Friend or foe?: English As The Medium of Instruction Policy Versus Code Switching Practices

Abstract

This study investigated the educational functions of code switching instances that occur during the classroom interactions of novice teachers who teach English at an English medium institution of higher education. The study also aimed to explore teachers’ and their students’ perceptions regarding CS in teachers’ teaching practices and the role of the functions of CS in the classrooms. Three novice English language teachers and 12 of their students volunteered to take part in the study. A number of six pre-intermediate level preparatory school classes of an English medium university were observed, video recorded and fieldnotes were taken. Additionally stimulated recall interviews were conducted with the participants. Results indicated that CS served for variety of educational functions being but not limited to create a feeling of connectedness, to put forward teachers’ inner voice and to express feelings emotions and abstract concepts. Finally, in contrast to what has been emphasized in English-only policy-related studies, the study revealed that both teacher and student participants perceived CS as a positive contributor to teaching and learning environment in the classrooms. 

Keywords

• Code switching, novice teachers, classroom interaction, educational policies

Dost ya da düşman?: İngiliz Dilinde Öğretim Politikasına Karşı Dil Değişimi Uygulamaları

Abstract

Bu çalışma mesleğin ilk yıllarında İngilizce dilinde öğretim yapan yüksek öğrenim kurumun çalışan İngilizce öğretmenleri tarafından sınıf etkileşimleri esnasında gerçekleştirilen dil değişimlerinin eğitimsel işlevlerini incelemiştir. Bu çalışma ayrıca öğretmenlerin ve öğrencilerin, öğretmenlerin öğretim uygulamaları esnasındaki dil değişimleri ve dildeğişiminin sınıflardaki işlevleri hakkındaki algılarını araştırmayı da amaçlamıştır.Araştırmaya katılımak üzere, mesleğinin ilk yıllarında ki üç öğretmen ve onların 12 öğrencisi gönüllü olmuştur. İngiliz dilince eğitim yapan bir üniversitenin hazırlık okulunun orta seviyedeki altı sınıfı gözlemlenmiş, videoya kayıt edilmiş ve alan notu alınmıştır. İlaveten, katılımcılar ile çağrışım tekniğine dayalı görüşme mülakatları yapılmıştır. Araştırma sonuçları, mesleğin ilk yılındaki öğretmenlerin sınıflarında dildeğişiminin bağlılık duygusu yaratmak, öğretmenlerin iç seslerini ortaya koymak, his ve duyguları ve soyut kavramları ifade etmek ile sınırlı olmayan çeşitli eğitimsel işlevlerinin olduğunu ortaya çıkarmıştır. Son olarak, bu araştırma İngilizce politikası odaklı araştırmalarda belirtilene tezat olarak, öğretmen katılımcılar ve onların öğrencilerinin dil değişiminin sınıf içerisindeki öğretim ve öğrenme alanına olumlu bir katkı olduğunu algıladıklarını ortaya koymuştur

Keywords

• Dil değişimi, mesleğin ilk yılındaki öğretmenler, sınıf iletişimi, eğitim politikaları

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