Translanguaging Practices Of EMI Teachers:A Case Study

Recent studies on translanguaging have proved its educational values,yet only a few have discussed how in-service teachers can actually incorporate it into classroom pedagogy.Although many teachers hold positive attitudes towards pedagogical translanguaging,there is a mismatch between their beliefs and practices,which indicates a need for further investigation into the use of pedagogical translanguaging as a social practice.Against this backdrop,the present study focuses on when,how,and why English-medium instruction(EMI)teachers establish a translanguaging space to utilize individuals’ multilingual,multimodal and multisensory resources to negotiate subject-specific knowledge.Based on data collected through video-assisted classroom observation and semi-structured interviews,triangulated with field notes,this study uses translanguaging as an analytical perspective to explore four EMI science teachers’ practices and perceptions of pedagogical translanguaging in a secondary school in Shanghai.The data are analyzed using Multimodal Conversation Analysis and Thematic Analysis.This study identifies five types of teachers’ translanguaging practices:translanguaging shifts,bringing the outside in,using whole meaning-making repertoire,enhancing metalinguistic awareness,and constructing fun with words,which are conducted mainly for two purposes: 1)deepening students’ understanding of new knowledge;2)enlivening the classroom atmosphere.Although these teachers hold distinct perceptions(virtual,maximal,and optimal position),they share similarities in teaching principles(comprehension-based,efficiency-driven,and activity-centered).Moreover,the consistency and divergence of their practices and perceptions also shed light upon the influencing factors: social community,characteristics of students,and educational backgrounds of teachers.This study not only contributes to a better understanding of translanguaging as a practical theory,but also makes it visible and actionable for teachers to put pedagogical translanguaging into practice,which is a newestablished line of applied linguistics research in educational contexts.