CODE-SWITCHING IN SESOTHO CLASSES IN LESOTHO: IMPLICATIONS FOR SESOTHO TEACHING AND LEARNING

Matsokolo Maria Ramokoena, M.Ed, lecturerDepartment of Language and Social EducationFaculty of EducationNational University of Lesotho, Lesothoe-mail: [email protected], [email protected]://orcid.org/0009-0007-4458-2777 Andrew Tichaenzana Manyawu, PhD, professorCollege of Social Sciences, Theology, Humanities and EducationAfrica University, Zimbabwee-mail: [email protected], [email protected]://orcid.org/0000-0002-7005-1327 ABSTRACT A common feature of colonised nations is the co-existence within the same community of two or more languages, leading to bilingualism and even multilingualism as a characteristic of the citizens of such countries. This gives rise to a communicative strategy that is only available to bilingual people, that of codeswitching (CS). Despite the fact that all interlocutors in Sesotho classrooms in government schools in Lesotho are speakers of Sesotho as a mother and/or first language, occurrences of CS in those settings have been noted. This article examines the use of CS by teachers and learners of Sesotho, a Southern African Bantu language spoken in Lesotho, in formal Sesotho lessons in selected government schools. All the teachers and learners who were the subjects of this study were competent speakers of Sesotho as their mother and/or first language. Qualitative data was collected using semi-structured interviews with the teachers, as well as lesson observation. Four (4) Grade 11 classes in four (4) schools were purposively selected as sites for the study. The study found that whereas CS does occur during formal Sesotho lessons, teachers are actually inclined to forbid and banish it from their lessons. Paradoxically, however, there are forms of CS that have become so naturalised in the Sesotho classroom that the teacher and learners do not even seem to notice that they have actually spoken English amidst a Sesotho lesson. Keywords: code-switching, bilingualism, mother tongue, pedagogy, Lesotho, Sesotho PDF How to cite:Ramokoena, M. M. and Manyawu, A. T. (2024). “Code-Switching in Sesotho Classes in Lesotho: Implications for Sesotho Teaching and Learning.” Journal of Comparative Studies 17 (46), 156-181. https://doi.org/10.59893/jcs.17(46).006