Review of research on digital translanguaging among teachers and students: A visual analysis through CiteSpace

Abstract

The pervasive use of digital technologies in different scenarios has led to an increasing number of empirical studies on digital translanguaging. Following the emergence of the global pandemic and its huge impact on the education sector, attention to translanguaging among teachers and students in the digital context has reached a new height. This systematic review provides scholars with a current overview of research on digital translanguaging among teachers and students by analysing research backgrounds, the methodologies used, and the research themes of interest, supported by the software CiteSpace, to visualise the structure of existing research. A search of five databases identified 32 empirical studies on digital translanguaging among teachers and students, published from 2015 to 2022. The findings reveal that research on digital translanguaging for teachers and students is characterised by two distinct directions: one focused on teaching and learning, and the other on social purposes. More specifically, the former direction encompasses three subthemes: digital translanguaging pedagogy, the effects of digital translanguaging practices on English language writing, and translanguaging practices in digital multimodal composing. The implications of these findings for future research directions and pedagogical practice are discussed.