An upper secondary student’s translingual writing practices in Swedish as a second language

Abstract

Research has shown that students with access to several languages make use of their first language(s) when writing in a second language. However, there is a research gap concerning how these translingual writing practices (Canagarajah, 2013) vary between students, and with the same student. In this presentation, I show how Kim's translingual writing practices change over three writing activities. Kim was one of three students participating in a case study with the aim of gaining a deeper understanding of upper secondary school students’ writing practices by exploring students’ use of resources during writing activities in the school subject Swedish as a second language. Two research questions are relevant for this presentation:

• How does Kim use different resources when writing?
• How does Kim’s use of resources change over time?

The study draws on dialogic, functional, and socio-material perspectives, and resources are viewed as parts of three dynamic  semiotic repertoires. At specific moments, resources of the three repertoires come together in unique and situated assemblages to make meaning.

Following a linguistic ethnography approach, material was collected over three semesters and include survey responses, video and screen recordings, field notes, artefacts and photographs, student interviews and student texts.

The resources were identified and categorized, followed by the analysis of a selection of writing activity moments using the notions of semiotic repertoires and assemblage. Intertextual analytical tools were used on students’ texts.

Preliminary results show a variation in Kim's translingual writing practices. Over time, Kim largely abandoned the use of two languages and mainly used Swedish, while other students consistently used several languages and Google translate. Kim also adjusted her translingual practices to school conventions when needed, e.g. by using private notes made at home. Furthermore, the analysis shows Kim over time being more confident using Swedish, at the same time expressing concern about losing what could be interpreted as a translingual identity. Preliminary results imply the necessity of viewing students' translingual writing practices as individual, dynamic, and spatiotemporally situated.