Code Switching Essay

Code switching is a switch in the way you speak or the language you speak. Sometimes codes switching is formal or informal speech. Code switching is something you do around your friends, family, school, and work. Schools require students to code switch because code switching helps improve your communication, which is good for future job interviews and speaking with people authority.

Schools require students to code switch because it helps them in the classroom and in the world. An article states that, “The idea is to help kids understand how code switching works on a grammatical level, which will... allow students to compare and contrast Black English grammar with Standard English. Studies show students who can master that do much better academically and beyond.” This text explains that students who learn the difference between the different kind of English do better academically. This also helps students understand how they need to talk to authority or when they’re trying to get jobs or things in their life they may need to use other type of ways of speaking. Code switching can benefit students while they’re in and out of the classroom.

Code Switching can benefit and also hurt the student. “One student who participated in the study said he felt he was "programmed to think a certain way" about African American speech patterns and that he "felt bad" about himself after he did it.” This shows that some students are affected by code switching in a negative way and caused him to feel bad about the way he spoke. Code switching helps students in their future, though can affect their self esteem in themselves. Code switching can be better or worse for a student inside and outside of the classroom depending on the student and the way they choose to use code switching.