HLAING MINN KHANT - (KRIK UNIVERSITY)

CULTURALLY SUSTAINING PEDAGOGY EXPLORED THROUGH TRANSLANGUAGING PERSPECTIVES OF BILINGUAL EDUCATORS IN EFL SETTINGS : PLURILINGUALISM AND TRANSLANGUAGING

Translanguaging (TL) is recognized as one of the pivotal components of contemporary language instruction for today’s diverse English usage and teaching landscape (Marlina, R., 2024).TL, as part of Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (CSP), has been extensively explored in ESL bilingual education, highlighting its potential to bolster students' confidence and engagement. Yet, there remains a gap in understanding how teachers in EFL settings utilize translanguaging as a CSP, especially as linguistic diversity increases. The focus of this study is to investigate the attitudes of bilingual educators across six diverse EFL settings toward the use of TL, along with the translanguaging strategies they employ as part of CSP Through the participation of 25 teacher-respondents, who completed open-ended questionnaire surveys, qualitative content analysis was conducted to analyze the data. In the present study, numerous EFL instructors recognize translanguaging as an invaluable asset for language development, appreciating its benefits such as enhanced comprehension, learning, and fostering a supportive, inclusive learning environment. However, a common concern among educators is the potential hindrance to target language acquisition that may arise from promoting TL. Regarding TL as a part of CSP, each respondent identified one TL strategy ranging from integrating bilingual resources to implementing bilingual projects in the EFL classrooms. These strategies aim to promote cross-cultural competence, indicating that beyond ESL teachers, EFL teachers are also currently utilizing TL to embrace the diverse linguistic landscape and acknowledge bilingualism as a manifestation of global cultural richness (Tsokalidou R., & Skourtou E., 2020).

Hlaing Minn Khant, a Ph.D. candidate in the English as an International Language program at Chulalongkorn University, holds M.A.s in Russian from Yangon University of Foreign Languages (2019) and in Communicative Linguistics and Linguodidactics from Moscow State Pedagogical University (2021). His academic interests include Critical Thinking, CLIL, and Intercultural Communication. See ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-5254-1281. Email: hlaingminnkhant.hmk@gmail.com.