper is devoted to investigate the attitudes of English language teachers and students towards the impact of class size on the process of teaching /learning English as a foreign language. The researchwas conducted at the department of English at the Faculty of Education, Elmergib University. The aim of this study is to knowhow class size affects the process of teaching and learning English as a foreign language and how teachers and students view the relationship between class size and the teaching/learning process. The tool used for data collection was a two forms questionnaire. One form for teachers and the other one for students. The sample of the research consisted of 30 students enrolled at the English language department and ten teachers from the same department. The findings of the study showed that large classes have a negative effect on the teaching/learning process of English as a foreign language. Additionally, both teachers and students have negative attitudes towards the relationship between class size and the process of teaching/learning English.