It seems to me that maintaining the balance between L1 and L2 in the classroom is getting harder. Besides, there is a great debate going on among ELT professional. Sometimes, I do question myself whether I leave enough space for my learners' L1 in the classroom. On the one hand, being an English teacher, my role is to teach English and provide with all opportunities that all my learners can communicate effectively. On the other hand, being a person who speaks the same language as a mother tongue, I should also provide them with all grounds for the exploitation of their L1.If I taught English e.g. in the Middle East where Arabic is spoken , I would be in a more advantageous position since I would be forced only to  speak English .

Yesterday I completed a questionnaire about the use of the learner's own language. http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/top-stories/worldwide-survey-use-learners-own-language

Furthermore, I watched a TED video http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/patricia_ryan_ideas_in_all_languages_not_just_english.html on the globalisation of English and loss of local languages.

Now, I have started to realise that it depends on what you pursue in teaching English. However, it is also important to make allowance for the use of L1 in the classroom ensuring the balance