Translanguaging in EFL Classrooms: Practice and Implications for Lecturers from Students’ Lens

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte.24443

Keywords:

translanguaging, EFL, code-switching, pedagogy

Abstract

Translanguaging, introduced by Cen William, refers to using two or more languages in the same lessons in a bilingual classroom. Although sharing certain similarities with code-switching as a phenomenon, Translanguaging has been developed to be a teaching method in EFL classrooms as an adaptive, innovative response to the dynamic changes in the modern scenario in which internationalization and digitalization are the central influential factors. However, in the Vietnamese context, Translanguaging is still questionable among stakeholders as it challenges the well-established ELT traditional approaches. The study sought to uncover contextual insights regarding the use and efficacy of translanguaging in EFL classrooms by analyzing quantitative and qualitative data. An online survey, with both Likert-type items and open-ended questions, was administered to collect data from 183 university students from a university in Ho Chi Minh city. In addition, qualitative data were obtained from semi-structured interviews with ten students from the same group. Although the findings show positive aspects of translanguaging in action, they also reveal the challenges that the theories provide for both the instructor and students in acquiring English at the tertiary level.

Author Biographies

  • Pham Huong Ngoc Uyen, HCMC University of Economics and Finance, Vietnam

    Ms. Pham Huong Ngoc Uyen is currently a lecturer at HCMC University of Economics and Finance. For over ten years, she has taught English Linguistics and General English courses in international undergraduate joint programs. She holds a Master's degree in Applied Linguistics from Curtin University, Australia, and earned her Bachelor's degree in English Language Teaching from the HCMC University of Pedagogy. Currently, as she is a Ph.D. candidate at HCMC University of Social Sciences and Humanities, her research fields of interest are the application of innovative methods in ELT, the promotion of students’ motivation, and other varied aspects of linguistics, which can change and make an impact in all directions of life.

  • Nguyen Trang Dung, Ho Chi Minh University of Technology, Vietnam

    Nguyen Trang Dung has been a lecturer of English at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology for 15 years since her graduation from Ho Chi Minh City University of Education in 2008. As a teacher, she is also a source of inspiration, even if not with the actual content of the lesson but with her attitude. Teaching keeps her brain young, allowing her to continue her own journey as a lifelong leaner. It was not until obtaining Master Degree in Applied Linguistics from University of Curtin in 2012 that made her aware of the great interest in second language acquisition.

References

Akbar, R. S. S., & Taqi, H. A. (2020). Translanguaging as an ESL Learning strategy: A case study in Kuwait. International Journal of Higher Education, 9(6), 54-63. https://doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v9n6p54

Ali, H. I. (2020). Omani Students’ Coping Strategies in an English Medium Engineering Programme. Arab World English Journal, 11(2), 361–382. https://doi.org/https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol11no2.25

Anderson, J. (2017). Reimagining English language learners from a translingual perspective. ELT Journal, 72(1), 26–37.

Aoyama, R. (2020). Exploring Japanese high school students’ L1 use in translanguaging in the communicative EFL classroom. The Electronic Journal for English as a Second Language, 23(4), 1-19.

Baker, C. (2011). Foundations of bilingual education and bilingualism. New York: Mc Naughton & Gunn Ltd.

Canagarajah, S. (2011). Codemeshing in Academic Writing: Identifying Teachable Strategies of Translanguaging. The Modern Language Journal, 95(3), 401-417.

Carstens, A. (2016). Translanguaging as a vehicle for L2 acquisition and L1 development: Students’ perceptions. Language Matters, 47(2), 203-222.

Chi, D. N. (2017). Issues in the implementation of bilingual education in Vietnam. TESOL Working Paper Series, 15, 96-113.

Creese, A., & Blackledge, A. (2010). Translanguaging in the bilingual classroom: A pedagogy for learning and teaching. The Modern Language Journal, 94, 103–115.

Del Valle, J. (2000). Monoglossic policies for a heteroglossic culture: Misinterpreted multilingualism in modern Galicia. Language and Communication, 20, 105–132.

Du, Y. (2016). The L1 in L2 Learning and Teaching. The Use of First and Second Language in Chinese University EFL Classrooms, 15-44. Singapore: Springer Singapore.

Escobar, C. F., & Dillard-Paltrineri, E. (2015). Professors’ and Students’ Conflicting Beliefs about Translanguaging in the EFL Classroom: Dismantling the Monolingual Bia. Revista De Lenguas Modernas (San José. En Línea)/Revista De Lenguas Modernas (San José. Impresa), 23. https://doi.org/10.15517/rlm.v0i23.22355.

Ferguson, C. A. (1959). Diglossia. WORD, 15(2), 325–340. https://doi.org/10.1080/00437956.1959.11659702

García, O. (2009). Education, multilingualism and translanguaging in the 21st century. In A. K. Mohanty, M. Panday, R. Phillipson, & T. Skutnabb-Kangas (Eds.), Multilingual Education for Social Justice: Globalising the Local, 140–158. Orient Blackswan.

García, O. (2014). What is translanguaging? Expanded questions and answers for U.S. educators. In Introduction to Translanguaging in curriculum and instruction: A CUNY-NYSIEB guide for educators. New York, NY: CUNY-NYSIEB.

García, O., & Hesson, S. (2015). Translanguaging frameworks for teachers: Macro and micro perspectives. In A. Yiakoumetti (Ed.), Multlingualism and Langauge in Education, 221–241. Cambridge University Press.

Garcia, O., & Wei, L. (2014). Translanguaging and education. In Translanguaging: Language, bilingualism, and education, 63–77. Palgrave Pivot, London.

Gardner-Chloros, P. (2009). Code-switching. Cambridge University Press

Goodman, B., & Tastanbek, S. (2021). Making the shift from a codeswitching to a translanguaging lens in English language teacher education. TESOL Quarterly, 55(1), 29-53. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.571

Kamwangamalu, N. M. (2010). Multilingualism and codeswitching in education. In Multilingual Matters eBooks (pp. 116-142). https://doi.org/10.21832/9781847692849-007

Kleyn, T., & García, O. (2019). Translanguaging as an act of transformation: restructuring teaching and learning for emergent bilingual students. In L. C. De Oliveira (Ed.), The Handbook of TESOL in K-12 (pp. 69–82). John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119421702.ch6

Holdway, J., & Hitchcock, C. H. (2018). Exploring ideological becoming in professional development for teachers of multilingual learners: Perspectives on translanguaging in the classroom. Teaching and Teacher Education, 75, 60-70.

Hornberger, N. H., & McKay, S. (2010). Sociolinguistics and language education, 116–142. Springer.

Huan, Yang., Joseph, Foley. (2024). Translanguaging as Interactional Resources Employed by Students in EFL Student-Led Group Task Interaction. Journal of English Language and Linguistics, 5(1), 33-54. https://doi.org/10.62819/jel.2024.145

Jingxia, L. (2010). Teachers’ Code-Switching to the L1 in EFL Classroom. The Open Applied Linguistics Journal 3,10–23.

Kim, Y., & Petraki, E. (2009). Students’ and teachers’ use of and attitudes to L1 in the EFL classroom. Asian EFL Journal, 11(4), 58-89.

Kwihangana, F. (2021). Enhancing EFL students’ participation through translanguaging. ELT Journal. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccaa058

Lewis, G., Jones, B., & Baker, C. (2012). Translanguaging: origins and development from school to street and beyond. Educational Research and Evaluation: An International Journal on Theory and Practice, 18(7), 641–654.

Liu, D. (2021). A study of graduate students’ perceptions towards pedagogical translanguaging at an international university in Bangkok. (Master thesis). Thailand: Assumption University. https://repository.au.edu/handle/6623004553/24818

Lubliner, S., & Grisham, D. L. (2017). Translanguaging. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.

Matamoros-González, J. A., Asunción Rojas, M. a., Pizarro Romero, J., Vera-Quiñonez, S., & Soto, S. T. (2017). English language teaching approaches: a comparison of the Grammar translation, Audiolingual, Communicative, and Natural Approaches. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 7(11). https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0711.04

Maryvone, Cunha, de, Morais., Lilian, Cristine, Hübner., Anamaria, Kurtz, de, Souza, Welp. (2023). Translinguagem na educação bilíngue: Uma análise das práticas orais nas interações de estudantes do 5° ano. Ilha do Desterro. A Journal of English Language, Literatures in English and Cultural Studies, 76(3). https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-8026.2023.e94548

MOET. (2008). National Foreign Language 2020 Project. Hanoi, VN: Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training.

Myers-Scotton, C. (1993). Common and uncommon ground: Social and structural factors in codeswitching. Language in Society, 22, 475–503.

Nambisan, K. A. (2014). Teachers’ attitudes towards and uses of translanguaging in English language classrooms in Iowa. Iowa State University, Faculty of Arts.

Nazary, M. (2008). The Role of L1 in L2 Acquisition: Attitudes of Iranian University Students. Novitas-ROYAL. 2(2):138–53

Nguyen, T. N. T. (2022). A review of studies on EFL teachers’ and students’ perceptions of translanguaging as a pedagogical approach. International Journal of TESOL & Education, 2(3), 324–331. https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte.222322

Otheguy, R., García, O., & Reid, W. (2015). Clarifying translanguaging and deconstructing named languages: A perspective from linguistics. Applied Linguistics Review, 6(3), 281-307.

Piller, I. (2016). Linguistic Diversity and Social Justice: An Introduction to Applied Sociolinguistics.Oxford University Press, 21.

Qiu, X., & Fang, C. (2019). Creating an effective English-Medium Instruction (EMI) classroom: Chinese undergraduate students’ perceptions of native and non-native English-speaking content teachers and their experiences. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 1–15. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2019.1707769

Rivera, A. J. & Mazak, C. M. (2017). Analyzing student perceptions on translanguaging: A case study of a Puerto Rican university classroom. How, 24(1), 122-138.

Romanowski, P. (2020). Perceptions of Translanguaging among the Students and Teachers of EMI Classrooms in Poland. Lenguas Modernas 55, 151 - 165

Tan, N. S., & Low, H. M. (2017). Socio-environmental factors impacting on teachers’ attitudes towards code-switching in ESL classrooms in a rural district in Malaysia. Kajian Malaysia, 35(2), 105–125. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.21315/km2017.35.2.6

Üstünel, E. & Paul, S. (2005). ‘Why That, in That Language, Right Now? Code-Switching and Pedagogical Focus’. International Journal of Applied Linguistics 15(3),302–325.

Van, H. V. (n.d.). Interpreting MOET’s 2018 general education English curriculum. VNU Journal of Foreign Studies. https://doi.org/10.25073/2525-2445/vnufs.4866

Vogel, S., & Garcia, O. (2017). Translanguaging. In G. Noblit & L. Moll (Eds.), Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315752617-9

Wong, Y., & Yoong, D. (2019). ESL teachers’ perceptions and practices of code-switching in a Malaysian Chinese independent secondary school. Journal of Modern Languages, 29, 45–66. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.22452/jml.vol29no1.3

Williams, C. (1994). Arfarniad o ddulliau dysgu ac addysgu yng nghyd-destun addysg uwchradd ddwyieithog. Evaluation of teaching and learning methods in the context of bilingual secondary education. University of Wales.

Williams, C. (2000). Bilingual teaching and language distribution at 16+. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 3(2), 129–148.

Yamagami, T. (2023). The Impact of L2 Motivational Self System and Students’ Perceptions of English Proficiency on Attitudes toward Translanguaging. International Journal of TESOL & Education, 3(1), 154–170. https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte.233110

Yuvayapan, F. (2019). Translanguaging in EFL classrooms: Teachers’ perceptions and practices. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 15(2), 678-694

Zhou, X. & Mann, S. (2021). Translanguaging in a Chinese University CLIL Classroom: Teacher strategies and student attitudes. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 11 (2), 265–289. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2021.11.2.5

Downloads

Published

07-10-2024

Issue

Section

Research Article

How to Cite

Pham, H. N. U., & Nguyen, T. D. (2024). Translanguaging in EFL Classrooms: Practice and Implications for Lecturers from Students’ Lens. International Journal of TESOL & Education, 4(4), 54-68. https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte.24443

Similar Articles

11-20 of 83

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.