Power, positioning, and precarity: identity negotiation and agency in multilingual minors in Canada

• Zirak Ghazani, Ahmad ^[1]
  1. [1] University of Manitoba

     University of Manitoba

     Canadá

     
• Localización: International journal of multilingualism, ISSN 1479-0718, Vol. 23, Nº. 1, 2026, págs. 483-502
• Idioma: inglés
• DOI: 10.1080/14790718.2025.2541787
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • In this study, I explore how multilingual children in Canada harness translanguaging to express and negotiate their evolving identities. This research, which centres on five Iranian-Canadian minors and one of their parents from three provinces, employs a multiple-case study design and utilises linguistic (interviews, questionnaires, writings) and non-linguistic (drawings) methods to examine language use and identity negotiation. The findings indicate translanguaging as a driver for empowerment, enabling minors to navigate their linguistic and cultural environments. This practice enriches communication and influences their identities, moulded by family dynamics, socio-economic status, and educational policies. Family and institutional support also shape multilingual identities. Moreover, the research illustrates how translanguaging can challenge monoglossic norms and build pluralistic identity among multilingual minors. Limitations arise from children’s cognitive and emotional capacities and the socio-economic context of the sample. This work advances our understanding of translanguaging’s impact on Canadian education and emphasises the significance of recognising and employing linguistic diversity in pedagogy.

• Referencias bibliográficas
  • Allard, E. C. (2017). Re-examining teacher translanguaging: An ecological perspective. Bilingual Research Journal, 40(2), 116–130. https://doi.org/10.1080/15235882.2017.1306597
  • Bengochea, A., & Gort, M. (2022). Translanguaging for varying discourse functions in sociodramatic play: An exploratory multiple case...
  • Benucci, A. (2021). Translanguaging, intercomprensione e didattica inclusiva in contesti ‘svantaggiati’. In M. Daloiso, & M. Mezzadri...
  • Bourdieu, P. (1991). In J. B. Thompson, E. G. Raymond, & M. Adamson Trans., Language and symbolic power. Harvard University Press.
  • Byrd Clark, J. S. (2020). Reflexivity and criticality for language and intercultural communication research and practice. In J. Jackson (Ed.),...
  • Byrd Clark, J. S., & Dervin, F. (2014). Reflexivity in language and intercultural education: Rethinking multilingualism and interculturality...
  • Çavuşoğlu, Ç. (2021). Standard language ideologies: The case of Cypriot Turkish in Turkish schools in London. Journal of Multilingual and...
  • Cenoz, J., & Gorter, D. (2021). Pedagogical translanguaging. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009029384
  • Charalambous, P., Charalambous, C., & Zembylas, M. (2016). Troubling translanguaging: Language ideologies, superdiversity and interethnic...
  • Cinaglia, C., & De Costa, P. I. (2022). Cultivating critical translingual awareness: Challenges and possibilities for teachers and teacher...
  • Clark, A., & Moss, P. (2017). Listening to young children: A guide to understanding and using the Mosaic approach (Expanded 3rd ed.)....
  • Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2018). Research methods in education (8th ed.). Routledge.
  • Consoli, S. (2022). Life capital: An epistemic and methodological lens for TESOL research. TESOL Quarterly, 56(4), 1397–1409. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3154
  • Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (5th ed.). Sage.
  • Cummins, J. (1986). Empowering minority students: A framework for intervention. Harvard Educational Review, 56(1), 18–36.
  • Cummins, J. (2007). Rethinking monolingual instructional strategies in multilingual classrooms. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 10(2),...
  • Duarte, J. (2020). Translanguaging in the context of mainstream multilingual education. International Journal of Multilingualism, 17(2), 232–247....
  • Foster, N., Auger, N., & Van Avermaet, P. (2023). Multilingual tasks as a springboard for transversal practice: Teachers’ decisions and...
  • Galante, A., Okubo, K., Cole, C., Elkader, N. A., Carozza, N., Wilkinson, C., Wotton, C., & Vasic, J. (2020). “English-only is not the...
  • García, O. (2009). Education, multilingualism and translanguaging in the 21st century. In A. Mohanty, M. Panda, R. Phillipson, & T. Skutnabb-Kangas...
  • García, O. (2011). Bilingual education in the 21st century: A global perspective. Wiley-Blackwell.
  • García, O. (2020). Singularity, complexities and contradictions: A commentary about translanguaging, social justice, and education. In P....
  • García, O., Johnson, S. I., Seltzer, K., & Valdés, G. (2017). The translanguaging classroom: Leveraging student bilingualism for learning....
  • Garcia, O., & Li, W. (2015). Translanguaging: Language, bilingualism and education. Springer.
  • Geertz, C. (2017). The interpretation of cultures: Selected essays. Basic Books.
  • Gong, T., Shuai, L., & Wu, Y. (2018). Rethinking foundations of language from a multidisciplinary perspective. Physics of Life Reviews,...
  • Gouvernement du, Q. (2023). Charter of the French language (C-11). Retrieved June 12, 2025, from https://www.legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca/en/document/cs/c-11
  • Harré, R., & Langenhove, L. V. (1998). Positioning theory: Moral contexts of international action. Wiley.
  • Hodge, R., & Kress, G. (1988). Social semiotics. Cornell University Press.
  • Hofweber, J. E., Zeller, J. P., & Treffers-Daller, J. (2023). Challenging basic assumptions in code-switching research: New linguistic,...
  • Hornberger, N. H. (2021). Foreword: Teaching and researching in linguistically and culturally diverse classrooms. In J. Cenoz, & D. Gorter...
  • Jaspers, J. (2015). Modelling linguistic diversity at school: The excluding impact of inclusive multilingualism. Language Policy, 14(2), 109–129....
  • Jaspers, J. (2019). Authority and morality in advocating heteroglossia. Language, Culture and Society, 1(1), 83–105. https://doi.org/10.1075/lcs.00005.jas
  • Kayi-Aydar, H. (2018). Positioning theory in language teacher education. In H. Kayi-Aydar (Ed.), Positioning theory in applied linguistics...
  • Kiramba, L. K. (2018). Language ideologies and epistemic exclusion. Language and Education, 32(6), 541–557. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2018.1438469
  • Kress, G. (2010). Multimodality: A social semiotic approach to contemporary communication (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203970034
  • Kuckartz, U. (2014). Qualitative text analysis: A guide to methods, practice and using software (1st ed.). Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446288719
  • Larsen-Freeman, D., & Todeva, E. (2021). A sociocognitive theory for plurilingualism: Complex dynamic systems theory. In E. Piccardo,...
  • Ledin, P., & Machin, D. (2018). Doing visual analysis: From theory to practice. Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529793529
  • Lewis, G., Jones, B., & Baker, C. (2012). Translanguaging: Origins and development from school to street and beyond. Educational Research...
  • Li, W. (2018). Translanguaging as a practical theory of language. Applied Linguistics, 39(1), 9–30. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amx039
  • L’nyavskiy-Ekelund, S., & Siiner, M. (2017). Fostering social inclusion through multilingual habitus in Estonia: A case study of the open...
  • Makoni, S., & Pennycook, A. (2007). Disinventing and reconstituting languages. Multilingual Matters.
  • Manitoba Education and Early Childhood Learning. (2023). The French immersion policy in Manitoba. Government of Manitoba. Retrieved June 12,...
  • Martínez, R. A., Hikida, M., & Durán, L. (2015). Unpacking ideologies of linguistic purism: How dual language teachers make sense of everyday...
  • Mendoza, A., Hamman-Ortiz, L., Tian, Z., Rajendram, S., Tai, K. W. H., Ho, W. Y. J., & Sah, P. K. (2024). Sustaining critical approaches...
  • Menken, K., & Sánchez, M. T. (2019). Translanguaging in English-only schools: From pedagogy to stance in the disruption of monolingual...
  • Ontario Ministry of Education. (2023). Ontario’s aménagement linguistique policy for French-language education (Rev. ed.). Government of Ontario....
  • Otheguy, R., García, O., & Reid, W. (2015). Clarifying translanguaging and deconstructing named languages: A perspective from linguistics....
  • Payant, C., & Galante, A. (2022). Plurilingualism and translanguaging: Pedagogical approaches for empowerment and validation-An introduction....
  • Peyer, E., Barras, M., & Lüthi, G. (2022). Including home languages in the classroom: A videographic study on challenges and possibilities...
  • Piller, I. (2016). Linguistic diversity and social justice: An introduction to applied sociolinguistics. Oxford University Press.
  • Ponizovsky-Bergelson, Y., Dayan, Y., Wahle, N., & Roer-Strier, D. (2019). A qualitative interview with young children: What encourages...
  • Prada, J. (2022). Articulating translanguaging as pedagogy of empowerment for racialised, language-minoritised bilinguals: From concepto to...
  • Prilutskaya, M. (2021). Examining pedagogical translanguaging: A systematic review of the literature. Languages, 6(4), Article 180. https://doi.org/10.3390/languages6040180
  • Rampton, B., Charalambous, C., & Charalambous, P. (2019). Crossing of a different kind. Language in Society, 48(5), 629–655. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0047404519000460
  • Renandya, W. A., & Chang, A. C. S. (2022). Translanguaging: Does it work in EFL contexts? TESL-EJ, 26(3), 1–3. https://doi.org/10.55593/ej.26103a25
  • Rose, G. (2023). Visual methodologies: An introduction to researching with visual materials (5th ed.). Sage.
  • Sayer, P. (2013). Translanguaging, TexMex, and bilingual pedagogy: Emergent bilinguals learning through the vernacular. TESOL Quarterly, 47(1),...
  • Silverman, R. D., Proctor, C. P., Harring, J. R., Doyle, B., Mitchell, M., & Meyer, A. G. (2014). Teachers’ instruction and students’...
  • Troesch, L. M., Weiner-Bühler, J. C., & Grob, A. (2024). Longitudinal examination of potential bilingual advantage effects for selective...
  • Valdés, G. (2004). Between support and marginalisation: The development of academic language in linguistic minority children. International...
  • West, R., & Turner, L. H. (2009). Introducing communication theory: Analysis and application (4th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
  • Wildsmith-Cromarty, R., Reyneke, M., Kaiser, K., & Dlavane, D. (2022). A multilingual pedagogies initiative in higher education. Language,...
  • Wong, K. M. (2018). [Review of the book translanguaging in higher education: Beyond monolingual ideologies, edited by C. M. Mazak & K....