OPTIMIZING EFL INSTRUCTION FOR BILINGUAL LEARNERS IN NORTH MACEDONIA

Abstract

More and more children nowadays are exposed to content in English from an early age. They acquire English alongside their native Macedonian and, as a result, speak the foreign language fluently before they even begin attending school. Thus, EFL teachers in North Macedonia regularly encounter students with exceptional English proficiency who use the language as a native tongue rather than a foreign language. The number of such children is high and ever-growing. Understanding this, this study addresses the perceived lack of a suitable curriculum for these advanced learners. We aim to bridge the gap between their language abilities and standard English instruction by developing a program for fourth-grade bilingual students. To understand students’ needs, benefits, and challenges comprehensively, we incorporated teacher feedback via a survey into the process. Our findings indicated that many bilingual students seem to be under-challenged in traditional English classes. Despite administrative hurdles and potential motivational issues, our findings suggest that tailored instruction would yield many advantages for bilingual students in North Macedonia.