Valuing Linguistic Diversity: Multilingualism and Translanguaging in Action

Tuana Lopez Ibarra is a doctoral candidate in the English Language Teaching Department at Yeditepe University, Turkey. She holds a master’s degree in Applied Linguistics from Birkbeck, University of London, and has extensive experience teaching English as a foreign language to learners of diverse ages and backgrounds. She is currently teaching English to international students in Oxford, England. Her work with both young learners and university students has shaped her flexible, learner-centred approach to language education. Her research interests focus on multilingualism and translanguaging pedagogies, particularly on how these approaches can foster more inclusive and effective language learning environments.

Could you reflect on your academic journey from your Master’s studies in Applied Linguistics at Birkbeck, University of London to your current doctoral research at Yeditepe University?

During my BA studies in the English Language Teaching department, I discovered a strong interest in Applied Linguistics and realized that I wanted to pursue an academic career in this field. By the time I graduated, I already knew that undertaking a PhD would be one of my long-term goals. Completing a master’s degree at Birkbeck, University of London, therefore felt like a natural and necessary step in that direction.

My master’s studies allowed me to engage deeply with theoretical perspectives in language learning and teaching. However, after graduating, I intentionally chose to gain substantial field experience. I wanted to bridge theory and practice to observe how pedagogical frameworks function in real classrooms and whether they truly respond to learners’ needs. Teaching learners from diverse backgrounds provided me with valuable insights and helped me critically reflect on the relationship between research and practice.

Following this professional experience, I felt ready to continue my academic journey. Returning to my hometown, Istanbul, to pursue my doctoral studies at Yeditepe University was a meaningful decision. I had the opportunity to work with professors who had first inspired me to consider an academic career. In many ways, my journey has been an intellectual and personal exploration, one that has allowed me to listen to and learn from multiple voices across different contexts, shaping the direction of my doctoral research today.

How have your experiences teaching both young learners and university-level students shaped your pedagogical philosophy?

I consider myself very fortunate to have taught across such a wide range of educational levels from kindergarten and primary school to secondary school, high school, and university. Each context contributed a different perspective, and together they shaped my broader understanding of teaching. In many ways, these experiences felt like pieces of a puzzle gradually coming together to reveal a more complete picture of language education.

Working with different age groups allowed me to clearly see that learners’ cognitive, emotional, and social needs vary significantly. What engages a young learner is very different from what motivates a university student. This diversity pushed me to move beyond a one-size-fits-all approach and to think more carefully about responsiveness, adaptability, and learner individuality.

Over time, my pedagogical philosophy has evolved toward a deeply learner-centred perspective. I have come to believe that every learner brings unique experiences, identities, and linguistic resources into the classroom. As educators, our responsibility is not only to teach content, but also to recognize, value, and build upon those individual differences. This understanding strongly aligns with my current doctoral research, which explores how inclusive and multilingual pedagogical approaches can better respond to learners’ diverse realities.

What key turning points influenced your decision to focus your doctoral research on multilingualism and translanguaging?

A key turning point in my academic journey was my first encounter with translanguaging as both a theoretical framework and a pedagogical practice. When I began reading about it, I had a strong sense of recognition as if I had finally found a concept that articulated the questions I had been carrying for years throughout my teaching experience.

In many classroom contexts, I had observed a disconnect between traditional language teaching approaches and the lived realities of multilingual learners. The dominant “one-size-fits-all” model often seemed to restrict students’ access to their full linguistic repertoires, implicitly positioning their home languages as obstacles rather than resources. This never felt entirely right to me. I kept questioning why learners were expected to compartmentalize their languages when their identities and experiences were far more fluid and interconnected.

Discovering translanguaging provided a theoretical and pedagogical response to these concerns. It addressed not only instructional strategies, but also broader issues of equity, inclusion, and social justice in multilingual classrooms. It offered a lens through which linguistic diversity could be viewed as an asset rather than a limitation.

Realizing that my research could contribute even in a small way to more inclusive and equitable educational practices was deeply meaningful to me. For me, focusing my doctoral work on multilingualism and translanguaging is not only an academic decision, but also a personal and ethical commitment to creating fairer learning environments for multilingual students.

How do you conceptualise multilingualism in contemporary language education contexts?

Traditional understandings of multilingualism often presented languages as separate, stable systems that coexist within an individual. However, contemporary perspectives challenge this view and instead frame multilingualism as dynamic, fluid, and socially situated. From this standpoint, multilingual individuals do not simply possess multiple languages; they actively and strategically draw on their entire linguistic repertoire to make meaning across contexts.

In today’s globalised and mobile world, such linguistic fluidity is not unusual, it is the everyday reality of our classrooms. For this reason, I conceptualise multilingualism not as a special condition, but as the norm in contemporary education. Linguistic diversity should therefore be recognised as an intellectual, cultural, and cognitive resource rather than a complication to be controlled.

Moreover, multilingualism is inseparable from identity, and culture. Language practices reflect who learners are, where they come from, and how they position themselves in the world. Acknowledging this interconnectedness requires pedagogical approaches that are flexible, inclusive, and responsive approaches that create space for students to bring their full selves into the learning environment.

Translanguaging has gained increasing attention in recent years. How do you interpret its pedagogical potential beyond theoretical discourse?

Although translanguaging has existed in scholarly discussions for more than a decade, it has gained significant momentum in recent years. I interpret this growing attention as a reflection of sustained efforts by researchers, educators, and practitioners to move beyond theoretical debates and examine its practical implications more systematically. As empirical studies continue to document its cognitive, pedagogical, and socio-emotional benefits, translanguaging is gradually shifting from being perceived as a controversial innovation to a legitimate and research-informed pedagogical approach.

Importantly, the focus in the field has evolved. Earlier discussions often centred on whether translanguaging “works” or whether it might hinder target language development. Today, the conversation has moved toward how to implement it effectively and responsibly in different educational contexts. This shift from questioning its validity to refining its application signals pedagogical maturation.

I see translanguaging not as a temporary trend, but as part of a broader paradigm shift in language education. As research continues to clarify best practices and provide practical guidance, teachers will likely feel more confident integrating translanguaging strategies into their classrooms. Over time, this increased clarity and evidence base will strengthen its pedagogical impact across educational levels and contexts.

What misconceptions about translanguaging pedagogies do you frequently encounter?

One of the most common misconceptions I encounter is the assumption that translanguaging is simply a modern or more sophisticated version of the Grammar Translation Method. At first glance, this confusion is understandable. After decades in which the Direct Method and later Communicative Language Teaching strongly discouraged the use of learners’ "first languages", suggesting that students can draw on their “other languages” may seem like a step backwards.

Many educators have been socialised into viewing the use of "the first language" as something pedagogically “wrong” or even harmful. As a result, there can be initial scepticism toward translanguaging practices. However, translanguaging pedagogy does not prioritise translation, nor does it aim to revert to grammar-focused instruction. Its purpose is fundamentally different. Rather than centring on translation as an end, translanguaging allows learners, particularly emergent bilinguals, to strategically mobilise their full linguistic repertoires to construct meaning, process new knowledge, and participate more fully in classroom interaction. It is not an unsystematic or unstructured practice; on the contrary, effective translanguaging pedagogy requires intentional design, clear objectives, and thoughtful scaffolding.

Once these distinctions are clarified, the approach often becomes more comprehensible to educators. However, reshaping these entrenched beliefs takes time. Challenging these long-standing assumptions remains one of the key tasks in advancing translanguaging pedagogy.

How can translanguaging practices contribute to more inclusive and equitable classrooms?

Translanguaging practices contribute to more inclusive and equitable classrooms by recognising and valuing the diverse linguistic, cultural, and experiential resources that learners bring with them. Rather than asking students to leave parts of themselves at the classroom door, translanguaging pedagogy intentionally builds upon their prior knowledge, lived experiences, and full linguistic repertoires as assets for learning.

In this sense, translanguaging does not determine whose voice is legitimate in the classroom; instead, it creates space for all voices to be heard. It avoids privileging certain linguistic backgrounds while marginalising others. By doing so, it fosters a more balanced and participatory learning environment where students feel seen, acknowledged, and empowered.

Importantly, translanguaging enables learners to make sense of academic content through the resources available to them. At times, students remain silent not because they lack ideas, but because they lack the linguistic means to express them within rigid monolingual expectations. Translanguaging shifts the perspective from “you cannot say it that way” to “this is another way you can express your meaning.” This subtle but powerful shift promotes access, agency, and confidence, key foundations of equitable education.

You describe your teaching approach as flexible and learner-centred. How do you operationalise these principles in diverse classroom settings?

For me, being flexible and learner-centred starts with listening. I try to understand learners’ linguistic backgrounds, prior experiences, and confidence levels before making pedagogical decisions.

In practice, this means adapting materials and pacing to the group rather than rigidly following a fixed plan. I design tasks that connect to students’ lived experiences and allow them to use their full linguistic repertoires through translanguaging.

Learner-centredness, for me, is about positioning students as active meaning-makers, giving them the space, structure, and voice to construct understanding in diverse classroom contexts.

In multilingual classrooms, how can educators balance institutional expectations with students’ linguistic repertoires?

Balancing institutional expectations with students’ linguistic repertoires requires reframing what counts as legitimate language use. Institutional goals such as curriculum standards or assessment outcomes are important, but they do not have to exclude students’ full linguistic resources.

Rather than seeing multilingualism as a deviation from the norm, I see it as a bridge. Educators can strategically use translanguaging as a scaffold toward target outcomes. Students may think, compare, or negotiate meaning across languages, but the learning objectives remain clear.

The key is alignment: maintaining academic standards while recognising that diverse linguistic repertoires are not obstacles to achievement, they are cognitive and pedagogical assets.

What practical strategies can teachers adopt to create environments where linguistic diversity is viewed as an asset rather than a deficit?

Creating asset-based multilingual classrooms begins with normalising linguistic diversity. Teachers can invite students to draw comparisons across languages, encourage collaborative meaning-making, and design tasks where multiple linguistic resources are useful rather than restricted.

Practically, this might include multilingual brainstorming, allowing reflection in a stronger language before production, or incorporating students’ home languages into discussions and projects. The key is to move away from policing language use and toward valuing how languages interact in the learning process.

When students see that their full linguistic repertoires are recognised, participation increases and diversity becomes a shared resource, not a limitation.

How does your classroom experience inform your doctoral research, and vice versa?

My classroom experience constantly shapes my doctoral research because my questions emerge from practice. Working with multilingual learners, especially international students in the current school that I am working in, allows me to observe how translanguaging functions in real learning environments, not just in theory.

At the same time, my doctoral research sharpens my pedagogical decisions. It helps me move from intuition to principled practice. The dialogue between research and classroom is reciprocal: practice generates inquiry, and research refines practice.

What methodological approaches are you employing in your research on multilingualism and translanguaging?

My research primarily takes a qualitative approach, grounded in classroom realities. I am currently working on translanguaging pedagogy, exploring how it can be meaningfully integrated into teaching practices.

I’m particularly interested in the relationship between teachers’ beliefs and what happens in the classroom, and how reflective engagement can support pedagogical development in multilingual contexts.

How can findings from research in multilingual education be more effectively translated into teacher education programmes?

Research in multilingual education needs to move beyond theory-heavy presentations and become embedded in practical, reflective experiences within teacher education programmes.

Rather than simply introducing concepts, programmes should create structured opportunities for teachers to engage with real classroom scenarios, question their assumptions, and experiment with alternative approaches. When research is connected to lived practice and professional dialogue, it becomes actionable rather than abstract.

Bridging this gap requires positioning teachers not just as recipients of research, but as active interpreters of it within their own contexts.

How do you envision the future of English language teaching in increasingly multilingual societies?

I see the future of English language teaching becoming more multilingual rather than more monolingual. As societies grow increasingly diverse, it will be essential to move away from “English-only” ideologies and recognise learners’ full linguistic repertoires as part of the learning process.

I believe English teaching will shift toward more flexible, inclusive pedagogies that value identity, voice, and cross-linguistic awareness. In multilingual societies, the goal will not simply be English proficiency, but meaningful communication shaped by linguistic diversity.

What advice would you offer to early-career researchers who wish to engage critically with inclusive pedagogies while maintaining academic rigour?

My advice would be to remain both curious and grounded. Engaging critically with inclusive pedagogies requires questioning dominant assumptions but also being methodologically disciplined.

It is important to anchor your arguments in strong theoretical frameworks while staying close to classroom realities. Inclusion should not be treated as a slogan, but as a carefully examined pedagogical stance.

Academic rigour and critical engagement are not opposites, they strengthen each other when research is reflective, transparent, and context sensitive.

What continues to inspire and motivate you in your academic and professional journey?

What continues to inspire me is the transformative potential of language. Seeing how learners begin to find their voice in another language is incredibly powerful.

Academically, I am driven by the naturally occurring questions that constantly emerge in my mind. I am curious to find answers, to understand why certain pedagogical choices work, how beliefs shape practice, and how classrooms can become more inclusive spaces.

The ongoing dialogue between research and classroom practice keeps me energised. Knowing that inquiry can meaningfully shape lived educational experiences is what motivates me to continue.