Abstract
Children whose mother tongue and community language are different have different linguistic proficiency in both languages. It is very important for these children, who are defined as bilingual, to learn and use their mother tongue at a sufficient level, to learn the language of the community, and to develop positive personalities. This study, it is aimed to reveal the parents’ views on learning and using the mother tongue Turkish of bilingual Turkish children living in France, since the attitudes of the families are quite decisive in learning the mother tongue and community language. The qualitative research method was adopted in the study. Descriptive analysis technique was used in the analysis of the research data collected electronically with a structured interview form from the participants. As a result of the research, it was found that Turkish families living in France first communicate with their children in their mother tongue; however, it was determined that the language that children speak/understand best is French. Bilingual Turkish children living in France; It has been determined that the children prefer to speak French and use Turkish less frequently in daily life for reasons such as the social environment being French, the French being easier, not knowing Turkish enough, and the family’s distance from the Turkish language and culture. Participants stated that their participation in Turkish lessons in France has changed negatively during the COVID-19 pandemic; they reported that Turkish and Turkish Culture course hours were insufficient. It has been determined that bilingual Turkish children living in France have problems due to insufficient vocabulary, constructing Turkish sentences according to the French syntax, mixing French and Turkish letters, and forming mixed French-Turkish sentences. Regarding the solution of language problems experienced by children, they suggested increasing the hours of Turkish lessons, teaching Turkish books, and choosing teachers from Turks in France.