“Activizing” the pedagogy of multiliteracies: The dynamic, action-oriented turn with languacultural landscape studies

Olessya Akimenko

doi:10.18192/olbij.v11i1.6183

Abstract

In this article, I introduce the approach that I have named languacultural landscape (LCL), which is the advancement of linguistic landscape (LL) used as a pedagogical resource. I draw on the pedagogy of multiliteracies (PoM) and explore the potential of an LCL project to bring PoM in its fullest “critical” sense to plurilingual classrooms. The paper discusses the theoretical foundations of the LCL approach and outlines the differences and similarities between LCL and LL as pedagogical resources. I also provide recommendations on how an LCL project could be conducted in a classroom, based on an LCL research project undertaken by me in my local community. I argue that such a project could be used to not only address students’ understanding of cultural diversity by critically analyzing historical and political contexts of learning, but also as a way to reimagine the reality around them with more egalitarian cultural dynamics in mind.

Highlights

At the end of the 20th century, a group of ten educators known as the New London Group (NLG) anticipated some of these transformations by introducing the notion of multiliteracies (NLG 1996)
The purpose of this article is to explore the potential of an languacultural landscape (LCL) actionoriented research project as a way to bring pedagogy of multiliteracies (PoM) in its “critical” sense to plurilingual and pluricultural Canadian classrooms
LCL could allow students to take an activism stance and become critical researchers who work towards changing unequal power relations in the society

Summary

Introduction

Since the beginning of the 21st century, the world has changed significantly in many areas due to globalization and advancement of technology. These transformations have impacted approaches to education. 63) and stated its aim as to supplement traditional literacy pedagogy by taking into account the aforementioned multiplicity. They argued that while “mere literacy” typically focuses on language only, a pedagogy of multiliteracies (PoM) looks at multiple modes of representation. In PoM, language and other modes of meaning as representational resources are not static but are continuously being reconstructed and redesigned by the users to achieve various cultural purposes

Objectives

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Conclusion