A Study Of Code-switching In VOA Bilingual Educational Programs Based On Adaptation Theory

Code-switching (CS) is a language contact phenomenon of alternation betweentwo (or more) languages or language varieties in the same utterance or conversation. Itis a complex and universal phenomenon commonly occurring in bilingual settings andis a well-researched topic with increasingly frequent communications and interactionsbetween different countries. CS has attracted researchers of different disciplinarybackgrounds (sociology, ethnography, psychology, anthropology, linguistics, and so on)in the western world since the1970s. Most researches have been done in the field oflinguistics. Some linguistic models and theories on studying the phenomenon ofcode-switching have been developed. Research of code-switching in China started inthe late20th century, most of which focus on an empirical study. The pragmatic studyof code-switching is a new angle in these years. And the Adaptation Theory is the mostwidely used theory which proves to be persuasive and practical.The present study is carried out in the setting of bilingual broadcasting programsand chooses VOA bilingual educational programs as its research material, with thepurpose of exploring the phenomenon of code-switching in them. Yu Guodong’sLinguistic Adaptation Model is chiefly taken as the theoretical basis. Qualitative andquantitative analysis are both adopted to find how code-switching functions asadaptation to linguistic reality, social conventions and psychological motivations.Qualitative research focuses on the adaptation of CS as a communicative strategy.Quantitative research is done from three aspects: variability, negotiability andadaptability of code-switching manifested in the research material, based on thecollected data. The analytic results show that Yu Guodong’s adaptation model isapplicable to explain the phenomenon of code-switching in VOA bilingual educationalprograms. It is also found in the study that code-switching performance has teachingand communicative functions.Code-switching is a language phenomenon with many possibilities andflexibilities. With the ever-changing development of language, society, and culture, itsstudy will tend to be more multidimensional. The present study gives some inspirationsfor English teachers and students on the code-switching use in language teaching,learning and performance. Additionally, the findings of the study provide fresherevidence for the study of code-switching and verification for Adaptation Theory.