Teachers’ use and perception of code-switching in Arabic as a foreign language classroom at United Kingdom universities

Abstract

Code switching is defined as” going from one language to another in mid speech when both speakers know the same two languages” (Cook 1991, p. 63). The use of Code-switching in foreign language classroom is not only controversial in literature (Jingxia 2010; Cahyani et al. 2016, Adnan et al. 2014; Littlewood and Yu 2011), but also among many of my Arabic language university teaching colleagues. Recent claims by some educators and researchers that code-switching practice could serve learning in foreign language classroom (Moore 2002; Cahyani et al. 2016; Cook 2001) are supported by findings of many studies.

The aim of this proposal is to explore how teachers of Arabic as a foreign language perceive and use code-switching in their classroom at United Kingdom universities. The reason for interest in this topic will be explained and justified. The potential outcome of this study will demonstrate the teachers’ approaches and understanding of code-switching practice in Arabic language classroom. The findings will form a baseline for future research on this topic, provide assurance on the teaching quality in this setting, and may indicate a need for improving the teachers’ performance by planning teachers training workshops.

Drawing on the available literature around this topic, and, the learning and teaching theories which I studied throughout this programme, I will outline the study methodology and discuss the study’s methods with details on how the aim of this study will be achieved. The rationale of the choice of mixed method of qualitative and quantitative approaches will be explained. This includes the use of closed ended questions questionnaire as a quantitative approach, and the interview as a qualitative approach. The data analysis process, the proposed outcomes and limitations of this study will be discussed, and lastly a reflection account on the research process.