A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss? The Case of Mature Students in Higher Education and Their Plurilingual Repertoires

Susana Ambrósio,Maria Helena Araújo E Sá,Ana Raquel Simões

doi:10.3390/educsci9040271

Susana Ambrósio, Maria Helena Araújo E Sá + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci9040271

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Journal: Education Sciences	Publication Date: Nov 11, 2019
License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Aveiro

Abstract

This study diagnoses how the plurilingual repertoires of mature students (MS) in higher education (HE) are constructed throughout their lives. It addresses the main characteristics of MS; the contexts in which they move throughout their lives, and the situations they contact with languages. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire, mostly comprising open-ended questions. The questionnaire was emailed to 485 MS and was filled in by 195 (40.2%). The results highlight the intrinsic relationship between the MS’ life histories and the construction of their plurilingual repertoires. The findings reinforce the relevance of considering the MS’ plurilingual repertoires and life histories in the development of educational linguistic policies in HE.

Highlights

The purpose of this study is to diagnose the plurilingual repertoires of mature students (MS) in higher education (HE)
Understanding MS by means of the analysis of the development of their plurilingual repertoires contributes to a better awareness of their life journeys, namely the contexts in which they move until the moment they reach higher education (HE)
The plurilingual repertoire can be understood as a set of biographically organized resources [1], reflecting the subject’s life history and biographical trajectories [12] that are constructed in plural social interactions

Summary

Introduction

The purpose of this study is to diagnose the plurilingual repertoires of mature students (MS) in higher education (HE). This diagnosis is developed by analyzing the way the plurilingual repertoires are constructed throughout the students’ lives. Understanding MS by means of the analysis of the development of their plurilingual repertoires contributes to a better awareness of their life journeys, namely the contexts in which they move until the moment they reach higher education (HE). To analyze the construction of plurilingual repertoires throughout the life path of MS is to reinforce its biographical character, inseparable from the contexts in which the subjects move, the people with whom they live, and the choices they make throughout their life path

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