A Phenomenological Inquiry of Code-Switching Among College Students

Abstract

Code-switching is the use of two languages in discourse to convey the intended message. The study investigated the phenomenon of code-switching during oral participation, specifically the experiences and contexts of the purposively selected students of ABC College in Cagayan de Oro City. The Phenomenology Design was employed in this study to explore the participants' actual experiences to identify the essence of human experiences. This study included six students from different programs of ABC College who experienced code-switching. The analysis was done using Creswell's (2007) simplified version of Moustakas's modification of the Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen Method of Analysis of Phenomenological Data. The finding of the study showed that the participants switched between codes during oral participation to support their communication skills and to feel more comfortable and confident in participating. The findings demonstrated that the phenomenon of code-switching as used by the students tended to come out when they were asked, wanted to express themselves more, encountered difficulty using the English language, were afraid to commit grammar errors, had difficulty recalling, lacked vocabulary, and when teachers allowed them to switch codes. This implies that the participants' experiences and contexts of code-switching during oral participation are reasons for code-switching. Thus, this study recommended facilitating the use of code-switching during oral participation in moderation for students to practice proficiency in their second language, English.