Research-based pedagogy
Develop and utilise a child’s whole linguistic repertoire for communication and meaning making using PerLinguas.
What progressive pedagogical goals can we achieve?
At the heart of a strong education lies research-based pedagogy, which empowers educators to meet the needs of diverse learners. This page explores the key ideas of Translanguaging and Plurilingualism. Translanguaging practices are embedded in a Plurilingual Approach fostering an inclusive and dynamic multilingual classroom. Discover how this approach, achievable by partnering with PerLinguas, can enrich your school community.
What is Translanguaging?
Translanguaging challenges traditional views of language use by proposing a more fluid and integrated practice.
According the Garcia 2019, “rather than possessing two or more autonomous language systems, as has been traditionally thought … all users of language, select and deploy particular features from a unitary linguistic repertoire to make meaning and to negotiate particular communicative contexts.”
Translanguaging refers to the practice of individuals using their entire linguistic repertoire to make meaning, as well as the pedagogical approach that supports this practice in the classroom.
To understand this idea I like to imagine a builder with their toolbox. Imagine it contains tools they have inherited from their relatives, tools they have collected during their apprentice days, tools they have picked up from colleagues, and perhaps even tools they have crafted themselves. When presented with a job the builder selects a tool that fits the requirements. This tool can be used in many different ways yet today it is being used to do this.
Everyone has their own linguistic toolbox in which they collect language and from which they use language. This language might be a part of a larger system such as English, Español, or 한국어 (Hangugeo/Korean). It could also be language connected to a particular place such as Bambaiya Hindi from Mumbai, or to a subculture such as Punk. The language we collect is a reflection of our experience and of our identity.
What is Plurilingualism?
Plurilingualism is the context in which translanguaging practices are embedded. A plurilingual approach views languages as interconnected, dynamic, and integrated with culture. Plurilingualism provides a:
Learner-Centred Approach: prioritising the needs and experiences of students, differentiating learning experiences to individual language profiles.
Commitment to Social Justice: grounded in principles of equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ)
Global Perspective: embracing a global context, fostering international mindedness and preparing students to bridge cultural and linguistic divides.
Collaborative Learning Community: where there is a a rich exchange of ideas, communicated in many languages with mutual respect, curiosity, and dignity.
Advocacy for Agency: empowering every member of the school community to leverage their plurilingual and pluricultural knowledge and skills to enhance their own experience and uplift the entire community.
Validation and Space for Identity Development: It creates an environment where languages and cultures are acknowledged and valued, giving all community members the ‘space’ to develop their own multifaceted identities.
To learn more about how a plurilingual approach that utilises translanguaging can transform your school…
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