Code-switching: the concurrent use of more than one language

I remember the first time I read an excerpt from The House On Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros to my sophomore English class in El Paso and their reaction to her code-switching in the story. The story of a young girl growing up in the Hispanic section of Chicago, Esperanza is coming of age and coming to terms with her own identity in desolate surroundings. My class was 98% Hispanic; they had recently exited the ESL program and moved into "regular" English with me. I chose the book with the hope my students would identify with Esperanza's struggles and because the langauge Cisneros uses in her stories exemplifies the language coding they use. At first they were surprised by the author's language choices because they had been told to leave their language out of their communications for academia, yet here was a novel being read in class that included their native language. I would even ask their help pronouncing the words and phrases she used. They "got" her and laughed at her humor that is only understood by the group; we truly became "we." We were having conversations about language that were not contrived. The effect it created in my class was one of solidarity. They knew I understood and was willing to meet them where they lived (so to speak).

Had I been the sort of teacher that held strict rules for disallowing code-switching and made curriculum choices that did not include an analysis of my audience (i.e., my students), as some do I am sad to say, those sophomores that year and the many others I've taught since then would have tuned out and turned off.

Mutual respect is the name of the game; fear and paranoia is cast aside and we stand side by side in solidarity as human beings who are compassionate of one another's values, perceptions, beliefs, communication styles, and behaviors. Not us vs. them (or "my way or the highway") attitudes, maintaining language as a barrier.

Mothers are said to be the ones that set the tone in a home. Educators set the tone in their classrooms. How can we create a nurturing and safe learning environment without acceptance, respect, and trust?