From target language to translingual capabilities. Harnessing plurilingual repertoires for language learning and teaching.

Abstract

Language teaching in the 21st century has undergone a rapid transformation, marked not only by the impact of digital technology, but also by shifting ideas about language learning and the nature of language. Drawing on a case study of a New Zealand/German bilingual online exchange (telecollaboration), this paper introduces two teachers’ attempts to create new and authentic learning opportunities aimed to accommodate the curricular demands for the two ‘target’ languages German and English, along with a broader objective to foster plurilingual proficiencies. The idea of language learning as achieving “a monolingual-like command of an additional language” (Ortega, 2009, p. 5) may not serve the needs of contemporary learners, who are increasingly faced with fluid language practices, particularly in online encounters. This view is evident in the increasing recognition of language acquisition as a process of becoming bi/multilingual and, importantly, of learners’ plurilingual repertoires as a resource, rather than deficit (Narcy-Combes et al., 2019). The case presented here exemplifies how plurilingual practices can be facilitated and help leverage learner community building.