Functions of Kurdish teachers code switching in English classes with reference to sunrise 10 and 11 ُ

Abstract EN

Code switching (henceforth CS) can be briefly defined as the phenomenon of alternation from one language to another in the same discourse.

CS is a widely observed phenomenon especially seen in multilingual and multicultural communities.

Besides, teacher CS or the alternate use of two or more languages in the same utterance or conversation is a quite common occurrence in ESL classrooms.

Teaching a second language, whether in a monolingual or bilingual setting, necessarily raises questions of methodology, and among these quickly comes to surface language distribution issues and the role of first language in second-language acquisition.

This contribution has focused on codeswitches and the exploration of their possible benefits for the learning process.

Throughout the paper, the functions of CS in foreign language classrooms are presented with reference to its uses in bilingual communities.

Following the functions of students’ and teachers’ code switching, weak and strong sides are discussed in order to clarify the phenomenon with different perspectives.

This paper will focus on the classroom context and, primarily, on the teacher’s ways of and reasons for using this alternation of different linguistic codes, its applicability and usefulness in the process of teaching foreign languages as well.

I try to shed light on some opinions involved in the interpretation of teacher/ student CS and systematically analyze code switching as a dynamic process inside classroom with a hope to raise ESL teachers' awareness of their actual use of CS in classroom.