2016-2017 Faculty Research Grant
Anneris Coria-Navia (Teaching, Learning & Curriculum)
Code-switching and its Relationship to School and Social Experiences in Bilingual Children Whose Home Language is English in a Spanish Speaking Country
There seems to be wide-spread social and cultural understanding about the advantages of raising children bilingual. This is true in contexts in which bilingualism is official as in the case of Canada or in contexts in which bilingualism is highly valued as exemplified in parts of the United States and Spain. Yet, often times parents are discouraged by educators or the social context to raise children bilingual because of the perceived disadvantage that children will face when entering and/or participating in formal schooling. This is further intensified by the negative connotations of code-switching which is a natural phenomenon in the bilingual brain.
This research project will explore the instances and implications of code-switching in dual language learners. Research on two populations will be conducted: children who speak English at home and attend school in Spanish and children who speak English at home and are homeschooled. The project intends to show the prevalent patterns of code-switching within the different research populations and what are the implications of the children’s academic performance insofar as it is related to language development as perceived by the subjects (when appropriate), parents, and teachers.