Key research themes
1. How does language learning intersect with multilayered and shifting identities in social and educational contexts?
This research strand explores the complex, fluid, and dynamic nature of identity as it relates to language acquisition and use, particularly emphasizing how language learners negotiate multiple and sometimes conflicting identities. It transcends cognitive models to focus on social, cultural, and political forces impacting learners' sense of self in multilingual and postcolonial educational settings. Understanding these processes is critical for language teaching practices that support learner agency and meaningful identity negotiation rather than assimilation or identity loss.
2. How are multilingual and cultural identities expressed, represented, and negotiated in educational settings through innovative methodologies?
This theme focuses on methodological innovations to capture how multilingual students express and negotiate their diverse linguistic and cultural identities. Visual and narrative tools like language portraits reveal how learners conceptualize and emotionally attach meanings to multiple languages within their repertoires. These methods provide critical insights for educators to understand students' multilingual identities beyond proficiency measures, highlighting the role of culture, affect, and socio-political contexts in language identity formation. This research area supports culturally sustaining pedagogies and multilingual education policies.
3. Why is linguistic identity fundamental in language preservation and sociopolitical justice regarding endangered languages?
This theme addresses how linguistic identity underpins the imperative to preserve endangered languages, emphasizing language as central to personal and collective identity and integral to cultural diversity. It includes sociopolitical and ethical considerations regarding language rights, official multilingualism, and the intersectionality of language with social justice. Research in this area informs policy and advocacy efforts aimed at protecting linguistic diversity and sustaining cultural heritage amid globalization and language shift phenomena.