Plurilingual Competence Research Articles

The affordances of plurilingual speaking games for recognizing, using, and developing plurilingual competences of children and pre-service teachers

ABSTRACT Games have long been a common activity integrated by teachers in many language learning classrooms worldwide. The change in focus from the “four skills” of speaking, listening, writing, and reading to “four modes of communication”: “reception,” “interaction,” “production,” and “mediation” in the Common European Framework Companion (2018) means that teachers need to incorporate Mediation language activities, such as translation or interpretation, that fit with this shift. This study explores the perceived affordances of playing plurilingual, speaking games for children and pre-service teachers (PSTs) in a joint university-primary school project in Spain. The project aimed to support the development of plurilingual and intercultural competence of 21 pre-service teachers and 23 children. Using a case study approach, incorporating thematic analysis, teachers’ written reflections are analyzed. Findings highlight that the games afforded the learning of languages using and awareness of languages; making children’s multiple languages “visible”; boosting enjoyment, collaboration, motivation, and risk-taking which facilitated a change in children’s social roles to “teacher.” Affordances for pre-service teachers included developing pedagogical know-how for working in a multilingual classroom and awareness of children’s linguistic repertoires. Considerations for game design and research are presented.

Investigating the plurilingual profiles and linguistic repertoires of student language teachers: issues of SLA, multilingual assessment, and the role of L2 Italian in a localized Greek context

Abstract Plurilingual competence or repertoire of languages refers to all individuals being potentially plurilingual. As plurilingual competence and language repertoires are individual, assessment modes targeted to the individual and localized to the context should be encouraged. This study explored and depicted the plurilingual profile of Italian Studies students (and thus student language teachers) in the Greek context through various modes. The role of the Italian language in this localized context was also explored and the language trajectory was attempted to be de-picted qualitatively. The instruments used were the Language Passport, the DIALANG diagnostic test, the ECML ‘Self-evaluate your language skills’ tool, a plurilingual portrait (to make the language repertoire visible), and a short personal written narrative. It is mainly a qualitative study, and instances of multi-method research are also present. Moreover, the whole procedure contributed to incorporating plurilingualism and multiculturalism into language teacher education for student Italian language teachers in higher education.

In-service and Pre-service Perspectives: Cultivating Plurilingual Awareness in Multicultural Classrooms

Recent years have seen a growing interest in fostering inclusivity and interaction among individuals from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds in FL or L2 classes, which has led to the proliferation of intercomprehension practices in language teacher education, facilitating teachers' identity development, intercultural sensitivity, and plurilingual awareness. Using plurilingualism as a conceptual framework, the data of this qualitative study is collected from a pre-service teacher education program and an intensive language education program at two state universities. Building on the previous research and challenges reported by in-service teachers in multicultural and multilingual classrooms, some scenarios are formed with prompts to reveal metaphors, followed by semi-structured interviews to elaborate on the participants' perspectives. In light of the findings, some suggestions and implications are provided with pedagogical purposes to soften the bonds among different cultures in language classrooms and foster interaction among members of different societies and awareness of plurilingual competences. Acknowledging the substantial impact of English language teachers' intercultural sensitivity, diversity, and inclusion, and an emerging need for enhanced educational equality and social justice in teacher training, this study contributes to the existing research by providing implications for teacher identity development.

Students’ stance towards translanguaging in an EFL oral productive assessment task

ABSTRACT Albeit the growing plurilingual research due to the new sociolinguistic realities in education and a reaction to the dominant monolingual bias, few studies have focused on plurilingual assessment and students’ ideologies towards using their plurilingual competence and resources such as translanguaging. A total sample of 36 undergraduates who completed a five-month EMI or ESP course in Catalonia, Spain, participated in our study. We examined their stance-taking discourse on a speaking assessment task in which they could draw upon all their communicative resources if they felt that it would increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their message. Findings suggested that, rather than two clear extreme positions, there is a continuum of positions in favour and against the legitimacy of using their whole plurilingual repertoire. Moreover, our results also showed the dominance of a deeply-ingrained monolingual mindset among the learners which leads them to implicitly or explicitly resist the possibility of translanguaging.

ICT integration in FLT: An analysis of TPACK implementation in Spanish Primary Teacher Education

This study explores primary teachers´ initial training programs, focusing on Foreign Language Teaching (FLT) and its integration with technology. The research is grounded in two dimensions of contemporary society: plurilingual competence and digital literacy. The study employs the conceptual framework of "Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge" (TPACK) (Mishra & Kohler, 2006) and applies content analysis methodology. The scientific interest lies in the scarcity of studies examining this specific area within the Spanish context, because research on TPACK in FLT has primarily focused on Asia and the Middle East. To address this void, a comprehensive national study encompassing 39 public universities was conducted. This study involved an in-depth analysis of 496 course guides within the field of FLT in primary education teacher training programs. The research findings indicate that less than half of the subjects incorporate technology, and when they do, two prominent trends emerge: the integration of TPACK and the presentation of technology as a broad competency, not specifically tailored to FLT. The primary conclusion drawn from this study is that the incorporation of TPACK in this context is moderate, emphasizing the need for a more comprehensive integration of technology within FLT teacher training programs.

Spanish Teachers’ Beliefs about Plurilingualism: A Case Study in a Monolingual Context

In Spain, the learning of foreign languages has become one of the most interesting educational challenges in recent decades. Regulatory changes have been proposed to align with the Council of Europe’s language policy, which aims to promote plurilingualism and pluriculturalism among European Union citizens. Although the development of plurilingual competence in students has become a key goal, there is little evidence regarding the beliefs of current teachers, especially in monolingual contexts, where multilingualism is mainly developed through instruction. This study involved 307 teachers who taught languages or subjects in a foreign language. The results reveal beliefs about the promotion of plurilingualism, the objectives of language learning, the importance of plurilingual competence, and its characterization that at times do not align with the European language policy and its approach to plurilingualism, though there is agreement on other issues. Among the variables analyzed, two variables—academic training and the number of languages known—were found to significantly influence the beliefs revealed.

Analysing the factor structure of the plurilingual and pluricultural competence scale: dimensionality, reliability, and validity of the adapted Russian version

ABSTRACT This study aimed to adapt the Plurilingual and Pluricultural Competence scale (PPC) to the Russian-speaking population and to assess its psychometric properties. Five hundred and sixty-four undergraduate students from Western, Central, and Caucasian regions of Russia and Kazakhstan participated in the study. Internal consistency, factorial, construct, and criterion validity of the Russian version of the scale (PPCr) were examined. Unidimensional and several competing multidimensional models of the scale's structure were tested against data using confirmatory factor analysis. The final model included four first-order factors (plurilingual conversation, plurilingual cognition, intercultural tolerance, and intercultural skills) and two second-order factors (plurilingual competence and intercultural competence). The PPCr scale demonstrated good internal consistency and criterion validity. The PPCr total and plurilingual subscales scores significantly correlated with language repertoire and overall language proficiency self-assessments. Regional differences in the total PPCr score, plurilingual conversation, and intercultural tolerance scores were documented. These findings were discussed in the context of research and assessment of PPC in different socio-cultural environments. We recommended not contrasting unidimensional and multidimensional models of PPC but considering them two poles on the continuum. It suggests transitioning from a multidimensional to a unidimensional model when an individual acquires more plurilingual and pluricultural experience.

The learning potential of English as a lingua franca contexts in the eyes of study abroad students

This paper presents insights from two interview studies with the aim of shedding light on the learning potential of studying abroad in an area where English is used as a lingua franca. The majority of previous research on study abroad focuses on students’ experiences of studying abroad in target-language regions, for example learners of English studying abroad in English-speaking countries. To date, the learning potential of spending time in English as a lingua franca (ELF) contexts remains an under-researched area. The present paper draws on two separate interview studies that have been conducted with five Turkish and five Swiss study abroad students that stayed in different European ELF contexts as part of their studies at higher education institutions. The data suggests that even though the participants still partially adhere to native speaker norms, they also discuss a number of characteristics of English as a lingua franca study abroad (ELFSA) contexts that they deem conducive to learning English and enhancing their plurilingual competences.

Strategies for Developing Students’ Plurilingual Competence

The article addresses the issue of fostering plurilingual competence among students in Higher Education Institutions in the Republic of Armenia. It dwells on the idea that developing plurilingual competence is now an integral part of contemporary education. Consequently, it is essential that certain strategies should be used, which not only enhance foreign language education but also promote the students’ plurilingual skills. By focusing on the instruction of English in Higher Education Institutions, the article aims to propose strategies for enhancing students’ plurilingual competence. It also presents the results of the study conducted through such research methods as observation, survey, experimental teaching, and outcome analysis. The practical significance of the study lies in utilizing its findings to improve foreign language education by specifically targeting the development of plurilingual competence. The key outcome of the study is that the strategies for plurilingual competence development were effective and feasible for implementation into the foreign language teaching process.

Teaching (multi)literacies, supporting multilingual identities

The EFL classroom can be a place in which students develop target language skills and overarching plurilingual competencies, but also their multilingual identities. Digital games – including interactive fiction (IF) – may play a role in this context, as participation in digital games and gaming practices has been claimed to afford identity work. This paper is based on a follow-up study for the “FanTALES” Erasmus+ project. Drawing on IF stories created in a pedagogic intervention and on follow-up focus group interviews, it finds that multilingual storytelling in an interactive fiction context was challenging for students, even though they self-assessed their productive plurilingual competencies as fairly high, and that the writing task itself was only partially successful in creating a ‘translanguaging space’ in which all linguistic resources could be used and valued.

EFL teacher agency in mediating the socialisation of multilingual learners

English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers are seemingly ideally placed to mediate the successful socialisation of multilingual learners into the new school environment for two major reasons. Firstly, as they have effective command of both L1 and L2 and often have experience of living abroad, they tend to exhibit higher levels of openness to new situations, empathy and understanding of the difficulties faced by multilingual learners. Secondly, the English class can itself be a platform for mutual understanding where learners are able to develop both English communication skills and intercultural competence (cf. Hopp, Jakisch, Sturm, Becker & Thoma 2020; Krulatz, Neokleous & Dahl 2022). As English is the language of instruction, it also has the potential to maintain levels of multilingual competence among those learners who already speak English as their heritage language (Banasiak & Olpińska-Szkiełko 2021), e.g. migrant children returning from the UK/Ireland. Drawing on data from a larger project (Rokita-Jaśkow, Wolanin, Król-Gierat & Nosidlak 2022), which consisted of interviewing 23 primary school EFL teachers in various contexts, this paper analyses the possible factors that impact teacher agency in the socialisation of multilinguals. It has been found that teacher agency in that respect appears to stem from teachers’ plurilingual competence and prior teaching experience. Surprisingly, personal experiences of intercultural encounters (e.g. time spent living abroad) or verbalised empathy, had little impact on teacher agency. This finding implies that even language teachers find it difficult to put themselves in the position of the multilingual learner and need specialist training in order to work with multilingual learners, which may convey an important message for educational decision-makers with reference to the formulation of future teacher education guidelines and curricula.

Place de la langue première et des approches plurielles dans les manuels de FLE du niveau secondaire en Pologne

The Council of Europe has been promoting pluralistic approaches for more than 20 years, considering them as an effective tool for the development of plurilingual competence, regarded as indispensable in multilingual Europe. The aim of the article is to determine the place of the first language and pluralistic approaches in the latest (published after 2018) French textbooks for high schools. The analysis shows that elements characteristic of pluralistic approaches are present in varying degrees in the textbooks analysed, both at the textual and paratextual level. Textbook authors use pluralistic approaches in a variety of ways, for example by referencing the knowledge of Polish, English as well as non-verbal language.

Plurilingualism and the learning of French as a foreign language in Ghana

ABSTRACT The current article studies the competencies of plurilingual students and how these competencies are exploited in the learning of French as a Foreign Language. Adopting a translanguaging theoretical approach, we argue that learners of foreign languages who already speak at least one other language have some linguistic competencies which manifest during their learning of the French language. Through observation of learners of French at the University of Ghana Business School and analysis of their written production, we confirm that some of these plurilingual competencies in students are demonstrated in the nature of the errors identified. The paper therefore recommends that learners’ existing competencies be taken into account and built upon when developing lessons for the foreign language classroom and during classroom delivery.

Plurilingual Competence Intervened by Online Games for a Child Living in Multilingual Environment

This research aims to analyse the plurilingual competence of English as a foreign language intervened by online games. It is a case study to a child living in multilingual environment. Plurilingualism that is the dynamic and developing linguistic repertoire of an individual language learner becomes something researchable for a child who is studying more than one language and culture in a mulitilingual environment. Online games that have become popular recently give some effects specially relating to the language used by the child. Metalinguistics, a study focusing on the relationship between language factors and non-language factors in society is the theory used to analyse the data. There are some tools used in this research: (1) phonology, (2) syntax, (3) semantics, (4) sociolinguistics. The data are analysed and described qualitatively. Some results obtained are (1) the language background and repertoire of the child are variegated in terms of languages known and degree of competence and (2) the metalinguistics awareness in the child’s first language leads to better results when learning English, especially in the specific context observed, that is on the language used in playing online games. The child has his own competency on the spelling and he has known the meaning of some words he spells for English words used when playing the online games

Language mixing and its discontents in 16th-century France

Plurilingualism – understood as the ability of an individual speaker to use more than one language – continues to attract both praise and blame in modern European metalinguistic debate. An individual’s ability to harness the full range of their linguistic competence for the purposes of communication, without maintaining firm distinctions between the languages to which they have access, is now celebrated in English-speaking educational contexts under the term ‘translanguaging’, and this type of plurilingual practice also underpins the Council of Europe’s framework for language learning. Lay commentators, on the other hand, are often suspicious of those using more than one language, particularly when such individuals are immigrants. This lay attitude can be traced back to an early modern preoccupation with language mixing, which was invariably viewed negatively, unlike plurilingual competence that respected and policed clear distinctions between learned languages and vernaculars. Examples from late medieval French farces and the works of François Rabelais, Innocent Gentillet and Henri Estienne demonstrate that language mixing, typically associated with the desire to obfuscate or claim unearned social status or economic advantage, was consistently condemned, despite a readiness to celebrate a learned individual’s plurilingual competence.

Audio description and plurilingual competence: new allies in language learning?

El MCER (Consejo de Europa, 2001) y sus volúmenes complementarios, Companion Volume with new descriptors (Consejo de Europa, 2018, 2020), destacan el desarrollo de la competencia plurilingüe y pluricultural (CPP) como uno de los principales objetivos de la enseñanza y el aprendizaje de lenguas. En este contexto, la presencia del enfoque plurilingüe en la educación ha situado a la traducción en una posición destacada. Así, autores como Cummins (2007) subrayan su papel no solo en la adquisición de lenguas extranjeras (LE) y la consolidación de las L1, sino también en el desarrollo de la biliteracidad y la afirmación de la identidad. Dentro del campo de la traducción, la traducción audiovisual (TAV) ha demostrado ser especialmente eficaz en la adquisición de lenguas (cf. Lertola, 2019). La naturaleza polisemiótica de los textos audiovisuales incorpora elementos que requieren la activación de formas específicas de mediación que no siempre se encuentran en la traducción general. En este artículo se reflexiona sobre la influencia que puede ejercer la transferencia lingüística y semiótica propia de la TAV sobre la CPP (Author, 2021), a partir de los resultados de una investigación cuasi-experimental llevada a cabo dentro del proyecto PluriTAV (cf. Martínez-Sierra, 2021). Este estudio específico tenía como objetivo evaluar el desarrollo de la CPP mediante la audiodescripción (AD) en estudiantes de filología inglesa divididos en un grupo experimental y otro de control, donde solo el primero utilizó la AD como herramienta didáctica. Aunque los resultados no revelan una mejora estadísticamente significativa en la adquisición de la CPP, permiten formular hipótesis a contrastar en futuras investigaciones. Además, el grupo experimental mostró ciertos progresos en el desarrollo de algunas habilidades plurilingües y pluriculturales específicas, lo que sugiere que el uso de la AD en el aula de LE puede enriquecer el repertorio plurilingüe y pluricultural del estudiantado.

Teaching English as a foreign language in multilingual milieus in Catalonia: perspectives and practices of educators in three state schools

ABSTRACT The aim of this article is to explore how the teaching of English as a foreign language is planned in three plurilingual state schools in Catalonia. We carried out classroom observations (first and second grade of primary education) and interviewed the English teachers who teach these lessons and the headmasters of the three schools. The use of these qualitative methods to generate data allowed us to see what teachers say they do in the classroom, and what they really do. The results showed that although the three schools analysed work to make learners aware of their linguistic repertoires and foster their plurilingual competence, the English classroom is still seen as a monolingual space where students’ languages and the use of plurilingual strategies are not present. Similarly, we can state that the participating teachers do not prioritise plurilingual and intercultural education in the English classroom, as this is promoted in other school spaces. The findings have strong implications; namely, there is the need for foreign language teachers to encourage the use of students’ first languages in the classroom if we want to advance towards a plurilingual and intercultural education.

Learning to Teach English in the Multilingual Classroom Utilizing the Framework of Reference for Pluralistic Approaches to Languages and Cultures

Positioned in a specific curriculum context, yet universal in its rationale, this paper illustrates how over the course of one term, student teachers experiment with designing and teaching language learning activities that foster plurilingual competence of young learners of English, while following the Framework of Reference for Pluralistic Approaches to Languages and Cultures. It presents two practical teaching examples (one for primary and one for secondary school level) not only to showcase the great learning and motivational potential of pluralistic tasks employed in L3 English classrooms but also to bear testimony to the creativity and plentiful resources today’s pre-service language teachers themselves bring into their multilingual classrooms if encouraged and opened up to such a practice. Based on the FREPA descriptors, the paper evaluates the developed teaching material to discuss implications for pre- and in-service training of teachers working with young learners of diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Towards multilingual turn in language classes: plurilingual awareness as an indicator of intercultural communicative competence

ABSTRACT Multilingualism research has predominantly focused on describing the various factors behind multilingual individuals’ beliefs and practices in language learning and teaching. However, language and culture are intrinsically related and how intercultural communicative competence can contribute to this alliance remains relatively unknown. To address this research gap, the current study examined the relationship between plurilingual awareness and intercultural communicative competence together with their experiences in language classrooms. The study was based on Douglas Fir Group’s (2016. A transdisciplinary framework for SLA in a multilingual world. Modern Language Journal, 100(Supplement 2016), 19–47. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12301) framework and Deardorff’s (2006. Identification and assessment of intercultural competence as a student outcome of internationalization. Journal of Studies in International Education, 10(3), 241–266) process orientation model, with 265 EFL teacher (pre-service and in-service) participants. In this mixed-method study, data were analysed using several multiple regressions and thematic analyses. Findings indicate that plurilingual awareness is a significant predictor of the relationship between language and culture, and individuals with higher plurilingual awareness have higher intercultural communicative competence. Classroom practices yielded complementary results manifested through a) translanguaging as a motivational practice, b) coping with intercultural tensions, and c) technology in multilingual classrooms. This study has several implications for the multilingual turn in language learning and teaching.

Developing flexilingual competence: a conceptual connection between plurilingual competence and autonomisation

In many environments, in/outside educational contexts, learners use more or less intentionally and flexibly code-switching and interlingual mediation. These plurilingual and pluricultural skills are seen as particular competences to develop. Focusing on this particular aspect of plurilingual competence, I propose the term flexilingual competence to shed light on the capacity of learners to take conscious decisions about when and for what purpose they access their different languages. To develop this competence, many learners need support and careful interventions of a teacher or a coach to help them reach their full learning potential. The teacher or the coach develops a dialogical process with the learners. They ask for reasons and decisions, address personal learning habits and practices of personal internal and external resources and they initiate a self-evaluation process. Such techniques can be used to encourage learners to independently recognize and being aware of what they are doing, why they are doing it, and how to tailor their learning behavior to make the most of the different opportunities in multilingual environments.