Ofelia García - Translanguaging

Summary

The video script discusses the concept of translanguaging, emphasizing its importance for bilingual education. It highlights that bilinguals use a unified language repertoire rather than separate languages, and that translanguaging empowers speakers by eliminating language hierarchies. The script calls for a shift in educational practices to include the full linguistic repertoire of bilingual students, advocating for a more equitable approach that acknowledges and validates their language practices. It also outlines the need for a stance that goes beyond traditional language teaching, focusing on the transformative potential of translanguaging for identity and learning.

Takeaways

• 🌐 Translanguaging is the practice of using language as a unified system for meaning-making, rather than as separate languages.
• 👶 The concept of translanguaging was inspired by observing bilingual children and their natural language use in classrooms.
• 🏛 It challenges the traditional view of language as fixed and separate entities, emphasizing the fluidity of bilingual language use.
• 🌟 Translanguaging empowers bilingual speakers by recognizing their full linguistic repertoire instead of just the 'named languages'.
• 🎓 In education, translanguaging can lead to more equitable teaching and assessment practices for bilingual students.
• 🔄 Translanguaging involves a shift from viewing languages hierarchically to recognizing the integrated language practices of bilingual individuals.
• 🏫 A translanguaging classroom validates both community practices and those sanctioned in schools, offering opportunities for students to use their full linguistic repertoire.
• 💡 The importance of translanguaging lies in its potential to address social justice issues and create a more level playing field for language minority students.
• 🛠️ Implementing translanguaging in the classroom requires a stance that goes beyond traditional language teaching, focusing on the integration and transformation of language features.
• 🧩 Translanguaging is not just about scaffolding understanding for new learners but also about transforming the identity and subjectivity of bilingual students.
• 🌱 The practice of translanguaging encourages the development of a unitary bilingual voice, which is unique to each individual and not simply a combination of separate languages.

Q & A

What is the concept of translanguaging?

Translanguaging is the practice of using language as a unitary meaning-making system, where bilingual speakers select from their full linguistic repertoire to communicate effectively, rather than seeing their languages as separate entities.

Why is it important to consider translanguaging in education?

Considering translanguaging in education is important because it acknowledges the full linguistic repertoire of bilingual students, allowing them to use their language skills more effectively and fairly in both learning and assessment.

What does the speaker mean by 'unitary repertoire'?

The 'unitary repertoire' refers to the complete set of linguistic resources that a bilingual person possesses, from which they draw upon to communicate, rather than having separate and distinct languages.

How does the concept of translanguaging challenge traditional language hierarchies?

Translanguaging challenges traditional language hierarchies by rejecting the idea that some languages are dominant or superior to others. It emphasizes the power of the speaker to use all available linguistic features without hierarchy.

What is the difference between multilingualism and translanguaging?

Multilingualism often refers to the existence of multiple languages in a hierarchical structure, with a dominant language and others that are secondary. Translanguaging, on the other hand, views language as a unified system without such hierarchies, focusing on the speaker's ability to use all linguistic features.

What is the significance of the child's quote 'English rules my veins' in the context of translanguaging?

The child's quote signifies the deep integration of language in their identity, suggesting that language is not just a tool for communication but also a part of who they are, which is a key concept in understanding translanguaging.

Why is it crucial to validate bilingual community practices in the classroom?

Validating bilingual community practices in the classroom is crucial because it respects and incorporates the natural way bilinguals communicate, which is through translanguaging, and it promotes a more inclusive and effective learning environment.

What are the three components of a translanguaging classroom?

The three components of a translanguaging classroom are stance (the beliefs and attitudes towards language), design (the structure and organization of the classroom to support translanguaging), and shifts (the dynamic adjustments made during teaching to accommodate translanguaging).

How does translanguaging address issues of social justice in education?

Translanguaging addresses social justice by ensuring that bilingual students are not disadvantaged by assessments and teaching that only consider a part of their linguistic repertoire, thus promoting a more equitable educational experience.

What is the 'juntos dance' mentioned in the script, and what does it represent?

The 'juntos dance' is a metaphor for the collaborative and integrated use of language features in translanguaging. It represents the idea that all linguistic features work together harmoniously, contributing to the bilingual individual's complex and dynamic identity.

How does the concept of translanguaging relate to the idea of an idiolect?

Translanguaging relates to the idea of an idiolect by emphasizing that each speaker has a unique linguistic repertoire that is shaped by their personal experiences and interactions, which they draw upon to communicate in a personalized way.

Outlines

00:00

🌐 Understanding Translanguaging

The speaker introduces the concept of translanguaging as a holistic approach to language use, emphasizing that bilingual individuals draw from a single, unified linguistic repertoire rather than switching between distinct languages. They highlight the importance of recognizing bilinguals' language as an integrated system, which challenges the traditional societal perspective of separate, named languages. The speaker's experience as a bilingual teacher informs this view, with insights gained from observing children's natural language use in the classroom. The summary also touches on the limitations of viewing language through a hierarchical lens, suggesting that translanguaging offers a more inclusive and accurate representation of bilingualism.

05:01

🌟 Empowering the Speaker through Translanguaging

This paragraph delves into the empowerment of bilingual speakers through translanguaging, which removes the power from nation-states and standardized languages and places it firmly with the speaker. The speaker discusses the idea of an 'idiolect', a personal language repertoire that each individual shapes, and how translanguaging allows for the full expression of this repertoire in communication. The classroom is metaphorically referred to as 'Rams' language', indicating the ever-present nature of translanguaging in multilingual settings. The paragraph also emphasizes the importance of recognizing and leveraging translanguaging in education for social justice, arguing that failing to do so results in an unfair assessment and instruction of bilingual students.

10:02

📚 Translanguaging in the Classroom: The How and Why

The speaker outlines the importance of incorporating translanguaging in educational practices, focusing on the 'why' behind this approach. They argue that ignoring translanguaging can lead to educational injustice, as it limits the linguistic capabilities of bilingual students. The paragraph discusses the necessity of a shift in educational paradigms to account for translanguaging, including the need for teachers to adopt certain stances, such as going beyond named languages and considering the construction of a unitary bilingual voice. The speaker also introduces the concept of 'juntos', or together, to describe the collaborative and transformative potential of translanguaging in the classroom.

15:03

🌱 Translanguaging as a Transformative Educational Practice

In the final paragraph, the speaker discusses the transformative nature of translanguaging, positioning it as a practice that goes beyond simple language switching to a deeper engagement with language and identity. They emphasize that translanguaging is not just about scaffolding understanding for students but about transforming their sense of self and language capabilities. The speaker also touches on the broader implications of translanguaging, suggesting that it can help to redress power imbalances and challenge colonial and nation-building narratives that have shaped traditional language conceptions.

Keywords

💡Translanguaging

Translanguaging refers to the dynamic use of a speaker's full linguistic repertoire, rather than viewing language as separate entities. It is central to the video's theme, emphasizing the importance of recognizing bilinguals' fluid language use. In the script, the concept is introduced as a way to understand bilinguals as having one integrated language system from which they draw upon features as needed, rather than as two distinct languages.

💡Unitary Language Repertoire

The term 'unitary language repertoire' describes the speaker's complete set of linguistic resources, which includes both language forms and functions. It is integral to the video's message, illustrating that bilinguals do not compartmentalize languages but rather use them as a cohesive system. The script mentions that bilinguals select features from this repertoire to communicate effectively, highlighting the interconnectedness of their linguistic abilities.

💡Bilingual

A bilingual is an individual who has proficiency in two languages. The script discusses bilinguals in the context of translanguaging, emphasizing that their language use is not a simple combination of two separate languages but a complex, integrated system. The concept is used to challenge traditional views of language separation and to advocate for a more holistic understanding of bilingualism.

💡Epistemology

Epistemology is the study of knowledge and how it is acquired and understood. In the script, it is mentioned in relation to the bilingual child's internal perspective of language, suggesting that education should start from the child's own understanding of their linguistic abilities, rather than from external societal norms.

💡Multilingualism

Multilingualism typically refers to the ability to use multiple languages, often with a hierarchy where one language is dominant. The script critiques this concept, suggesting that it still imposes a hierarchy on languages and does not fully respect the bilingual's integrated language system. It is contrasted with translanguaging, which does not recognize language hierarchies.

💡Plurilingualism

Plurilingualism is a more inclusive concept than multilingualism, acknowledging partial competence in multiple languages. However, the script points out that it still maintains a hierarchy of languages and does not fully empower the speaker. It is presented as an intermediate step towards the more liberating perspective of translanguaging.

💡Language Hierarchies

Language hierarchies refer to the ranking of languages based on societal dominance or importance. The script argues against these hierarchies, stating that they detract from the bilingual's full linguistic potential. Translanguaging is presented as a way to dismantle these hierarchies and empower the speaker by focusing on their repertoire rather than on separate languages.

💡Idiolect

An idiolect is the unique language variety that a particular individual uses, shaped by personal experiences and linguistic habits. The script mentions the idiolect in the context of translanguaging, suggesting that each bilingual speaker shapes their own language repertoire, reflecting their individual way of making meaning.

💡Social Justice

Social justice is the concept of creating a fair and inclusive society. The script connects translanguaging to social justice, arguing that failing to incorporate translanguaging in education does a disservice to language minority children by not fully acknowledging their linguistic abilities. It suggests that translanguaging can help level the playing field for bilingual students.

💡Assessment

Assessment in education refers to the process of evaluating students' knowledge and skills. The script criticizes traditional assessment methods for not considering the full linguistic repertoire of bilingual students, arguing that this results in an unfair evaluation. It suggests that translanguaging should be incorporated into assessments to more accurately measure bilingual students' abilities.

💡Transformative

The term 'transformative' in the script refers to the potential of translanguaging to change and enrich the bilingual student's sense of identity and language use. It is not just about facilitating understanding but about allowing students to develop a complex and dynamic bilingual voice that is uniquely their own.

Highlights

Translanguaging defined as using language as a unitary meaning-making system for bilingual speakers.

Bilinguals select from a single language repertoire, not separate languages, to communicate effectively.

The concept of translanguaging was inspired by observing children in bilingual classrooms.

External societal perspective sees languages as separate, standardized entities.

Internal perspective of bilinguals views language as an entanglement of cultural and linguistic practices.

Translanguaging emphasizes the importance of the speaker's language repertoire over named languages.

The difference between multilingualism, plurilingualism, and translanguaging in terms of language hierarchy and power.

Translanguaging removes language hierarchies and empowers the speaker, not the nation-state.

The importance of recognizing the bilingual child's epistemology in teaching and assessment.

Translanguaging classrooms validate both community practices and those sanctioned in schools.

The injustice of not considering translanguaging in education, leading to unfair treatment of language minority children.

Translanguaging as a transformative process that goes beyond scaffolding for understanding.

The necessity of a shift in teaching and assessment practices to include translanguaging.

Three components of a translanguaging classroom: stance, design, and shift.

Beliefs necessary for a translanguaging stance, including going beyond named languages.

Translanguaging as a means to construct a unitary bilingual voice and transform student subjectivity.

Translanguaging's role in redressing power differentials and challenging coloniality of power in language conceptions.

Translanguaging as dwelling in borderlands, not just crossing borders, to embrace linguistic and cultural entanglement.

Transcripts

[Applause]

so what is translanguaging why

translanguaging is using language as a

unitary meaning making system of the

speakers that what we have to remember

is that translanguaging it's always with

all of us who are bilinguals right you

may be hearing what you think is English

now but I am selecting from my unitary

repertoire signs that you say they're

English and I recognize this English

right but so it's not that English and

Spanish do not exist it is that from my

own perspective what I have is I have

one language repertoire from which I

select features that are appropriate to

communicate so and this was given to me

by a child cause always children know

best and it's important to know that I

didn't think of this in my head I saw

this because I started out as a

bilingual teacher and all my life I've

worked in classrooms with teachers and I

would go in and the teachers would say

or today I'm teaching in Spanish and

then I would go in and the children were

using their entire language repertoire

the teachers were sometimes and also

using English and when I asked one child

one day well what is happening here he

said to me well even though Spanish from

through my heart

English rules my veins and I thought

okay we have to think then how do we

teach this bilingual child so that it's

a whole system it is not separate as we

see it right so just to review just

remind you there are two perspectives

one is the external societal perspective

from which we say there are two

named languages named languages as

standardized conventions that belong to

nation states and this is important and

that schools teach and test so they're

very important now notice I'm not saying

that they're not important I'm saying

that they are important

except we cannot start there if we start

there we are not starting from the

epistemology of a bilingual child right

if we start there it doesn't work we are

talking about the internal perspective

of the speaker the language as a unitary

meaning making system of speakers that

is always with them and that reflects

this entanglement of world's cultural

practice and words linguistic practices

in which all bilinguals

are always immersed right and that I'm

saying that that is most important and

what we do in schools is we emphasize

that part and ignore the language

repertoire of the child right so I'm

saying that both are important but I'm

saying that this is most important and

that's what we miss sometimes right so I

just want to sort of think about these

three concepts that we constantly work

with the idea of multi lingual is and

flora lingual ism of translanguaging

multilingualism in the way that we use

it in the United States which I know is

not the way that the European that the

Council of Europe has used but

multilingualism in the way that we use

it refers to someone having a dominant

language an l1 and then having l2 and l3

that are below is a hierarchical

relationship because we're thinking of

what is dominant in society that's goes

first and then the others are afterwards

the plurilingualism concept does better

but they still are they're talking about

languages and I still think they're

talking about bringing together the

European citizens and therefore they

talk about the partial competence that

people could have in second and third

and fourth languages so again there's

still the hierarchy there's still the

power really is in the language right

not in the speaker translanguaging thus

away with the language hierarchies and

returns the power to the speaker not to

the nation-state but to the speaker

what do speakers do and that's why we

have only one box that has no

hierarchical relationships and we're

talking about features that are not that

internal internally we have that are not

l1 and l2 and l3 their ends they're ours

right so features that there are ours

they're the speakers and that we select

as we make ourselves known okay so now

I'm turning into the classroom I have

called it that Rams language in Korean

take the current right because sometimes

we see it sometimes we don't but it's

always there when you work with

multilingual children it's always there

right and I think often it's like being

at the shore you know I love the sea and

I am what I'm not sure I say well where

does a sea begin and where the system

begin depends right and it's the same

with our languages when our languages

are internal we don't know when one ends

and the other begins

right so it's this idea that we're

talking about beyond languages and that

this current is always with us right so

Ricardo especially

talks about the speaker's idiolect

shaping their own language repertoire we

all have an idea left right that is ours

and this of course is also surrounded by

this communicative repertoire so it's

not only our linguistic repertoire which

is related to our idiolect but also how

we surrounded by gestures by context by

other ways of making meaning and how we

bring that forth as hints so that you we

select what it is that is important so

that you here construct or not a message

I hope that you're constructing a

message but I don't know right I I speak

I hope that you might select science and

I hope give you hints of what you should

be thinking about but you are

constructing a message or not right okay

so that's what translanguaging is about

translanguaging is that act that takes

you into a translanguaging space space

when we deploy we deploy the features of

our four repertoire

ah and that then there's a transaction

between the interlocutors right so

that's that's the idea so what is a

translanguaging classroom that a

translanguaging catalyst room then takes

into account the students unitary

linguistic system and gives

opportunities to deploy their full

linguistic repertoire and not only the

particular name languages right so both

things and it validates the bilingual

community practices as well as those

sanction in schools because it's

important to remember that all bilingual

communities trans language it is the

norm in bilingual communities to do it

this way right it's just school

that do not allow the children to to do

it right

so why translanguaging what is it and

how is it done so I think it's very

important to first always remember the

why right because without the why

doesn't make any sense any of the work

we do does not make any sense so one of

the important things is to make sure

that we understand that when

translanguaging is not taken into

account you are doing injustice to the

children to language minorities children

you are not being fair you are not

thinking of social justice you are not

thinking of how to make the situation

more equal so one thing is that when you

teach them you're only mobilizing less

than half of their repertoire you're

leaving

another big part away not considering it

and I think even more important when you

assess them when you test them you are

testing them in less than half of their

repertoire so it's very important to

remember that this shift that has to

take place has to take place because if

you don't take translanguaging into

account you are instructing the children

with less than half of the repertoire

and you're assessing only less than half

of their repertoire so of course they're

always going to do poorer than

monolingual children because monolingual

children are being assessed with almost

their full repertoire almost because

sometimes not all but almost a full

repertoire with our bilingual children

you're only assessing less than half of

it so you know I I say well it's like

assessing drummers someone plays with

the two hands the other one only plays

with one and you're thinking that the

sound has to be the same impossible

right so I think it's important to think

of the why but then the what and in the

translanguaging classroom we talk about

three

components one the stands that is the

belief the attitude that you have to

have because before you start teaching

you have to have a stance you have to

have a belief positions right the second

thing is a design how do you design a

classroom so that you can really make

this work

and the third thing is a shift because

if even after you're designing

classrooms even after you've gotten your

lesson plan even after you have grouped

the students so that they can work

together there are times in teaching

which after all of you know will teach

well you have to change right so there

has to be shifts and and it's important

to think of when the ships have to occur

so let me first start with a stance with

a belief right one belief is that you

have to go beyond the name languages

right oh the name languages themselves

are not enough another belief is that

you have to think of how to construct a

unitary bilingual voice that is their

own not just the languages isolated

another belief is that this has to be

done not only for scaffolding teachers

often believe in translanguaging right

away as a scaffold as a way of

facilitating meaning for students but

what they have a hard time doing is

thinking of what are the transformations

that take place through translanguaging

right so I think I always like to talk

about not the scaffolding part not not

translanguaging for the child who came

in yesterday and therefore you have to

use translanguaging cause otherwise he

or she doesn't understand what's going

on but for the child was already

bilingual how do you transform the sense

of who they are their subjectivity

through translanguaging so we call it

the juntos dance together stands juntos

in Spanish means to get

there and one of the things and so these

are the four stances that we work with

so that the teachers understand that the

bilingual students do not have except

separate name languages but that these

all the features work juntos right they

work together that they also are not

simply two different people that they do

not have two separate identities if

you're gonna stay you have one identity

one identity that is complex and dynamic

and that shifts but it's one identity

and you have to remember that there is

this whom to identity the other thing is

that there is no second language

acquisition in the traditional sense but

that what we are doing is we are helping

students acquire 'unto the the old

features and the new features so that

they can then create they can

appropriate these new features into

their own language repertoire so it's

not that of the other it's not that of

the Germans is not that of the Americans

it is their own right so that's that's

one thing and then the idea that it's

not simply a scaffold but that it could

be transformative just to end and to

summarize so translanguaging has to do

with dwelling in the border in these

border lands with a linguistically

minoritized it has to it's important

because it redresses the power

differentials and the systems of control

that have been installed in the

conceptions of languages and sign

systems by colonial expansion and

nation-building secondly it is not

simple border crossing

but dwelling in the world and the word

entangled through and by the coloniality

of power and and thirdly it's going

beyond name languages you don't

[Applause]

you