Translanguaging und Self-regulated Learning

In the current scientific discourse on language education and multilingualism, approaches and concepts are gaining in importance that aim to recognise multilingualism as an integral part of learning processes and to establish it as an educational resource for promoting equal opportunities in the education system. In the reality of school life in a globalised and digitalised society, multilingualism is still seen as a significant risk factor, particularly for pupils from families with migrant backgrounds, which massively limits the chances of educational success for learners. Despite numerous interdisciplinary studies that demonstrate the positive effects and advantages of multilingualism in learning contexts, the languages that students use in their everyday lives are rarely taken into account when it comes to designing teaching and learning settings in schools due to the prevailing monolingual structures and language ideologies in the institution of school. In this context, translanguaging, which is currently one of the most internationally discussed concepts and is increasingly being described as an innovative, multimodal and transformative approach, plays a central role in the discussion about the use of existing multilingual resources of students in heterogeneous classrooms. This publication presents the results of the author`s dissertation, which analyses and discusses the different resource dimensions and potentials of multilingualism based on the concept of translanguaging. In an interventionist research framework using interviews, digital learning diaries and group discussions, the translanguaging-related and self-regulated learning practices of multilingual students in Austria were examined. The possible connections between individual learning processes and the subjective experiences of the students in the targeted selection of suitable linguistic means from their linguistic repertoire for the learning and communication situations they have chosen themselves were investigated. The results of this multi-method study illustrate the specific and varied possibilities for applying students` multilingual and self-regulated learning strategies when dealing with the demands of academic language and school learning requirements in subject teaching at upper secondary school level. In addition, the findings provide insights into whether and to what extent students were able to achieve their academic learning goals in primarily monolingual lessons by self- regulating their multilingual resources. Finally, the research project provides translanguaging and self- regulated impulses for further action based on the subjective perspectives and learning experiences of multilingual students, which can be utilised for resource-oriented and diversity-conscious lesson planning.