J A C L Y N M . A B B O T T L O P E Z

R E S E A R C H A N D W R I T I N G I N L A N G U A G E A N D L I N G U I S T I C S

P R O F . C A T H E R I N E M A Z A K

Bilingualism in Puerto Rican Students at the University of

Puerto Rico Mayaguez Campus

R E S E A R C H P R O B L E M

G O A L S

Introduction

Introduction

UPRM is a bilingual

institution, but:

When do students code switch?

When do they opt for one language or the other?

What makes them use both languages, or limit themselves to only one?

The goal of the

experiment was to see ifstudents who volunteered

to participate code

switched while completing

the task and analyze the

context in which they did

so to make assumptionsof why they code switched

at all.

A S U M M A R Y O N T E X T S R E L A T E D T O T H E S T U D Y

Literature Review

Garcia considers that any proficiency, even if not that vast, is deemed suitable for a person to be considered bilingual.

Baker stresses how important degree and function may be for a person to consider himself/herself as bilingual or multilingual.

Garcia and Baker use the terms of productive and receptive bilingualism, which I think are very vital because receptive bilinguals tend to discard themselves as such (bilinguals) and should be informed of this.

Zentella speaks of how bilingualism can be a sort of trait in a community, something that constitutes their identity (p. 1).

Code switching does not “communicate intimacy or distance” (Zentella 1997, p. 3).

A S Y N T H E S I S O F I M P O R T A N T A N D U S E F U L V O C A B U L A R Y W O R D S T O B E T T E R

U N D E R S T A N D T H E T E R M I N O L O G Y U S E D I N T H I S S T U D Y

Theoretical Frame

Theoretical Frame

Bilingualism: Garcia (2009) mentions Haugens’ definition as “even minimum proficiency in two languages” (p. 44).

Baker (2006) defines a balanced bilingual as someone who is “approximately equally fluent in two languages” (p. 9), and mentions Fishman’s statement that “rarely will anyone be equally competent across all situations” (p. 9).

Productive and receptive skills: oracy and literacy, which include writing, reading, speaking and listening skills (Baker 2006, p. 7).

Canagarajah (2011) expresses that “competencedoesn’t consist of separate competencies for each language, but a multicompetence that functions symbiotically for the different languages in one’s repertoire” (p. 1).

Domains: Baker (2006) tells us that they are “where each language is acquired and used” (p. 3).

Intrasentential code switching: defined by Garcia (2008) as “the switch that occurs within the boundaries of a clause or a sentence” (p. 49). This is what happens when we say, for example, “Move el lápiz to the first block on the far left column.”

Intersentential code switching: defined by Garcia (2008) as the switching that “occurs at clause or sentence boundaries” (p. 50). This, on the other hand, happens when different thoughts come out in different languages. An example could be: “Move the pencil to the first block on the far left column. ¿Ya lo hiciste?”

S T E P S T A K E N F O R T H I S S T U D Y

Methodology

Volunteers – no participant selection method.

Intermediate or Advanced English students.

Setting: CeIBA Research Center office.

Items used: common home items such as pencils, a strainer, an eraser, cups, and others.

Data Collection Methods:

Observation

Questionnaire

Voice recording

Data Analysis

Results

Reading Reading & Writing

20; 91%

2; 9%

Consent Forms

English

Spanish

9; 41%

13; 59%

Questionnaire

English

Spanish

Preferred Language

Questionnaire item number 1:Are you: Female or Male?

13; 59%

9; 41%

Sex

Female

Male

Questionnaire item number 2:Year of Birth

1; 4%

16; 73%

5; 23%

Age groups

17 or younger

18 to 20 year olds

21 or older

Number of areas/towns lived in:

From these, you lived in states for:

9; 41%

7; 32%

6; 27%

One

Two

Three or more

Questionnaire item number 7:Indicate where you have lived for significant periods of your life

16; 73%

1; 4%

5; 23%

Never

One Year

Three or more years

Note: this question required a write-in answer .

Female Participants Male participants

3; 23%

4; 31%

5; 38%

1; 8%

Age range in which English was learned

2 years old or younger

4 years old or younger

Primary School

Secondary School

As an adult

2; 22%

3; 33%

4; 45%

Age range in which English was learned

2 years old or younger4 years old or youngerPrimary SchoolSecondary SchoolAs an adult

Questionnaire item number 7:Since when have you been able to speak English?

1; 4%

9; 41%12; 55%

Confidence in competence

1, basic words and expressions

2, basic conversations

3, fairly confident in extended conversations

4, confident in extended conversations

Questionnaire item number 9:On a scale of 1 to 4, how well do you feel you can speak English?

“In everyday conversation, I keep the Spanish and English languages separate.”

“People should avoid mixing Spanish and English in the same conversation.”

7; 32%

9; 41%

5; 23%

1; 4%

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Neither agree, nor disagreeAgree

Strongly Agree

4; 18%

7; 32%7; 32%

3; 14%1; 4%

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Neither agree, nor disagreeAgree

Strongly Agree

Questionnaire items number 19 & 20:To what extent do you agree with the following statement:

P E R S O N A L I N T E R P R E T A T I O N O F R E S U L T S

Discussion

People, however, only consider themselves bilingual if they feel comfortable in both categories of skills, or what we learned before was called a balanced bilingual, even if it really doesn’t exist.

The domain (school) might have influenced their language choice and limited code switching.

When struggling for a word, they switched.

This whole idea simply goes back to how it is important that people understand that bilingualism is anyknowledge of two languages and should not be compared as two wheel on a bicycle, as stated by Baker (2006, p. 2).

Those who were most uncomfortable with the English language tended to use intersentential code switching .

I think this tells us about their confidence in using and placing nouns, verb or adjective correctly in the sentence even if the rest is in another language.

Conclusions

Students in this bilingual community tend to switch when they are uncertain of a word and opt for either language depending on what they think is expected of them.

In another experiment, I would analyze further on how females compare to males (as more males who volunteered had lived in states than females, in percentages) in code switching and understanding of what bilingualism is.

I would also focus more on the fact that the most insecure used intersentential code switching and the more confident ones used intrasentential code switching.