What does translanguaging look like in an English language classroom in a disadvantaged context? A case in a primary school with difficult circumstances in the Global South

Abstract

This study investigated primary school children's spontaneous translingual practices in an English as a foreign language setting in a context with difficult circumstances in the Global South. The research question that guided this project was: What does translanguaging look like in an English language primary classroom in a difficult Argentinian context? Participants were 11 5th grade children at a public elementary school in a large metropolitan area in central Argentina, aged 9–13. Data included researcher field notes, video recordings of lessons, children's work done in class (written texts, drawings) and an individual deferred interview with each child. Qualitative analysis indicated that translanguaging emerged spontaneously from the difficult circumstances of the context, that the children used English and Spanish flexibly to fulfill specific functions negotiated in classroom interactions, and that they engaged in spontaneous translanguaging across modalities to make meaning and share personal worlds.