Gumperz ( 1982 , p . 59 ) defines codeswitching in these words : “ The juxtaposition within the same speech exchange of passages of speech belonging to two different grammatical systems or subsystems ”. Valdes-Fallis ( 1981 ) states that code-switching may be defined as the alternating use of two languages at the word , phrase , clause , or sentence level .
Dr . Malik Ajmal Gulzar
Operational definitions of codeswitching : Gumperz ( 1982 , p . 59 ) defines codeswitching in these words : “ The juxtaposition within the same speech exchange of passages of speech belonging to two different grammatical systems or subsystems ”. Valdes-Fallis ( 1981 ) states that code-switching may be defined as the alternating use of two languages at the word , phrase , clause , or sentence level . These two definitions are considered as operational definitions for the present study .
Code-switching in EFL classrooms Code switching may be considered in relation to language acquisition . Many of research works have been postulated as to how an individual attains language and these are discussed in the following lines . Chomsky ( 1975 & 1979 ) suggests that language acquisition takes place as the brain matures and exposure to the appropriate language is obtained . Chomsky also suggests that people are aided by innate universal language structures and as children learn , they realize how to express the underlying universal structure per their culture , as described by Bootzin , Bower , Zajonc and Hall ( 1986 ). Behaviorists do not accept this biological theory and suggest that language acquisition is a verbal behaviour which is an example of operant conditioning , as advocated by Skinner ( 1957 ). Behaviorists argue that individuals are reinforced by their own speech which matches the reinforcement of providers of affection during childhood . A point to note here is that the theories rely on exposure to appropriate samples of the language . And the same is true while
Martin-Jones ( 1995 ) explains that two studies by Milk ( 1984 ) and Guthrie ( 1984 ) shifted the focus to the accomplishment of interactive acts in EFL classroom discourse . She further claims that “ more attention was now given to the ways in which teachers and learners get things done with two languages in classrooms and to the way in which language values are transmitted through communicative choices ” ( p . 93 ).
acquiring second language , teachers switch code as a strategy to compensate the deficiency on the part of students . For the same reason , communication in English can be a barrier for many second language learners because English serves both as a content subject and as the means of instruction in classrooms ( Brice , 2001 , p . 8 ). Martin-Jones ( 2003 , p . 6 ) explains that “ Bilingual teachers and learners routinely use code-switching as an additional meaning making resource within the ongoing flow of classroom talk . Codeswitching is used to demarcate different kinds of discourse : to signal the transition between preparing for a lesson and the start of a lesson ; to distinguish classroom management talk from talk related to lesson content ; to specify a particular addressee ; to change footing or to make an aside or to distinguish the reading aloud of a text from talk about the text ”. Martin-Jones ( 1995 ) explains that two studies by Milk ( 1984 ) and Guthrie ( 1984 ) shifted the focus to the accomplishment of interactive acts in EFL classroom discourse . She further claims that “ more attention was now given to the ways in which teachers and learners get things done with two languages in classrooms and to the way in which language values are transmitted
22 through communicative choices ” ( p . 93 ). Milk ’ s work used an adapted version of Sinclair and Coulthard ( 1975 cited in MartinJones , 1995 ) to record a twelfth-grade civics class activity , where a Mexican American teacher used a bilingual pattern to teach in that class . With the help of the recorded data , he focused on the patterns of the code-switching . Per Martin-Jones ( 1995 ), Milk ’ s study claimed that English was the dominant language and this dominance put majority of Spanish students at disadvantage . Cook ( 1989 ) provides another method of using code-switching as a second language teaching tool through reciprocal language teaching . This method requires students to switch languages at predetermined points putting students in pairs who want to learn each other ' s languages . Thus , the students alternate between the two languages and exchange the roles of student and teacher . A similar system may also be used whereby the teacher uses code-switching by starting the les-