Effective communication enables us to improve our connections and decision-making. Once the desired and appropriate communicative process is done; understanding will take place resulting in a smooth flow of conversation. Thus, the “common” language is usually used to further understand the message being conveyed. On the other hand, speakers are either multilingual or multi-cultural; this results in engaging into two or more languages – including dialects. Speaker may code-switch in any conversation, but this act is surely intended for a concrete purpose.
With this common issue on code switching, it has been a never-ending debate on engaging oneself in code switching activity or it is a mortal sin in doing such. Working in an institution which is implementing an English Only Policy is a tough task but inspiring thing for us to continuously implement and support this endeavor. However, struggle and confusion still takes in, whether to code switch or not during a classroom discussion. Thus, this endeavor led us to conduct a study about this issue that really matters to both instructors and students.
The study has included selected students and selected instructors on major subjects where the occurrences and purpose of code switching activity is observed and noted during classroom interactions. Apart from the purpose of code switching, the occurrence of the activity is also highlighted in which the subject (taught by the selected instructors) of the students is taken as an important factor on engaging code-switching. After examining the data from survey questionnaire and interview, the data revealed that code switching is a tool which may be used as a useful strategy during classroom interactions if the aim (purpose) is for better understanding and/or for knowledge transfer.
Indeed, the findings of the study have stirred us that whether instructors and/or students inside the class room code switch or not, it must be taken for consideration first the purpose of the speaker in doing such. After all, learning is more important than acquiring a language – two different goals.
By: Edlynne F. Perona
