'Ragazzi, can you hear me?' University teachers' and students' attitudes towards code-switching in the New Normal

Code-switching (CS) has been widely investigated in the last decades sparking a debate between enthusiasts and detractors. Recent studies have emphasised its positive aspects and the multiple functions it can serve. Still, students’ point of view is underrepresented. At the same time, the role of CS in the new, post-pandemic context is still to be explored: CS could be a powerful resource to enhance teachers’ digital interactional classroom competence (ECIC), which is crucial in video-mediated instructional settings. Our data-driven contribution addresses the above-mentioned shortcomings, by investigating university EFL teachers’ and students’ perceptions of their use of CS while interacting in the ‘new normality’. To this end, we discuss results from questionnaires distributed in the first semester of academic year 2021/2022 – a moment when remote and hybrid (both face-to-face and online) teaching modes had stepped in as the new normal after the emergency. By triangulating quantitative and qualitative data from the questionnaires and the Appraisal analysis of teachers’ and students’ open comments, this paper aims to contribute to the body of knowledge on CS as a meaningful aspect of E-CIC to improve interaction in the new teaching environments.