TRANSLANGUAGING OR TRANSGRESSING LANGUAGE BORDERS TO COMMUNICATE AND TO LEARN IN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS

Abstract

This paper provides an insight into multilingual international school students’ translanguaging practices and their attitudes towards translanguaging and teacher directed translanguaging. In the introduction two main concepts are presented: translanguaging and teacher directed translanguaging (TDT). By translanguaging we mean both a discursive norm in multilingual communities in which multilinguals engage by using their holistic linguistic repertoire to communicate effectively and by TDT all planned and structured teaching activities which recognize, accept and encourage students’ entire communicative repertoire. The second part of the paper present the research that has been carried out among 78 multilingual students in two international schools in Croatia. Our results show that even though both schools' curricula is mediated through only one language – English, students’ communicative practices cannot be completely framed by imposed policy. As our results also indicate that the students show willingness to accept TDT, it seems that teachers in international schools should consider making use of TDT in order to take advantage of students’ repertoires.