A scoping review of research on languaging in second language education

Abstract

With the rapid development of studies on second language acquisition (SLA) and sociocultural theory, languaging has recently gained increasing attention. To assess the existing research on languaging and determine implications for future research, the present study aims to present a scoping review of research on languaging in second language (L2) education. Specifically, this study intends to explore the major subjects of languaging, the effects of languaging, the factors that may influence the effects of languaging, and the ways in which languaging is integrated into the L2 class. In total, 27 relevant peer-reviewed articles were selected for further analysis using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocol (PRISMA-P) for further analysis. The findings of this review show that a) languaging subjects are primarily pertinent to university learners; b) the facilitative effect of languaging on language learning has been verified, with written languaging being the most frequently practiced form of languaging task; c) learner language proficiency, learning style, and corrective feedback are the critical factors contributing to the effect of languaging; and d) three ways of integrating languaging into L2 classes are identified: experiment, pedagogical means, and a mixed mode of experiment and pedagogical techniques. Based on the findings of this review, a model of languaging integration was proposed in four steps: task assignment, languaging with prompts, a post-test, and reflection. This review suggests future avenues for researching and implementing languaging in L2 classes.