ESL teachers’ perceptions and practices of code-switching in a Malaysian Chinese independent secondary school

Code-switching (cs) is one of the communicative strategies used in defining and structuring social relationships of speakers. in this study, we demonstrate how teachers perceive and employ cs in a malaysian chinese independent school (mcis) english classrooms to achieve communicative intents and to create a sense of belonging among students. ethnography recording of classroom discourse and semi-structured interviews with seven english teachers were employed. the analysis reveals a noteworthy commitment that cs does not only act as a pedagogical tool but also as a means of facilitating interpersonal communication in class.