Translanguaging as pedagogy in a superdiversity classroom: Constraints and opportunities

The present study investigated perceived and expected opportunities and constraints of translanguaging as pedagogy in a linguistically heterogeneous classroom. For this purpose, an expert consultation was conducted with central actors in the educational field. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 scholars, 8 teachers, and 31 students, as based on lesson observations in four schools with a superdiversity population. A phenomenological methodology with iterative nature was adopted. The results are subdivided in three parts: 1) a general part relatively independent of context, 2) a part where translanguaging serves a direct need because students are not yet fluent in the lingua franca, and 3) a part where students are also fluent in the lingua franca and where translanguaging is rather an opportunity, e.g. for sustaining the home language, than a need. The debates that emerged based on opportunities and constraints revolve around terminology, the desirability of a ground-up pedagogy, side-effects of using other languages, a promultilingual stance in research and policy, mutism versus scaffolding as crutch, English and other semiotic resources, direct emotional functionality, effort, and confusion. Variation existed both between and within perspectives. The study provided questions and debates for further research and results strongly suggest to combine different lines of research but also views from various involved perspectives