English-Béchar dialectal Arabic code switching in EFL classrooms

Abstract EN

Code-switching is the use of more than one language or variety within the same speech or conversation.

it is frequent in communities with two or more languages or dialects.

the issue of its uses in the classroom by the teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) is a subject of debate for many years.

this research investigates the reasons behind the use of the local dialect of Bécharian the EFL classrooms, it seeks to discover in which contexts does an EFL teacher code switch to the local dialect? the sample of population of this study is the first year English students and teachers at Tahri Mohammed university of Bechar, both questionnaires and classroom observation were trusted as data collection tools.

the results show that the majority of teachers use the local dialect in their lectures, mostly to establish a friendly atmosphere or to express anger, the use of the local dialect for explaining lessons was rarely observed, students, in general have a positive attitude towards this kind of code switching.