Code switching as Sociocultural Mediation in ESL Classrooms: A Vygotskian perspective

Abstract

This qualitative research paper explores the perception of code-switching among the undergraduate ESL students in the multilingual classroom of English language learning using a sociocultural lens of Vygotsky. Using semi-structured interviews with eight Urdu and Sindhi students, the research investigates how code-switching functions as a mediational tool for comprehension and scaffolding, and affective regulation. Results indicate that learners strategically utilise their first language to bridge the gap in comprehension, scaffold complex grammar and vocabulary, and reduce anxiety, thereby maintaining participation and cognitive engagement. These findings are interrelated to the main sociocultural concepts like mediation, the Zone of Proximal Development, and scaffolding, challenging monolingual ideologies stigmatising the L1 use. The paper finds that the concept of code-switching is a useful pedagogical tool which helps learners in the second language to learn both intellectually and emotionally. Implications for inclusive, multilingual teaching practices are discussed.