Reasons behind the use of Arabic and French in EFL classrooms: The Case of 1st – Year Teachers and Students at The University of Tlemcen

Abstract

This research work is considered to be a sociolinguistic work about Code Switching in EFL classroom. The purpose of this work is to bring to light the reasons that push both the teachers and the students to use Arabic or French in the EFL classroom. Therefore, the case of first year LMD students and teachers of Tlemcen University at English department are choosen as a sample. The research instruments used were a questionnaire distributed to 103 students and 4 teachers and a classroom observation. The results showed that the learners switch to Arabic or French during EFL classes. They do so for different reasons such as: lack of English vocabulary; to gain time and sometimes to change the mood of the class. The findings also revealed that teachers Code Switch to Arabic and French for other reasons such as to emphasize a point, to give important instructions and to facilitate of communication with the students.