Murtiningsih et al.

Code-switching in EFL classrooms

Journal on English as a Foreign Language

2022, Vol. 12, No. 2, 318-338
Journal homepage: http://e-journal.iain-palangkaraya.ac.id/index.php/jefl

Code-switching in EFL classrooms: factors influencing teachers to

use code-switching and its types used in the classrooms
Sri Rejeki Murtiningsih1*, Munawaroh1, Sibakhul Milad Malik Hidayatulloh2
1English Language Education Department, Language Education Faculty, Universitas

Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

2
Master Program, English Language Education Department, Arts and Languages
Faculty, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
*Email: jackie.murt@umy.ac.id (corresponding author)

Article history: Received 26 March 2022 Accepted 9 July 2022

Available online 20 July 2022 Published regularly September 2022

Abstract

Among myriad prior studies on code-switching, little has been done on the
factors influencing teachers to use code-switching and their classroom practices.
The current research was aimed at investigating the motives of EFL teachers
applying code-switching and the sorts of code-switching used by the EFL
teachers in the classroom. This study used a qualitative case study as a research
design by conducting in-depth interviews and observations as a data collection
process. The obtained data were analyzed through coding, i.e., finding the
similarities of the data and theming. The research participants were two EFL
teachers at a private university in Yogyakarta Indonesia who have code-
switching experience when teaching. The research found five reasons teachers
used code-switching in EFL teaching and learning: discussing specific topics,
making teaching and learning more practical, managing the classroom, building
social relationship, and encouraging students' active participation. In addition,
the observation found three code-switching types used by EFL teachers in their
classrooms. The study implies that while code-switching offers some benefits,
teachers should use code-switching at a minimum rate to keep students with
maximum exposure to the English language.

Keywords: code-switching; code-switching types; code-switching use; EFL

classroom; Indonesian EFL teacher

To cite this article: Murtiningsih, S. R., Munawaroh, & Hidayatulloh, S. M. M.

(2022). Code-switching in EFL classrooms: factors influencing teachers to use

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Murtiningsih et al. Code-switching in EFL classrooms

code-switching and its types used in the classrooms. Journal on English as a

Foreign Language, 12(2), 318-338. https://doi.org/10.23971/jefl.v12i2.3941

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.23971/jefl.v12i2.3941

Copyright © 2022 THE AUTHOR(S). This article is distributed under a Creative

Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.

Introduction

In Indonesia and many Asian countries where English is not a mean of

everyday communication, teaching the English language can be challenging.
Sulistiyo (2016) states that the challenges may not be encountered by teachers in
countries where English is used in daily life. It is not uncommon to find
teachers in non-English speaking countries using their first language to teach
English. For instance, in Indonesia, many English teachers use their first
language to teach English. Yulia (2013) learns that most English teachers
involve Bahasa Indonesia (the Indonesian Language) when explaining the
materials. The teachers claimed that using Bahasa Indonesia can help students
understand the materials. The particular event is usually called code-switching
(CS).
Furthermore, several underpinning reasons take account in CS within EFL
classroom, e.g. cultures and multilingual environment. Puspawati (2018)
argued that it is quite common for people who live in a multilingual
environment to use the local languages simultaneously when conversing.
Mujiono et al. (2013) also assert that some Asian countries, such as Indonesia
and Thailand, regularly use multiple languages, including foreign languages, to
make an utterance. Therefore, it is no wonder that CS in EFL classrooms has
been taking place on many levels to deliver the materials since the influence of
culture and different language competencies among students are unavoidable.
CS can be understood as a natural phenomenon in which the interlocutors
switch their talk into two languages or more. Wulandari (2016) asserts that CS
may occur when someone tries to catch up with two languages in the same
topic discussion. According to Bagui (2014), CS is a type of conversation that
happens as a natural outcome of language relation, has absorbed philologists'
attention, and has been studied from various viewpoints. CS usually takes place
in the same conversational directions or even within the same phrases in the
conversation. In terms of using several languages, Leoanak and Amalo (2018)
consider CS as an alternative way to express thoughts. In addition, Mabule

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(2015) states that CS is a functional activity that may be used to demonstrate

someone multilingual competence. Therefore, CS is a natural occurrence in
which people use several languages to express their ideas. In practice, CS
involves two languages where one of them is the mother tongue, then moving
to another simultaneously in a direct conversation.
Furthermore, three types of CS are identified by Al Heeti and Al Abdely
(2016). They are tag-switching, inter-sentential switching, and intra-sentential
switching. First, tag-switching includes short utterances, fillers, and idiomatic
expressions. Yletyinen (2004) stated that tag-switching refers to placing a tag in
one language on an utterance that is spoken in a different language. According
to Hijazi (2013), tag-switching means placing a tag (e.g., oh my God, you know,
right) of a language into a sentence spoken in another language. These tags may
freely be put anywhere within a sentence. Furthermore, Habibah (2015)
mentions an example of tag-switching in a Japanese-English accent, "I am a
good friend, neh?” For that example, “neh” means “isn’t that right?" In this case,
the speaker uses teasing sounds to emphasize the statement.
Moreover, in inter-sentential, the speakers will add the L1 expression as the
phrase in the L2 sentence or vice versa. Inter-sentential switching occurs at
sentential borders where a phrase or sentence is in a language, and the next
clause or sentence is in the other (Al Heeti & Al Abdely, 2016). Unlike tag-
switching, inter-sentential switching concerns changing the language between
utterances made by a speaker (Ríos & Campos, 2013). Hijazi (2013) also
highlights that inter-sentential switching is implemented within limited
sentences. Furthermore, Andika (2018) provides an example as “Apa bedanya ini
dan tadi?” The example is a CS between English and Bahasa Indonesia, where the
L1 has occurred in the following sentence. The Indonesian sentence means,
"What is the difference between this one and the previous?"
The last, intra-sentential switching usually occurs due to the influence of
fluency in bilinguals. In addition, intra-sentential switching pertains to
switching languages within a phrase (Candra & Qodriani, 2019). Jingxia (2010)
states that all but mostly fluent bilinguals may avoid intra-sentential switching.
The sentence is usually in one language. Thus, Pradita (2015) asserts that
switching languages inside a sentence is referred to as intra-sentential
switching. In short, this particular switching is a code where a speaker
combines two languages in a sentence or statement.
Furthermore, intra-sentential switching uses more than one language
without involving boundaries. For example, the speaker says some words in
English, adds a word in Bahasa Indonesia, and finishes the sentence with English
words. The phenomenon of intra-sentential CS is commonly found within the

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language classroom teaching and learning. Koban (2013) conducted research to

find the occurrence of CS used by twelve bilingual students in New York. He
found that intra-sentential CS happened at a greater rate than inter-sentential
CS.
Research shows a wide array of factors of why teachers use CS in the
English classroom. For instance, teachers use CS to give instructions, make
teaching and learning more effective, make jokes or humor, manage a class, ask
for clarification, emphasize some points, and provide feedback (Ahmad &
Jusoff, 2009; Andika, 2018; Bhatti et al., 2018; Gulzar & Asmari, 2014; Ibrahim et
al., 2013; Itmeizeh et al., 2017; Jingxia, 2010; Jogulu & Radzi, 2018; Karjo, 2007;
Moghadam et al., 2012; Mujiono et al., 2013; Puspawati, 2018; Shahnaz, 2015). In
short, besides being used for pedagogical needs, CS is also used to build social
relationships.
CS in classroom instructions assists students in better understanding
teachers' instructions. Ibrahim et al. (2013) state that teachers’ use of CS is to
ensure that students grasp the materials or teachers' explanations. Similarly,
Itmeizeh (2017) states that when giving instructions, teachers switch to L1 to
ensure the students understand the target task. She also added that CS occurs
when teachers switch English to L1 when giving instructions in the EFL
classroom. In this sense, CS accommodates students and teachers in their
teaching process. To put it briefly, the use of L1 assists teachers in ensuring
students' understanding of the instructions.
Further, CS can be the best choice that can be used to build a better
relationship between teachers and students. According to Jogulu and Radzi
(2018), CS is a communication technique to keep the interconnection between
teachers and students. In addition, Gulzar and Asmari (2014) mention that
many English teachers highly recommend CS as an English learning strategy,
but they also should consider students' English proficiency levels. By noticing
the role of CS in helping teachers deliver the materials, CS can be one of the
options to serve the effective EFL classroom. Another factor why teachers use
CS is to make something humorous, which aims to maintain the learning
atmosphere in the classroom. Puspawati (2018) claims that teachers use jokes to
create a bond with students interpersonally. In this regard, CS applies to better
relationships between teachers and students in EFL classrooms, i.e., making a
joke to build relationships.
In addition, teachers' use of CS to manage the class one of which is learning
time strategies. According to Ahmad and Jusoff (2009), teachers usually use
different languages to elaborate explanations related to classroom management.
In addition, Radzi (2018) states that teachers use CS for classroom management

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and control. This fact also raises new insight outside the method of delivering
materials. The previous studies found that CS can be applied to prepare
students to get ready to learn the materials.
Moreover, every teacher expects that all students understand the content
being delivered. Therefore, CS is very significant for checking students'
understanding. Teachers can ask students to review the materials using L1 and
L2. Thus, Moetia et al. (2018) discovered that teachers used CS in the classroom
to conceal students' lack of English proficiency. By doing CS, students who lack
English will still be able to reveal their idea about their understanding of the
ongoing knowledge.
Teachers also switch to L1 to emphasize some points that might be
important to be known by students. Jingxia (2010) found that teachers use CS to
let students know some aspects that students do not understand. Thus, students
can better understand important messages if reiterated in L1. According to
Mujiono et al. (2013), teachers utilize CS in the classroom to stress the content
being taught. Additionally, Fachriyah (2017) concludes that one of the functions
of CS used by lecturers is emphasizing a language element. CS helps students
receive the message more easily, as Ansar (2017) mentions. Further, Ansar
(2017) states that teachers' CS emphasizes the message - in this case, the
materials being taught. Using CS to highlight some points is beneficial for both
teachers and students.
In general, teachers switch to L1 most often to give feedback to the
students. Jingxia (2010) found that one of the CS functions is to provide
feedback to students. Karjo (2007) states that feedback can be presented in
various ways, such as commenting on students' questions or work, giving
solutions to students' problems, and giving suggestions to students to improve
their work or skills. Nurhamidah et al. (2018) also state that giving feedback is
why many teachers use CS. In short, CS helps students improve their work,
especially when the school requires teachers to give feedback on students' work
(Fachriyah, 2017). In this vein, students will not feel pressured or lost when they
receive feedback, resulting in better English achievement.
Previous research on CS conducted in Indonesia mainly obtained their data
through interviews on the underlying reasons why teachers use CS
(Nurmaidah et al., 2018; Zainil & Arsyad, 2021). The studies, however, did not
specifically look at the phenomenon that occurred in the classroom. Therefore,
the current research may elucidate the CS that commonly happens in EFL
classroom. The current research aims to explore and analyze the factors of using
CS in classrooms from university teachers' perspectives. This research would
give general and specific pictures of CS in various classroom settings and

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situations by knowing the underlying factors. Accordingly, teachers will have a

better grasp of the use of CS. Also, teachers would acknowledge the
appropriate moments to use CS in classrooms, particularly in EFL classroom
settings. Therefore, the study formulates its questions as follows:
(1) What are the underlying reasons for EFL teachers when doing CS in the
classroom?
(2) What types of CS are used by EFL teachers when they teach in the
classroom?

Method

Research design

The current research used a qualitative approach. Creswell (2014) asserts that a
qualitative study is a suitable approach to seeing individuals or phenomena. In
addition, a case study design was adopted. The case study best fits this study as
it has been used in many fields, particularly in evaluation, where the researcher
expands an in-depth analysis of a matter, frequently in the program, incident or
event, activities, process, or an individual or more (Creswell, 2014). The case
investigated in the study is the individuals involved in the phenomenon, i.e.,
code-switching (CS) that happened in EFL contexts.

Participants

This study took place at the English Language Education Department (ELED) of
a university in Yogyakarta Indonesia. The setting was selected for some
reasons. First, CS in the classrooms was found among teachers. The second
reason is the accessibility of the researchers to observe several classes was
available. Apart from that, the class consisted of multilingual students and
teachers; thus, it was interesting to see the CS among the languages. The data
were collected in 2020, at the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic. During
this time, online classes, especially the synchronous ones, were quite popular.
Two EFL teachers of a private university in Yogyakarta Indonesia
participated in this study. Both of them agreed to be observed and interviewed
after the observations were conducted. In addition, both teachers had been
teaching for at least three years; thus, they had plenty of experience in CS. The
names used in the current study were all pseudonyms for confidentiality
purposes. The detailed information about the participants can be seen in Table
1.

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Table 1. Participants’ demographic information

No Participants’ name Teaching Teaching subject Educational
experience background
1 Cika (Pseudonym) >10 Language Assessment Master’s degree
and Evaluation
2 Dewi (Pseudonym) >15 International Doctoral degree
Language Testing

Data collection

The current study employed two methods: in-depth interviews and class
observations in collecting the data. In-depth interviews were conducted to
collect data about the underlying factors in EFL teachers' use of CS in the
classrooms. The in-depth interviews were utilized since they helped the
researchers to dive under the topic being discussed through the direct
information from participants about what they have experienced, valued, and
felt (Cohen et al., 2018). Meanwhile, class observations were also conducted to
collect data regarding the types of CS used by EFL teachers. The use of
observation as a primary form of research can generate more true or genuine
data than indirect or inferential approaches (Cohen et al., 2018). The interview
guideline (see Appendix 1) consisted of questions about using CS in the
classroom. For instance, the questions consisted of the occurrence of doing CS,
their opinion about its use, and the underpinning reason for using CS.
Face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted and recorded for further
use. All participants verbally consented to be interviewed, audio-recorded, and
observed. Before the interviews began, one of the researchers, who acted as the
interviewer, informed their rights, e.g., refusing to answer some questions or
withdrawing given information which were verbally agreed by all participants.
During the interviews, CS occurred naturally as the interviewer and
participants were multilingual. Interview guidelines were used to assist the
interviewer in staying on track, although follow-up questions were sporadically
based on participants' answers.
As for the class observations, one of the researchers, who was also the
interviewer, sat in the participants' classes for the whole synchronous meeting,
which used an online platform called Microsoft Teams. It is a platform used for
communication and collaboration that provides chat boxes for professional
purposes, synchronous meetings, file storage, and application integration. The
researchers used observation guidelines, which consisted of a table with three
columns: tag-switching, inter-sentential switching, and intra-sentential
switching.

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The observation guideline (see Appendix 2) was used to write down the
utterances produced by the participants that involved CS. Additionally, the
online class was also recorded, to which later the observer used the recording to
double-check the data obtained from the classes.

Data analysis

In analyzing the obtained data, the researchers applied several steps. Firstly, the
researchers transcribed the data from the in-depth interviews by listening to the
recording. Once the transcription was ready, the researchers conducted member
checking by sending the interview transcriptions to the participants. Cohen et
al. (2011) argue that member checking is a process of matching the participants'
responses to see whether it is in line with what they have said. The step was to
ensure the trustworthiness of the data. Upon reading the transcription, the
participants wished for no alteration of the data given during the interviews.
Therefore, the researchers proceeded to the following steps, which were coding.
To analyze the observation data, the researchers used Conversation
Analysis (CA). According to Silverman (1998), CA can help researchers analyze
and understand what happens in organizations and institutions. Like the
researchers did in interview analysis, the data were transcribed into a written
form. Then, member checking was also done to maintain trustworthiness.
The coding performed aimed to find the similarities among participants'
answers to the interview questions. Similar topics were themed and organized
accordingly based on the research questions. The researchers divided the
participants' responses into two big themes, including influencing factors and
the types of CS that the participants used.

Findings

Factors influencing EFL teachers to use CS

The researchers discovered five reasons for utilizing code-switching (CS) in EFL
in the classroom based on the interview data. The reasons include discussing
specific topics, making teaching and learning more effective, managing the
classroom, building social relationships, and encouraging students to
participate more actively in class (see Table 2).

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Table 2. Participants’ reasons of using CS

No Participants Reasons of using CS
1 Cika Discussing specific topics
Making teaching and learning more effective
Building social relationship
Encouraging students' active participation
2 Dewi Discussing specific topics
Making teaching and learning more effective
Managing classroom
Building social relationship

Discussing specific topics

The first reason EFL teachers use CS is to discuss a particular topic. It was
mentioned that both participants, Dewi and Cika. Dewi remarked:

In skill-[based] classed, I usually use much English. While in theoretical-based

courses, such as Material Design, I tend to switch to English-Indonesia and
otherwise.

Meanwhile, Cika also added,

There are situations where it is not suitable to use English or use other target
language because the context only occurs in Indonesia.

The data showed that both participants did CS when they discussed certain
topics. Some topics can only be found in the Indonesian context, which would
have been too much hassle to use English and then explain the whole context to
the students. In short, CS can be used to deliver content and match the context.

Making teaching and learning more effective

The second factor influencing teachers' use of CS was to make teaching and
learning more effective. Dewi stated, “Code-switching is used to make the class
more effective”. On the other hand, Cika mentioned,

There must be a reason when a teacher switches from the one language to
another language. The purpose is to ease the student to understand the
explanation that is being discussed.

The participants' explanations showed the reasons why they did CS in class.
Using CS was considered effective, and sometimes it saved time. The
participants provided examples of the effectiveness of using CS, such as
teaching a low-frequency word. The participants mentioned that it was much

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more effective to just tell the students the meaning of Bahasa Indonesia rather
than describing the words using English. The example of the CS from Cika can
be seen as follows:

…[t]riangulating information on a student before making a final assessment,

jadi maksudnya adalah kita tidak bisa memberikan nilai akhir pada siswa kita hanya
berdasarkan tes. (Triangulating information on a student before making a final
assessment means that we cannot give students their final scores based on
tests only).

The example of CS showed that the participant simply explained the meaning
of low-frequency words 'triangulating information' in Bahasa Indonesia rather
than giving the whole meaning of the phrase in English.

Managing the classroom

The data showed the third reason EFL teachers use CS, i.e., to manage the class.
One participant conveyed the reason. Dewi argued,

[I used code-switching] For classroom management. For example, I want to

teach English using a game. I switch English to Bahasa Indonesia to ensure the
students understand my instructions.

From Dewi's response, it was concluded that classroom management was one
of the reasons why she used CS. Without it, the participant believed that it
would have been challenging for her to manage the class because not all
students understood instructions in English.

Building social relationship

The other influencing factor of EFL teachers' use of CS during the teaching and
learning process is to build a good social rapport between teachers and
students. Both participants stated this particular factor. Dewi, for example,
explained,

I make a joke to get closer with my students, even though I have to switch
from English to Bahasa Indonesia to make students get the joke.

The example from her explanation can be seen as follows:

I’m going to explain to you assessment [assignment] three - what we have to

do in assessment three. Padahal assessment dua aja belum dikumpul ya haha (I’m
going to explain to you about assessment three - what we have to do in
assessment three. You haven’t even submitted assessment two, haha).

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Similarly, Cika remarked,

I think CS can make student-teacher interaction less formal. For example, if I

do CS in the class, and the words I used are the words that are popular among
students, I think students would like those [words] being part of the teaching
and learning process.

Chika also explained that using the language with which students are familiar
would bridge the gap between students and teachers. She gave examples that
sometimes she used students' local dialects (e.g., Sundanese language,
Banyumas language, Javanese language) to code-switch with English. She
added that sometimes she made jokes using students' dialects and mixed them
with English. She believed that doing CS between English and students' local
dialect made students feel less anxious when they were in her class. The
example can be seen as follows:

Guys, please feel free to interrupt if you have any questions. Jangan-jangan
miss ditinggal tidur atau ditinggal masak ini ya hehe wah piye iki [Javanese
language] (Guys, please feel free to interrupt if you have any questions. You
are not leaving me here and you’re sleeping or cooking, right? Hehe Oh My
God)

Encouraging students' active participation

The last reason for using CS is to encourage students to engage more actively in
the classroom. Cika stated that when a teacher did not use CS, the students
might lose confidence, especially when working in groups. Moreover, Cika said
that,

Using code-switching actually facilitates my students who had low ability in

English skills. You can imagine when you don't understand anything from
your teachers' explanation. You will be quiet when in group discussions
because you will not know what to say. At the same time, when I use CS, I can
push my students to have a higher level of active participation in teaching and
learning in the class because there is no reason not to do that. If the teachers
do not use code-switching, the students would not have any understanding of
what has been taught, and those students would not be confident to speak
when they are in group discussions.

Cika believed that CS encouraged her students to participate more actively in

class. The example of how Cika encouraged the students to be active in her class
can be seen as follows:

Number one yang dibutuhkan apa? (What does the number one need?)

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Sulfa’s drugs had been used, benar ya? (Sulfa’s drugs had been used, is that
right?)

The examples showed that Cika tried to invite her students' participation by
asking them questions using CS. Furthermore, from the previously mentioned
examples, it could be seen that teachers located the English term either in the
beginning or at the end of the sentence. Using CS also allowed students to use
CS when answering the questions in case they were not highly confident with
their English.

Types of CS used by EFL teachers in the classrooms

The obtained data from the observation assisted the researchers in answering
the second research question. The observations provided important information
about the types of CS participants performed when teaching. At the same time,
the observation data can support the data obtained from the interviews. The
researchers present the information in the observation guideline results (see
Table 3).

Table 3. Observation guideline result

No Participants Types of CS Duration of class
Tag- Inter-sentential Intra- observation
switching switching sentential permitted by
switching participants
1 Cika 21 18 47 110 minutes
2 Dewi 7 17 47 75 minutes

Table 3 shows the frequency of teachers using CS when teaching in a private

university in Yogyakarta. It also presents the occurrence frequency of each type
of CS.

Tag-Switching

When one of the researchers observed in the classes, Dewi and Cika used tag-
switching in the short sentences from English to Bahasa Indonesia and from
Bahasa Indonesia to English. Besides, the result of the data showed that tag-
switching occurred several times in both participants during the teaching and
learning process. Based on the observations, Dewi used tag-switching seven
times, while Cika used the same CS 21 times. For example, Dewi and Cika said,

Okay, ya? Let me start. (Dewi)

And then, there is also awareness of the weakness of standardized testing, ya?
(Dewi)

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I assume that you already read the topic from skill thirty-six until the rest of
the topic, ya? (Cika)
Sometimes we missed up with the use of objective and adverb, ya? (Cika)

From the examples above, Dewi and Cika switched from English to Bahasa
Indonesia. They emphasized their statements by mentioning "ya" in Bahasa
Indonesia, which means "right" or "yes" in English. In short, Dewi and Cika used
tag-switching during the teaching and learning process.

Inter-sentential switching

When one of the researchers observed the EFL teachers' classes, it was evident
that Dewi and Cika used inter-sentential switching several times. Table 3
showed that Dewi used inter-sentential switching 17 times, while Cika used
inter-sentential switching 18 times. These are several examples that occurred
during the observations.

Why alternative in assessment? Seperti yang kemarin kita bahas ya tentang tes.
(Dewi)
Hello, excuse me, what happened? Sampe mana tadi? (Dewi)
Jangan begitu ya. You have to know the reason. (Cika)
Ada yang mau ditanyakan? Do you have any questions from one until ten?
(Cika)

The data showed that Dewi and Cika used a clause in English and ended the
clause before using another language in the following clause. From the
statements, it can be concluded that the teacher participants switched from
English to Bahasa Indonesia or from Bahasa Indonesia to English.

Intra-sentential switching

The obtained data from the observations indicated that the participants used
intra-sentential switching during the teaching and learning process. The
researchers found that both teachers used intra-sentential switching several
times. Dewi and Cika used intra-sentential switching 47 times each during
teaching and learning in the classroom. Below are examples of intra-sentential
switching from both participants.

People were thinking bahwa kalo students’ active learners itu mereka biasanya
memperoleh hasil pembelajaran yang sangat bagus. (Dewi)
You have to remember ada kata sifat yang diakhiri dengan ‘y’ yang jadinya
dikiranya tu kaya noun gitu lho. (Cika)

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Murtiningsih et al. Code-switching in EFL classrooms

The researchers found from the examples above that Dewi and Cika used intra-
sentential switching during the teaching and learning process. Dewi and Cika
switched from English to Bahasa Indonesia or from Bahasa Indonesia to English
regardless of boundaries.

Discussion

This section attempts to connect the current research findings with prior
research results from other scholars, as Hoffman (1991) states that code-
switching (CS) was used to discuss a specific topic, especially a new topic for
students. Many people find it easier to understand when they use their native
language to discuss a new topic. Using CS to discuss new topics would make
teaching and learning more effective in classroom situations. As found in the
findings, the participants utilized CS for certain purposes. With this sub-section,
the researchers revealed the interconnection of the findings of this research with
the previous research results.
In the first finding, the researchers found that teachers who use CS might
want to help students with a lower level of English ability. Moetia et al. (2018)
also found that CS applied by the teachers was used to accommodate the
students' lack of target language proficiency. In this sense, teachers try to
ensure that all students can incorporate the new knowledge and existing
knowledge they already know.
Another current research finding, i.e., that CS was used to manage a class,
was in line with Ibrahim et al.’s (2013) study. They state that CS ensures
students' understanding of the instructions. The finding is probably commonly
found in the area of CS. Without CS, teachers may have to speak very slowly,
which will cost a lot of learning time. Nurhamidah et al. (2016) discovered that
the teacher remarked that utilizing L1 was easier and stronger in expressing her
displeasure with the students' conduct. Likewise, Jogulu and Radzi (2018) assert
that CS is a communication strategy to keep the interconnection between
teachers and students. These statements support the current research finding,
i.e., building social relationships with students. Many students will likely feel
more comfortable learning in a more relaxed, less formal environment.
Additionally, students are more likely to be more open and show a positive
attitude towards the teachers and the course when they know they are not
anxious. It was in line with Al-Qaysi and Al-Emran (2017), who found that EFL
students in Oman showed a highly positive attitude toward the use of CS
during the studying process. Similarly, Lee (2016) found that on teachers’

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views, students show a better and improved learning process when CS is

utilized in the language learning process. Consequently, the attitude will result
in better academic achievements.
Another finding showed that teachers utilized the CS to build closeness
with the students. It could be seen in the finding when the teachers tried to
situate the classroom atmosphere through jokes. What the teachers have done
was also supported by Puspawati (2018) and Bhatti et al. (2018), who assert that
teachers use CS and jokes to build social interaction with students. Also, CS is
used to build a bond with the students. Moreover, the finding also found that
teachers utilized CS to activate students during the teaching and learning
process by inviting students to participate regardless of their language when
expressing their ideas. Since Fachriyah (2017) finds that CS can make students
more confident in the learning process, it is understandable if teachers invite
students' ideas using CS.
Finally, the finding of the other research question regarding the types of CS
frequently used by participants, the current research findings are similar to
Koban's (2013). He also found that intra-sentential switching was more
commonly applied than inter-sentential switching in Turkish's ELT classrooms.
In this current research, intra-sentential was also found as the type most
frequently used since most students were considered to have a good level of
English command. The current research also found a similar result, in which the
participants used intra-sentential switching 47 times in the classroom.

Conclusion

The current study explored the teachers who used code-switching (CS) in their
teaching and learning process at an English Language Education Department of
a university on the outskirt of Yogyakarta. It aimed at investigating the motives
of EFL teachers' use of CS in the classroom and what types of CS are used by
the EFL teacher when they teach English in an online classroom.
The findings showed five factors why EFL college teachers used CS when
teaching. The five reasons are discussing certain topics, making the teaching
and learning process more effective, managing the classroom, building a social
relationship with students, and encouraging students to participate more
actively in the classroom. The second finding was about what types of CS are
used by EFL college teachers when they teach in the classroom. The findings
showed that teachers used inter-sentential switching more often than other
types of CS. Additionally, the findings, to some extent, are able to extend the

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discussion of CS in EFL classrooms, particularly about the reason and the

frequent types of CS used by teachers.
One limitation of the current study is the small number of participants
involved in this research. Having more participants may yield different
findings for future research. Another limitation is that the study did not
specifically categorize each CS utterance based on the reasons stated by the
participants. Understanding the use of each CS utterance may help others be
more aware of issues in CS. Thus, future researchers are expected to conduct
research on CS in a wide range of participants to enrich the result of this study.
Besides, utilizing the mixed method is also recommended for future researchers
to find out both statistical and natural phenomena in the use of CS by teachers.
Several pedagogical implications are proposed based on the findings. EFL
teachers can slowly reduce the amount of CS to provide students with more
exposure to the English language. Although CS can be very helpful, students
might be too dependent on the teachers to translate or switch to the local
language instead of English. Another implication is to prepare students before
the meeting starts. EFL teachers should require students to read and
understand the materials before the class meeting to reduce CS.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the editor and reviewers for giving helpful
feedback for publishing this paper in this journal. The authors also thank the
teacher participants for being extremely helpful during the data collection.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCID

Sri Rejeki Murtiningsih https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7085-7902

Munawaroh https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3880-1650
Sibakhul Milad Malik Hidayatulloh https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1595-8599

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Appendices

Appendix 1. Interview guideline

Interview Guideline

This research instrument is used to get in-depth information about why EFL teachers
in the English Language Education Department of a private university in Yogyakarta
are using code-switching in teaching-learning process.
Name of college teacher interviewee : __________________________
Date of interview : __________________________
Questions:
1. How long have you been teaching English at ELED?
2. What language do you usually use when teaching?
3. To what extent do you use code-switching or switch the languages when
teaching?
4. How often do you use code-switching or switch languages when teaching?

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5. What do you think about using code-switching or switching language when

teaching?
6. Why do you use code-switching or switch languages when teaching?

Appendix 2. Observation guidelines

Observation Guideline

This research instrument is used to get the deep information about types of code-
switching used by EFL teachers of English Language Education Department of a
private university of Yogyakarta.
Name of college teacher : ______________________
Date of observation : ______________________
Types of code-switching (V)
Tag : Tag-switching
Inter : Inter-sentential-switching
Intra : Intra-sentential-switching

No Clauses Types of code-switching

Tag Inter Intra
1
2
3
4
Etc.

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