Code-switching is the phenomenon occuring for affective and pedagogical reasons. The main speculation is how attuned teachers are to applying code-switching. This study aims to disclose the pedagogical and affective practices of teachers performing code-switching in EFL classrooms at a private university in Gaziantep, Turkey. The present study seeks to explain the affective and pedagogical reasons for teachers’ code-switching in the language learning context. Similarly, it aims to make a clear statement on the affective and pedagogical factors influencing teachers’ code-switching in the EFL context. Another purpose of this study is to elucidate teachers’ decision-making processes, whether consciously or unconsciously, and their purposes of usage during stimulated recall interviews. This study also aims to help teachers better understand how they express and reflect their opinions about their code-switching practices. Data were gathered through classroom observations with video and audio recording, semi-structured teacher interviews. The findings indicate that teachers’ code-switching frequently served to support students’ understanding of unfamiliar concepts, where the pedagogical focus was on the subject matter rather than language itself (Cahyani et al., 2016). It also involved managing students’ behavior and engaging in interpersonal and affective interactions with them.

social interaction, code-switching, language function