Multilingual Pedagogy in Engineering Classroom: Students' Perceptions of Code-Switching and Code-Mixing

Abstract

Code-switching (CS) and code-mixing (CM) are considered as pedagogical approaches that help effective teaching and learning in multilingual engineering classrooms. It is used widely in higher education but there is limited research to find out students’ views on these multilingual practices in engineering institutions. The study examines the role of CS and CM as teaching-learning strategies among undergraduate engineering students at Vidyalankar Institute of Technology, Mumbai. The study used mixed-method research design which involved 100 undergraduate engineering students. Quantitative data were collected through a structured questionnaire containing 14 Likert-scale items and analysed using descriptive statistics and the Chi-square Goodness-of-Fit test. Qualitative data obtained from students' classroom interactions were analysed using thematic analysis to get better understanding of their learning experiences. The findings indicate that students have positive perceptions towards the pedagogical use of CS and CM. Participants stated that multilingual instruction improved conceptual understanding, comprehension of technical concepts, increased classroom engagement and improved confidence in communication. The qualitative findings further revealed that strategic use of Hindi and Marathi alongside English helped students to connect new engineering concepts with their prior linguistic knowledge while maintaining English technical terminology. The study concludes that CS and CM work as effective learner-centred teaching methods that complement English-medium teaching rather than replace it. The findings support to multilingual pedagogy in engineering education and suggest that the thoughtful use of students' first languages can promote inclusive, interactive, and conceptually effective learning environments in linguistically diverse higher education institutions.