Translanguaging Practices In University CFL Classrooms

Translanguaging,a dynamic and complex way of bilingual or multilingual communicative interaction,is currently receiving an increasing amount of attention in the literature on bilingual education.The present study has continued that focus by examining the Translanguaging practices in the CFL classrooms of a university in Chinese mainland.The study examined four types of Translanguaging activities in the elementary CFL teaching classrooms.The effect that Translanguaging can have on the international students’ CFL learning has also been explored.The study also looked at how Translanguaging pedagogy can improve CFL class teaching quality,according to the observation of an International Chinese study program at three international teaching CFL classes in a university over a six-week period.This study adopted ethnographic method,involving classroom observations,interviews and fieldwork notes,in order to develop a comprehensive outlook on Translanguaging practices in the BE program.Classroom observation in three classes(1A,1B and 1C)on three different CFL courses(elementary comprehensive,elementary speaking and elementary listening)served as the primary tool to collect data.Two Chinese CFL teachers and four international students who enrolled in this CFL learning at an International Education School,took part in interviews about Translanguaging phenomenon.Findings from the study illustrated that Translanguaging is a common and outstanding phenomenon in almost all CFL courses in the program.The Translanguaging activities in the elementary CFL classes can be approximately classified into four groups: bilingual label quest,simultaneous code-mixing,cross-language recapping,and dual-language substantiation.Furthermore,the study further examined the ways that international students engage with CFL learning in a Translanguaging perspective.The study also explored the CFL teachers’ attitude towards the rationality of the natural emergence of the Translanguaging teaching pedagogy and supportiveness for the practices of Translanguaging in the CFL bilingual program.The results of the study contribute to an understanding of the international students’ CFL education in Chinese mainland by using the new lens of Translanguaging perspective.Practical suggestions for pedagogy and future research were also identified.