Translanguaging is becoming a hot topic in education, especially in international schools, where linguistically diverse classes are the norm. However, the topic also generates confusion and concern for many educators, due to the fluid nature of the definition and conflicting/concurrent definitions such as code-switching, code-meshing, interlingual teaching and so on. From my perspective, translanguaging both includes and transcends these other terms, by the nature of its scope and applicability. There has also been a move towards exploring translanguaging from sociolinguistic and neurolinguistic perspectives, but my focus in this post is on pedagogical translanguaging. Pedagogical translangu
Thus we are faced with the bizarre scenario of school successfully transforming fluent speakers of foreign languages into monolingual English speakers, at the same time as they struggle, largely unsuccessfully, to transform monolingual English speakers into foreign language speakers. (Cummins, 2005) There is growing recognition for the need to support students' home languages in international (and public) education. Research shows clear links between the level of a student's home language and their ability and eventual proficiency in English in international schools. Globally, it is recognised that students who do not have access to their home languages in education do not do as well academi
