The study investigated the English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers' perceptions on the relationship between code-switching and emerging varieties of English called New Englishes, as well as the teachers' perceptions on the teaching of such local varieties of English. The inquiry adopted a qualitative research paradigm and focused on two purposively sampled secondary schools comprising one rural day, and one urban boarding school. Four ESL teachers were interviewed (two teachers per school). The inquiry revealed that there was unanimous agreement among the four teachers that there is a relationship between code-switching and New Englishes. In addition, two of the teachers expressed the view that there is nothing wrong with teaching the local variety of English in the schools, while the other two said they preferred the teaching of Standard English.The study recommends that language policy planners in Zimbabwe consider adopting a balance of the endonormative and the exo-normative models of English for the education system. Such a model, while acknowledging the importance of Standard English, would not undermine the importance of the local variety of English. In addition, the inquiry recommends that the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) be sensitive to aspects of the local variety of English rather than set exo-normative models. Finally, the study recommends that further research be done on the perceptions of ESL teachers on the teaching of Standard English and New Englishes in school types which were not included in the sample for the present study.

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This paper explores new developments in Shona lingo, whereby Shona lingo borrows words from mainstream Shona and assigns new meanings to them. The paper examines this adaptation of adoptives at the semantic level. Data were collected through observation, participant observation and a questionnaire. The paper established that Shona lingo borrows different items of grammar as they are from mainstream Shona but attaches new meanings to them. The identified resultant semantic changes include, changes in the ranges of meaning resulting in extension or narrowing the semantic content of the word, radical shift in meaning and changes in emotive value resulting in amelioration or pejorative meanings. The paper also shows how Shona lingo is reflective of the socioeconomic situation of the Zimbabwean society.

This paper investigates the teaching of English as a second language (ESL) in Zimbabwe, using Masvingo urban and peri-urban secondary schools as a case study. The study employed both the quantitative and the qualitative designs. A questionnaire and document analysis was used to gather data. The data gathered were also analysed both quantitatively and qualitatively through tables, thick descriptions and paraphrases. The study established that the structural approach and its associated methods and techniques were mainly used in the teaching of ESL, with communicative language teaching (CLT), which is recommended by the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) O-Level English syllabus, playing second fiddle. The paper concludes that this could be due to ignorance, on the part of teachers, of the principles and advantages of CLT, or it could be a result of conservatism. The paper recommends that relevant authorities, such as universities, teachers' colleges and the responsible Ministry should vigorously strive to make English Language teachers have a paradigm shift towards full implementation of CLT.

<div><p><em>The study explored perceptions of secondary school learners of English on code-switching by teachers in the teaching of English. The qualitative inquiry focused on one rural day, and one urban boarding school. The study employed focus group discussions with groups of ten Form One and ten Form Three English learners per school. Results show that from the perspective of the learners, their ESL teachers code-switched from English to the learners’ L1 as a teaching and learning tool, mainly to foster understanding among learners and between the learners and their teachers, and for other communicative functions.  The majority of the learners expressed an appreciation of their teachers’ code-switching but there were also negative sentiments. The study recommends that language policy planners revisit the English-only policy in the school and consider adopting the endo-normative rather than the exo-normative model of English for the education system. The study also recommends that the Ministry Education should hold workshops to sensitise teachers on how code-switching may best be employed as an instructional tool. Furthermore, the study recommends that ESL teachers be guided by the Postmethod pedagogy, a sense of plausibility as well as the notion of relativism in their decisions on code-switching. In addition, the inquiry recommends that the Zimbabwe Schools Examinations Council be sensitive to aspects of the local variety of English rather than set exo-normative models. Finally, the study recommends that further research be done on code-switching in school types which were not included in the sample for the present study.</em></p></div>