Code-switching in Malaysian classroom as the microcosm of society in socio-cultural context / Caesar DeAlwis

Teaching English as a second language is distinctive because of its specific needs. Facing a competitive market, students from young need to acquire communicative skills in English for future studies and employment. However, outside the classroom, it is no longer just a norm for multilingual societies to code- switch but rather code–switching has become a part of their unique speech style. As such in the teaching service, ESL teachers may not be able to isolate themselves from such a social norm. The question of whether English language teachers should code-switch in the classrooms has been much debated with most researchers maintained that teachers who code-switch, may end up invalidating the second language of students. Cases of students having low level of English proficiency to understand a teacher’s input or students too reluctant to participate in learning because they feel incompetent in the English language classrooms are common concerns to all ESL teachers. Therefore, should the ESL teacher’s code-switch to make them understood? Or should the English only policy be used and different from the wider multi-cultural linguistic environment? The data collection technique used in this study was audio recording and unstructured interview with 10 TESL teachers, teaching in Sarawak, Malaysia. The perceptions of ESL teachers who generally suggest that code-switching is a common phenomenon and not interference in ELT are pertinent issues to be discussed

Sramežljivi govornici: slušanje njihovih glasova

When a speech community is noted for its inhibitions and reservations with outsiders, researchers, who are not members of that speech community, will find difficulty in making inroads and obtaining information. This research of the Bidayuh community in Kuching will firstly discuss the general attitudes and characteristics of the community. The foregrounding of the community is based on descriptions both by European writers of the 19th century and modern day Bidayuh writers. This paper documents the range of strategies which can be used by researchers, who are outsiders, to obtain information from this speech community. One major strategy which will be discussed is language choice. The Theory of Accommodation contends that rapport and solidarity are more easily established if a speaker shifts to the preferred language of the recipient or subject. Researchers have to determine which language to switch to: Malay, English or Bidayuh? If Bidayuh, then which dialect? The attendant problems associated with code choice will also be discussed.Kada neku govornu zajednicu karakteriziraju inhibicije i rezerviranost prema strancima, istraživačima koji ne pripadaju toj zajednici bit će teško prodrijeti u nju i prikupiti informacije. U ovom istraživanju zajednice Bidajuha u Kuchingu najprije se raspravlja o općenitim stavovima i karakteristikama te zajednice. Njezino isticanje temelji se na opisima europskih pisaca 19. stoljeća i suvremenih pisaca iz te zajednice. U radu se, na osnovi iznesenih dokaza, predstavlja niz strategija koje mogu upotrijebiti istraživači, nečlanovi zajednice, za prikupljanje informacija o njoj. Glavna strategija o kojoj se raspravlja jest izbor jezika. Prema teoriji prilagodbe, bliski odnosi i solidarnost lakše se uspostavljaju ako se govornik služi jezikom koji primatelj ili ispitanik više voli. Istraživači moraju odlučiti na koji će jezik prijeći: malajski, engleski ili bidajuški, te ako izaberu bidajuški, kojim će se dijalektom poslužiti. U radu se govori i o problemima povezanima s izborom koda

Osiguravaju li zatvorene i guste mreže očuvanje narodnoga jezika? Primjer teluške zajednice u Kuchingu, u Sarawaku

This paper sets out to examine the issue of language shift among the closely-knit minority Telegu community in Sarawak. According to L. Milroy (1987) a closely-knit social network system is a significant device of language maintenance and can be applied universally. However, local researches on Malaysian Indians such as M. K. David’s (1996) study on the Sindhi community, S. Govindasamy and M. Nambiar’s (2003) study on the Malayalees, and M. K. David and F. Noor’s (1999) study of the Portuguese community in Malacca show that although these minorities have close and dense networks, yet they are moving away from their ethnic languages. This paper investigates whether or not the closely-knit minority Telegu community in Kuching, Sarawak, has also shifted to other languages. Data from conversations in the home domain will determine the dominant language used by members of the community. The attitude of the community towards the use of the heritage language will also be discussed. The information will emerge from unstructured interviews with members of the community. It is found that close and dense networks do not necessarily result in language maintenance.U radu se propituje problem jezičnog pomaka u tijesno povezanoj teluškoj manjinskoj zajednici u Sarawaku. Prema L. Milroyu (1987), čvrsto povezan sustav društvene mreže važno je sredstvo u očuvanju jezika te se može univerzalno primijeniti. Međutim, mjesna istraživanja malezijskih Indijaca, kao što su studija M. K. David (1996) o zajednici Sindha, studija S. Govindasamy i M. Nambiar (2003) o Malajalima te studija M. K. David i F. Noor (1999) o portugalskoj zajednici u Melaki pokazuju da se te zajednice, premda imaju čvrste i guste mreže, ipak udaljavaju od svojih narodnih jezika. Autori istražuju je li se tijesno povezana teluška manjinska zajednica u Kuchingu u Sarawaku također pomaknula prema drugim jezicima. Podaci sakupljeni na temelju razgovora u domaćem okruženju pokazuju koji je dominantan jezik kojim se služe članovi zajednice, a raspravlja se i o stavu zajednice prema uporabi jezika predaka. Te su informacije prikupljene putem nestrukturiranih intervjua s članovima zajednice. Zaključuje se da zatvorene i guste mreže ne osiguravaju očuvanje jezika

Sramežljivi govornici: slušanje njihovih glasova

When a speech community is noted for its inhibitions and reservations with outsiders, researchers, who are not members of that speech community, will find difficulty in making inroads and obtaining information. This research of the Bidayuh community in Kuching will firstly discuss the general attitudes and characteristics of the community. The foregrounding of the community is based on descriptions both by European writers of the 19th century and modern day Bidayuh writers. This paper documents the range of strategies which can be used by researchers, who are outsiders, to obtain information from this speech community. One major strategy which will be discussed is language choice. The Theory of Accommodation contends that rapport and solidarity are more easily established if a speaker shifts to the preferred language of the recipient or subject. Researchers have to determine which language to switch to: Malay, English or Bidayuh? If Bidayuh, then which dialect? The attendant problems associated with code choice will also be discussed.Kada neku govornu zajednicu karakteriziraju inhibicije i rezerviranost prema strancima, istraživačima koji ne pripadaju toj zajednici bit će teško prodrijeti u nju i prikupiti informacije. U ovom istraživanju zajednice Bidajuha u Kuchingu najprije se raspravlja o općenitim stavovima i karakteristikama te zajednice. Njezino isticanje temelji se na opisima europskih pisaca 19. stoljeća i suvremenih pisaca iz te zajednice. U radu se, na osnovi iznesenih dokaza, predstavlja niz strategija koje mogu upotrijebiti istraživači, nečlanovi zajednice, za prikupljanje informacija o njoj. Glavna strategija o kojoj se raspravlja jest izbor jezika. Prema teoriji prilagodbe, bliski odnosi i solidarnost lakše se uspostavljaju ako se govornik služi jezikom koji primatelj ili ispitanik više voli. Istraživači moraju odlučiti na koji će jezik prijeći: malajski, engleski ili bidajuški, te ako izaberu bidajuški, kojim će se dijalektom poslužiti. U radu se govori i o problemima povezanima s izborom koda

The Punjabi Sikh Community in Kuching: Assimilation or Enculturation?

ABSTRACT – This study was conducted using a mixed research method including quantitative and qualitative data collection to investigate the cultural and linguistic practices of the Punjabi Sikhs in Kuching, Sarawak in East Malaysia. It was aimed to determine whether the community had integrated with the majority community/communities in Kuching and to what extend it has preserved its ethnic identity. Data were collected on the Punjabis’ use of language in the domains of family, workplace, and entertainment. Other social factors like eating habits, dressing, celebration of festivals, marriage preference, religious practices and self-identity were also examined. It was identified that the minority community of the Punjabi Sikhs in Kuching, Sarawak has a tendency towards maintaining a strong cultural vitality and uniqueness. The community shows a high degree of assimilating towards the use of English language, although they appear to be maintaining their core Punjabi cultural traits and practices. Kuching Punjabis may have lost a vital segment of their cultural enrichment in the form of language but they crucially hold positive perceptions about their ethno-cultural and ethno-linguistic identity. Thus contradicting the traditional cultural studies, which incline that not maintaining the language, can lead to losing the other aspects of culture

An investigation into Universiti Teknologi MARA pre-commerce students’ perspectives on second language learning / Caesar Dealwis, Baljinder Singh Maghar Singh and Sueb Ibrahim

This paper reports on an exploratory study which aims to investigate learners’ perceptions on language learning in two UiTM campuses in the state of Sarawak. The researchers were guided by the research question – What are the ideas of UiTM students on language learning in terms of the following aspects: the usefulness of the various language learning activities; the nature of language learning; the ideal language learning situation; and how they learn English. The study also aimed to find out if there are differences in students’ perceptions, in particular between male and female, and between students in Mukah and Samarahan campuses respectively. The findings indicate that the respondents from both campuses do possess diverse perspectives on language learning, thus reflecting their different learning styles and orientation

Close and Dense Networks: Do They Lead to Maintenance of the Ethnic Language? Focus on the Telegu Community in Kuching, Sarawak

This paper sets out to examine the issue of language shift among the closely-knit minority Telegu community in Sarawak. According to L. Milroy (1987) a closely-knit social network system is a significant device of language maintenance and can be applied universally. However, local researches on Malaysian Indians such as M. K. David’s (1996) study on the Sindhi community, S. Govindasamy and M. Nambiar’s (2003) study on the Malayalees, and M. K. David and F. Noor’s (1999) study of the Portuguese community in Malacca show that although these minorities have close and dense networks, yet they are moving away from their ethnic languages. This paper investigates whether or not the closely-knit minority Telegu community in Kuching, Sarawak, has also shifted to other languages. Data from conversations in the home domain will determine the dominant language used by members of the community. The attitude of the community towards the use of the heritage language will also be discussed. The information will emerge from unstructured interviews with members of the community. It is found that close and dense networks do not necessarily result in language maintenance

Reasons for Assimilation: Focus on the Indian Muslims in Kuching, Malaysia

According to Lasimbang and Miller (1990), people react negatively if they feel they are being subsumed into a larger group on an unequal basis, but they may readily shed their identity for a larger group identity if it is in their best interests. The aims of this study are to investigate if the Indian Muslim community in Kuching, Sarawak wants to be part of the Malay community and to determine the reasons for such assimilation. To understand reasons for such assimilation and for the adoption of a Malay identity open-ended interviews were conducted with thirty Indian Muslims from various socio-economic groups and eight Malay respondents in Kuching. Does Malay identity act as scaffolding for the Indian Muslims in Kuching which in turn creates the basis for social, economic and political attainment? Assimilation for the Indian Muslims in Kuching with the local Malay community has occurred to some part because of mixed marriages with local Malay women and also because of a shared religion i.e. Islam. The ethnic boundaries of the Indian Muslims are permeable and they want to be identified as Malays