Translanguaging for Emergent Bilinguals

Book excerpt: Translanguaging for Emergent Bilinguals is a thorough examination of the development, evolution, and current realities of educating emergent bilinguals in U.S. classrooms. Through engaging vignettes, readers follow the experiences of emergent bilinguals in a variety of monolingual settings, tracing the challenges encountered by both the students and the schools that serve them. The authors argue that the future of emergent bilingual education lies in an inclusive translanguaging pedagogy. By embracing home languages and cultures, this approach nurtures the development of multiple literacies, enabling individuals to thrive academically, socially, linguistically, and intellectually. The text begins by showing how the authors evolved from monolingual language educators to translanguaging educators and ends with concrete takeaways for successfully using this approach in different education settings. “This book offers an uplifting alternative view of the lives and education of language-minoritized students. The authors present here a practice-based approach to translanguaging for all types of teachers of emergent bilinguals.” —From the Foreword by Ofelia García, The Graduate Center, City University of New York “A fascinating volume offering practical as well as theoretical insights into translanguaging pedagogy.” —Li Wei, UCL Institute of Education, University College London “Contributes significantly to our understanding of the nature of translanguaging and its potential to transform the education of emergent bilingual students.” —James Cummins, University of Toronto