Code-switched vocabulary and types of talk: A case study of the L1/L2 oral interaction between Curt and Sven playing LoL

While studies on learning from playing commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) games have started to appear in second and foreign language (SFL) teaching and learning research (e.g., #_ENREF_7; #_ENREF_8), to date, few studies have focused on possible informal learning from such gameplay (e.g., #_ENREF_5; #_ENREF_6; #_ENREF_11; #_ENREF_12), and even fewer on conducting linguistic analyses of what happens in oral game interaction (#_ENREF_10). To partially fill this gap, this study focuses on the oral interaction between Swedish males Curt and Sven (both aged 18; L1 Swedish, L2 English), who are friends and frequently play League of Legends (LoL) together. LoL is a multiplayer COTS-game where players team up with known friends and/or strangers in two teams of five for matches. Grounded in linguistic theory about and previous work on the role of language play (#_ENREF_9; #_ENREF_14) and code-switching in L2 learning (#_ENREF_1; #_ENREF_2; #_ENREF_4; #_ENREF_13), this case study aims to describe how and when L2 learners’ use their L1 and L2 while engaged in oral interaction in a multiplayer videogame. Data consist of screen- and audio recordings (c. 3 hours) from five LoL-matches. An inductive qualitative approach (#_ENREF_3) was employed to analyze data linguistically, focusing on (i) code-switched vocabulary (CSV), (ii) frequency and (iii) pronunciation of CSV, and (iv) types of talk at the discourse level. Results revealed extensive use of CSV, numerous sequences of language play (e.g., creating new Swedish-English compounds, adopting innovative pronunciation), and three types of talk (meta/in-game/social). In the presentation, examples of the four factors in focus will be offered and implications for L2 English teaching will be discussed.