User:Lumpialover041/Code-switching

Code-switching in the classroom[edit]
Code switching in the classroom can be challenging because it's not just about translating words from one language to another but also about adapting to a different set of cultural norms. Students begin to assimilate into this American Culture in order to fit in with other students. The way students talk, learn, and think begins to change because they start learning what is the "correct" way of speaking. Things like plurals, nouns, or verbs are things that schools implement onto students but is it important to understand how difficult it can be for students to learn an entire language where there are different rules.

Henry Lawert emphasizes how "an effective knowledge of English is not as universal as many of us would like to believe." Schools are prepared to teach children but what happens when the child isn't prepared because English isn't their primary language or they are not yet confident in considering themselves fluent. From speaking Spanish at home to coming back to school, having to speak English can be challenging and confusing. When switching languages, it can become difficult for a child to understand what is going on in the classroom and might be at a different pace than other students. Teachers start to label children as "inadequate" or "behind". As a result, children start feeling resentment towards their own culture and begin to think their native language is inferior or invalided. With an average classroom class being 30:1, it can be difficult to receive help from a teacher, and even more difficult when the student is a non-English speaker. Students start to feel discouraged and it can become harmful for them because these are children that are still developing and finding their sense of self.

Some teachers consider code-switching useful in the classroom because it helps students who do not speak standard English as their first language feel more welcomed in the class and also learn the material more easily. It also helps with learning a new language since it allows students to guess what words in another language mean out of the context that is given in their native language. The teachers simply have to consider that if they code-switch or otherwise use more than one language in their classroom, they have to ensure that the students truly understand whatever the teacher talks about. To do so, teachers often lessen the amount of material that they cover, teaching their students only the basics and allowing them to learn the rest by themselves.

Many consider code-switching harmful to the classroom, especially for particular populations of students whose first language may not be the language of the country they reside. Code-switching is considered by some as a racist pedagogy that upholds the structure of domination of the English language. This is because code-switching encourages a monolingual classroom which prevents students from thinking or speaking in ways that come easiest to them.

Instead many prefer the alternative of code-meshing. This pedagogy celebrates and encourages students to use their first language as it will diversify and overall improve their school work since they are not limited to the singular language encouraged by society. It will expose students to more cultures in an unfiltered way.

There is a lot of pressure that students have to conform to one language over the other. For some people it tends to lead to a feeling of disconnection to their own culture, which leads to an idea that because students choose to learn English (or any language other than their native tongue), or because it is required of their education, there is this sort of betrayal to their culture. It can be completely isolating when English not one's first language because in America, language is everything. There is this sense of feeling lost and feeling the need to hide their cultural identity. Many educators have argued that in a classroom, all cultures should be celebrated and students should feel like they are fully accepted and valued for who they are.

Code-switching is very common in classrooms of multiple languages for many different purposes.

Filipino and English[edit]
Main article: Taglish

Code-switching between English and Tagalog (Filipino), as well as English and other native languages, are very widespread in the Philippines. Known generally as Taglish, it has become the de facto lingua franca among the urbanized and/or educated middle class. It is largely considered the "normal acceptable conversation style of speaking and writing" in informal settings. It is so widespread that a non-native speaker can be identified easily because they predominantly use pure Tagalog, whereas a native speaker would switch freely with English.

Roger Thompson’s research it suggests that the interactions between Tagalog and English depend on what is taking place. In the classroom teachers prefer students to use English. When in media the Philippines tends to prefer using Tagalog over English but in smaller social interactions people use their local dialect over both.

According to the linguist Maria Lourdes S. Bautista, there are two contrasting types of code-switching in the Philippines: deficiency-driven and proficiency-driven. Deficiency-driven code-switching is when a person is not competent in one language and thus has to switch back to the language they are more familiar with. This is common among younger children, as in the example below given by Bautista: