Multilingual Backgrounds Research Articles

‘ITA problem’ or opportunity? Online global communication training at a US university to increase undergraduate students’ use of collaborative strategies

Abstract Communication requires cooperative strategies by all interlocutors. Nevertheless, US undergraduate students’ complaints about multilingual international teaching assistants (ITAs) have typically led to training and assessment for ITAs, although the undergraduates may also benefit from training in global communication. The few previous undergraduate-training attempts have generally been too intensive to offer widely and did not investigate data from international undergraduates. The current study reports on a one-hour, completely online training at a US university addressing domestic and international undergraduates’ attitudes, comprehension, and strategies relevant to global communication; it analyzes participant responses to the strategies portion. According to their own ratings, participants in the treatment group (N = 534) were more likely than a control group (N = 528) to intend to use collaborative strategies with an international instructor. Positive correlations between international or multilingual background and willingness to use collaborative strategies were low, suggesting that international students may also benefit from training. Communicative strategies proposed by the students in response to open-ended questions differed for one-on-one vs. in-class communication and suggested ways of improving training to model collaborative behaviors.

The Role of Internet to Bridge Language Gaps in Learning English as a Foreign Language in Solo's Multilingual

This study investigates the role of the internet in bridging language gaps and enhancing English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction within Solo's multilingual context. The focus is on how internet resources aid students in navigating between Bahasa Jawa, Bahasa Indonesia, and English, reflecting the multilingual dynamics of EFL classrooms. Utilizing a qualitative approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with students from grade XII public senior high schools in Solo, Central Java. The findings reveal that the internet plays a significant role in facilitating language learning by providing access to diverse resources and interactive platforms. It is reported that internet tools help them create more engaging and culturally relevant lessons, which cater to the multilingual backgrounds of the students. Students highlighted that online resources offer immediate feedback, diverse learning materials, and opportunities for practicing English in real-world contexts, which are crucial for mastering a foreign language. Moreover, the study shows that the internet supports students in developing digital literacy skills, which are essential for effective language learning in the 21st century. The use of internet-based learning tools helps students seamlessly transition between languages, enhancing their overall language proficiency and confidence in using English. This research underscores the importance of integrating internet resources in EFL education to address the unique linguistic needs of students in multilingual settings. Future studies should explore the long-term impacts of internet use on language acquisition and its potential integration with traditional teaching methods to create a more holistic and effective EFL learning environment.

Speech action patterns of Indonesian at multi-language campus

This study aims to describe the types and functions of speech acts constructed by Indonesian Language and Literature Education students at the Teaching and Education Faculty, Universitas Jambi, who have multilingual backgrounds. This research is a qualitative descriptive study. Data were collected from 30 informants. Data was collected using free listening techniques in various settings on the campus, as well as recordings and field notes. Data were analyzed using the flow technique from Miles and Huberman through the steps of data reduction, data presentation, and drawing conclusions. The data validation technique used theory and method triangulation techniques. The results of the research can be seen in events of students of Indonesian Language and Literature Education, Teaching and Education Faculty, Universitas Jambi, which is multilingual, including speech acts; (1) commission, (2) assertive, (3) declarative, (4) expressive, and (5) directive. Likewise, the function of the speech act that is revealed is a function; (1) competitive, (2) fun, (3) cooperative, (4) contradictory. The students’ multilingual background in uncovering the types and functions of speech acts consists of speakers of the language; (1) Bugis, (2) Batak, (3) Malay Jambi, (4) Javanese, (5) Palembang, (6) Kerinci, and (7) Minangkabau. The speech patterns built by speakers of different mother tongues can be seen and the cultural background of each ethnicity is very influential. Their cultural different background brings about different styles of language. The language culture of Bugis, Batak, and Palembang speakers feels more assertive, and vulgar and shows a slightly harsh tone. Whereas, those with a cultural background in Minangkabau, Kerinci, Javanes, and Jambi Malay languages feel more relaxed and softer. This can be seen both in each type of speech act, as well as in terms of the expression of the function of the speech act. However, when they are faced with the reality of being multi-language, they are forced to use Bahasa Indonesia, and in turn, they become a reflection of patterns of speech acts in Bahasa Indonesia as well as a profile of Indonesian sociolinguistics.

Curriculum as ‘folding’ democratic practice: Integrating Deleuzian and Deweyan philosophies with the lived experiences of English teachers

AbstractThis article advocates the revision of the English as an Additional Language (EAL) Curriculum in Australia into a “curriculum as ‘folding’ democratic practice”, a concept deeply informed by the lived experiences of sixteen teachers of English from multilingual backgrounds. Using hermeneutic phenomenology and narrative inquiry, this study explores how these educators leverage their personal and professional lived experiences to transcend the limitations of a curriculum dominated by Australian Standard English. These narratives highlight the adaptation of the curriculum through ethical engagements with learners’ diverse needs, embodying democratic and pluralistic approaches. Drawing on Gilles Deleuze’s (1993) concepts of the “fold” and “molecular possibilities” and John Dewey’s “democratic education” (1916), the research illustrates the potential of a responsive and inclusive curriculum that fosters intercultural capabilities in superdiverse classrooms. This study advocates an EAL curriculum that not only imparts linguistic skills but also prepares learners for meaningful participation in a globally interconnected society, extending the scope of English language education and teacher capabilities in Australia and beyond. The research highlights broader implications for other subject-related curricula, suggesting principles that could foster inclusivity and intercultural understanding.

Transliterated multilingualism/globalisation: English disguised in non‐Latin linguistic landscapes as new type of world Englishes?

AbstractEnglish has, for historical reasons, risen to global prominence as the unchallenged lingua franca internationally. World Englishes (WE) has, as a result, established itself as a visible line of research, exploring localised/indigenised varieties of English from around the world (e.g. India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Nigeria). However, most of the discussions so far concern English written in the Latin script as people would normally expect. Against a backdrop of globalisation and the juggernaut of English, this article points to an increasingly salient phenomenon that English especially in superdiverse and/or (post)colonial societies (e.g. India and Pakistan) may disguise in seemingly inscrutable and ‘mysterious’ local scripts (e.g. Perso‐Arabic script and Devanagari script) and even ‘pass off’ as local languages in these countries’ linguistic landscapes through phonetic transliteration. This emerging trend begs the question whether these should be understood as new varieties of local languages or new kinds of world Englishes disguised in non‐Roman scripts. This phenomenon is theorised in this paper conceptually. To illustrate our point, examples of authentic signs taken from the linguistic landscapes relating to South Asia and South Asian communities are discussed. As English is increasingly glocalised and becomes part of other less dominant languages, this article calls on researchers in World Englishes (WE) and (socio)linguistics in general to look beyond English written in the Latin script in a conventional/traditional sense and to expand the scope and remit of WE research to explore how English, as a dominant code, becomes indigenised using local scripts and morphs into and even ‘passes off’ as ‘local’ surreptitiously. This fundamentally calls for the crucial need for researchers from diverse and multilingual backgrounds to work together to better understand English and other non‐dominant languages’ role in the 21st century.

Pia Petersen, Translingualism and Disruption

This article analyses the work of translingual writer Pia Petersen. It situates Petersen’s work within current debates about translingual writing and asks whether a translingual writer should be expected to draw attention to their multilingual background within their work. It argues that Petersen’s work is disruptive in both its form and content. In terms of content, Petersen engages in pointed social critique, highlighting the social injustice of contemporary French and American society. She also defends an approach to literature as an art form that should be respected and valued, not debased by market forces, consumption or popular appeal. Her work is also disruptive on a formal level, since she incorporates a variety of registers and phrases in English into her French language prose. This is not a writer who could be described as a multilingual author who incorporates several languages into her writing. But nor should we except her to do so. Instead, Petersen’s unique style reveals an attention to language, communication and disruption that suggests a translingual imagination.

“However Many Priests Instructed in Latin and Arabic of Good Reputation and Letters You May Find”: Dominican Traditions About Language Acquisition and Missionary Preaching, c. 1190–1250

ABSTRACT This article investigates the long history of language training and missionary preaching in the Order of Preachers (Dominicans) from the early training of Domingo de Caleruega, the Order’s founder, to the short-lived “language schools” in the mid-thirteenth century. It demonstrates that attitudes about language acquisition and training in the Order were shaped by the multilingual backgrounds of many of its early members, especially Domingo, which fostered value-positive attitudes toward learning languages – especially Arabic and Hebrew. These attitudes were codified in the early Order’s General Chapters, were supported vigorously by both the Order’s leadership and contemporary Church figures, and were part of a broader missionary vocation within the Order. The article demonstrates that the missionising of the early Dominicans was shaped by Domingo’s own example, amplifiing and institutionalising it, showing how the early Order’s ideas about language as a barrier to conversion developed and they crafted strategies to overcome it.

”Opiskelen joka päivä vaikka on raskasta.” Monikielisten korkeakouluopiskelijoiden kuvauksia suomenkielisissä tutkinto-ohjelmissa opiskelusta

Higher education students with a multilingual background are a small but growing group in Finnish-language degree programmes. In this article, we present the results of the first phase of our longitudinal study in which we use written descriptions and qualitative thematic analysis to examine these students’ experiences of coping in higher education in relation to their Finnish language skills. The data consist of the responses of 261 students to a web survey, with a focus on the students’ written descriptions of coping with their studies. Five main themes emerged in the data: 1) the overload caused by the feeling that studying takes a lot of time, 2) the independence of studying in academia and its consequences, 3) the effects of the progress of studies and the language proficiency level on the perceptions of coping, 4) comparing oneself to what we call here cis-speakers of Finnish language, and 5) the psychosocial burden of studying in Finnish. In addition, we present students’ experiences of receiving support for studying in Finnish.

NEW CHINGLISH IN SOCIAL MEDIA: CHINESE COLLEGE STUDENTS’ LANGUAGE USAGE PATTERNS

The large number of English learners in China establishes a strong foundation for English users in the country. The rapid development of Chinese social media platforms offers a broader platform for English usage in China. College students, with their bilingual or multilingual backgrounds, play a vital role in using English. Unlike the traditional English taught in educational settings, English used on social media differs and is referred to as New Chinglish. This study aims to explore the role of New Chinglish in the lives of college students on Chinese social media platforms, focusing on their behaviours and habits related to its usage. The qualitative analysis findings highlight the commonality of using New Chinglish among college students, often evolving into an unconscious habit. Moreover, New Chinglish has transcended the confines of the social media platform, extending into offline life. The study also reveals contradictory emotional trends underlying their user behaviour and habits. It provides a detailed description of the role of New Chinglish in the lives of Chinese youth, emphasizing the integration of English as a part of their daily routines. Additionally, this study contributes significantly to the existing literature by depicting the English usage situation in China.

How <i>Pachinko</i> Mirrors Migrant Life: Rethinking the Temporal, Spatial, and Linguistic Dimensions of Migration

This paper critically analyzes the Apple TV+ series Pachinko (2022) to comprehend its cross-historical and cross-regional metanarrative unfolding from the organization of temporality, spatiality, and language. As the TV adaptation of Min Jin Lee’s eponymous novel, Pachinko depicts a family’s migration journey from Korea to Japan after the 1910s and emphasizes their suffering from systemic discrimination against temporary Korean residents. Produced by talents from Korea, Japan, and the United States, Pachinko displays strong hybridization that combines American TV conventions with a distinct East Asian culture and history. The hybridized, multicultural, and multilingual background of the production necessitates a transnational and interdisciplinary framework to analyze its critical success and cultural implications. Expanding Harvey’s notion of time-space compression, the paper conceptualizes the temporal and spatial experience of watching a transnational production via global streaming as a mirrored experience of migrant life. It tackles television dramas as a strategy to understand contemporary migration and globalization by first outlining the evolutionary trajectory of television, and then identifying the movements, mobility, and the transnational cultural flows in Pachinko. Moreover, this paper analyzes the linguistic aspects of Pachinko, particularly in translation and multilingualism, to establish a connection between language and cultural identities. Inquiring into previous literature on translation, this paper also seeks to understand the complexity of communicating in multiple languages, both literally and metaphorically. Finally, this paper examines how migration and migrants are reimagined in Pachinko at a time when national borders and cultural and linguistic barriers are quickly eroded by global streaming TV.

Speech emotion classification using attention based network and regularized feature selection

Speech emotion classification (SEC) has gained the utmost height and occupied a conspicuous position within the research community in recent times. Its vital role in Human–Computer Interaction (HCI) and affective computing cannot be overemphasized. Many primitive algorithmic solutions and deep neural network (DNN) models have been proposed for efficient recognition of emotion from speech however, the suitability of these methods to accurately classify emotion from speech with multi-lingual background and other factors that impede efficient classification of emotion is still demanding critical consideration. This study proposed an attention-based network with a pre-trained convolutional neural network and regularized neighbourhood component analysis (RNCA) feature selection techniques for improved classification of speech emotion. The attention model has proven to be successful in many sequence-based and time-series tasks. An extensive experiment was carried out using three major classifiers (SVM, MLP and Random Forest) on a publicly available TESS (Toronto English Speech Sentence) dataset. The result of our proposed model (Attention-based DCNN+RNCA+RF) achieved 97.8% classification accuracy and yielded a 3.27% improved performance, which outperforms state-of-the-art SEC approaches. Our model evaluation revealed the consistency of attention mechanism and feature selection with human behavioural patterns in classifying emotion from auditory speech.

Developmental language disorder: similarities and differences between 6-year-old mono- and multilingual children

This study investigated language ability in 6-year-old mono- and multilingual children who, at age 2;6 years, had screened positive for developmental language disorder (DLD). One hundred children (32 girls, 68 boys) were assessed at an average age of 2;9 years (T1) and 85 of them (30 girls, 55 boys) were reassessed at age 6;0 years (T2) using a standardised test battery. Of these, 68 (23 girls, 45 boys) met the criteria for DLD diagnosis; 28 of them were monolingual and 40 multilingual. Language profiles at T2 were analysed, as were the associations between DLD and a mono- or multilingual background as well as other measures collected at T1, including mean length of utterance (MLU), heredity and parental education. As expected, the results showed that the total group (including both mono- and multilingual children) scored below test norms for 6-year-olds on all language tests, except for receptive vocabulary, where the monolingual children scored in line with those norms. The multilingual group performed significantly less well than the monolingual one on language comprehension, receptive vocabulary, recalling sentences, word finding and story retelling; disparities regarding MLU and language comprehension were already evident at T1. Interestingly, MLU at T1 showed a moderate association with language comprehension at T2 in the total group. The monolingual children were more likely than the multilinguals to have heredity for DLD or reading and writing disorders. In conclusion, language difficulties identified through screening and assessment before age 3 years often persist at age 6 years.

Language teacher preparation, induction and retention: unpacking two decades of research

ABSTRACT Language teachers come from diverse and multilingual backgrounds. This also generally characterises preparation programmes that have been developed to prepare elementary and secondary school language teachers for increasingly globalised, pluralistic, interconnected classrooms. Despite variations, there is value in attempting to identify common denominators in research related to the preparation of such teachers. This paper surveys 20 years of research published in journals focusing on language learning and teaching. Content analysis and thematic analysis was performed to generate salient categories related to language teacher preparation, induction and retention. Five key themes emerged: reflective practice and its role in preparation programmes and induction; ongoing formal and informal support in the early years of teaching; teachers’ beliefs and their identity; pedagogical and content knowledge; and the sociocultural context of teaching. Despite the focus on journals devoted to language learning and teaching, findings overwhelmingly related to teacher preparation in general. We discuss these findings and then offer suggestions specifically for school L2 language teacher preparation, induction and retention with an emphasis on early career teachers. Such recommendations can guide language teacher preparation programmes as well as the professional trajectory of teachers in the field, ultimately increasing the chances of retention in the long term.

Shifting Language Ideology and Teaching Practice in Multilingual Class: Voices of Indonesian Lecturers in CLIL

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) has grown in popularity due to the idea that it may aid students in enhancing their foreign language proficiency. Previous studies have found that teaching a foreign language in a bilingual setting creates obstacles since students have fewer linguistic features in learning and teaching. While they investigated the significance of various perspectives in this process, this study explores language ideologies and practices in the multilingual background. It seeks the lecturer's voice who taught preparation courses for international students about his language ideologies and CLIL practices using different parameters of CLIL. This narrative study engaged guided dialogues and observations. We adopted Barkhuizen et al.’s (2014) thematic analysis for analyzing the data. It indicated that language ideologies emerged after framing the courses within the students' more comprehensive language ideological contexts, followed by a discussion of its relevance to classroom practice English is used to address gaps between individuals who might not share a common native language or a shared (domestic) identity and with whom English was the favored foreign language of communication. While he created a humanist course for students to use their broad vocabulary and grammar classes were nevertheless immersed in transitory language ideologies.

Code-Mixing and Code-Switching in Cameroon Social Media

This study examines code-mixing and code-switching in Cameroon social media to find out the languages that are mixed or switched to and the reasons for the phenomenon. Insights came from the structural approach to code-switching, which measures the degree to which an L2 is incorporated into an L1 or vice versa (Poplack, 1980, 2000; Poplack & Meechan, 1995; Myers-Scotton, 1993b, 2002). Data comprises 245 e-messages which were drawn from e-mail(s) (100), Facebook (60) and WhatsApp (85). The data were collected through screenshots with the use of android phones. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of data show the presence of code-mixing and code-switching from English to French (48%), English to Cameroon Pidgin English (18.4%) and English to home languages (11.5%). It was construed that Cameroons mix or switch codes because of their multicultural and multilingual backgrounds.

TRANSLINGUAGING IN EFL CLASSROOM AND ITS IMPACT ON STUDENT'S PERFORMANCE AT A SECONDARY SCHOOL LEVEL: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Translinguaging is a phenomenon of language use where the people are bilingual or multilingual. Tanslinguaging occurs in the community and schools, both rural and urban areas. At the Indonesian secondary school level, the learning of English as a foreign language (EFL), teachers and students at schools use the target language (English) and the Indonesian language as the official language in the education system. But, local languages also occur and are used in schools for the students who have their local language, including in rural schools. This article uses the literature review method to analyze the use of translanguaging (Indonesian language, local language, and English) in EFL classrooms at schools and its effects. The author collects several national and international journals. The journal was compiled purposively, which related to translanguaging at schools. The literature review found that translinguaging in the EFL classroom influences students' performance with multilingual backgrounds (Indonesian language, local languages, and English). Therefore, translinguaging-based instruction is considered good if applied to learning English as Foreign Language (EFL).

MLA in Chinese EFL classroom perspectives from minority students

This paper reports on an investigation into the minority students’ perceptions and practices of using minority language and Chinese in English classroom in order to examine their multilingual language awareness (MLA) in an English teaching environment. This paper draws upon qualitative research with 6 minority students in Dehong Dai and Jingpo autonomous prefecture, Yunnan province, China. The students sample was aged from 12-14 years, and comprised 4 males and 2 females. The findings from the study suggest that minority students value their multilingual background, while languages with high crosslinguistic lexical similarity means more benefits are available if minority students have a high proficiency; they were glad to use their L1 with their teachers’ permission but they will not use their L1 if their teacher does not value their multilingualism or does not allow them to use their L1; Chinese is the foundation for learning English, but some uses of Chinese in the English classroom may be not efficient; using Chinese extensively in English learning results in minority students admitting the usefulness of Chinese but expressing a demand for more English exposure at the same time. This paper argues that Minority students demonstrated a certain level of MLA but they should be more aware of their right to rely on multiple languages in English classroom despite their teachers’ preference.

A Review of Trilingual Acquisition Research

With the continuous change of the world political and economic pattern, language and cultural exchanges are gradually expanding, and cross-ethnic, cross-regional, and even transnational exchanges are very frequent. At the same time, there are a large number of language learners with multilingual backgrounds. They have already mastered two or more languages, and on this basis, they learn one or several other languages. Second language learners and trilingual learners have similarities and differences in the learning process, and trilingual learners are more complicated than second language learners. Therefore, it is of great significance to review and summarize the research on trilingual acquisition.

EMI (English‐medium instruction) in Singapore's major universities

AbstractIn this article we report on the dynamics of English‐medium instruction (EMI) in Singaporean higher education, where we describe the context of EMI with reference to the multilingual background and multilingual practices of university students in their educational as well as personal lives. Our study surveyed over one thousand students from Singapore's six main universities, where we investigated the multilingual backgrounds of students at these universities, their language practices, and their experience of EMI education. Whereas our previous research has focused on the language policies and practices in just one of Singapore's universities, this project surveyed language use in all six major universities. It is hoped that the report presented here will serve as a record of current practices, as well as a benchmark for future research.

Musical and Multilingual Experience Are Related to Healthy Aging: Better Some Than None But Even Better Together.

Life experiences that are complex, sustained, and intense, such as active participation in music and speaking multiple languages, have been suggested to contribute to maintaining or improving cognitive performance and mental health. The current study focuses on whether lifetime musical and multilingual experiences differentially relate to cognition and well-being in older adults, and tests whether there is a cumulative effect of both experiences. A total of 11,335 older adults from the population-based Lifelines Cohort Study completed a musical and multilingual background and experience questionnaire. Latent class analysis was used to categorize individuals into subgroups according to their various musical and multilingual experiences resulting in a (1) nonmusical, low-multilingual group; (2) nonmusical, high-multilingual group; (3) musical, low-multilingual group; and (4) musical high-multilingual group. To determine whether the groups differed in terms of cognition or emotional affect, differences in Ruff Figural Fluency Test (RFFT) and Positive and Negative Affect Schedule scores were investigated by means of multinomial logistic regression analysis. Having high-multilingual, and not musical, experience was related to better RFFT performance compared to no experience, but not to more positive affect. Having both musical and high-multilingual experiences is related to better RFFT performance and more positive affect in advanced age compared to having only one experience or none. Importantly, these results were found independently of age, level of education, and socioeconomic status. Musical and multilingual experiences are related to healthy aging, especially when combined, which supports the suggestion that a broader spectrum of lifetime experiences relates to cognitive reserve.