Language Heterogeneity: Supporting an Asset-Based Approach to Translanguaging in Engineering and Science Education
Publication Date
1-1-2026
Document Type
Contribution to a Book
Publication Title
Handbook of Race Equity and Asset Based Research in Educational Psychology
DOI
10.4324/9781032673417-28
First Page
481
Last Page
493
Abstract
Multilingual students are far from a monolith; yet research too rarely recognizes the diverse ways they draw on their language resources to engage in technical and scientific practices and thinking. This chapter presents an argument for attending to language heterogeneity in engineering and science education within educational psychology. The authors provide a cautionary note to embracing translanguaging without consideration of how language norms are being reproduced or transgressed, the nuances of language use within named languages, and the ways that language is used as a marker to reinforce group belonging even within translinguistic spaces. By viewing language heterogeneity as a multicompetence, the authors draw on their own research to imagine the meaningful futures possible when students have opportunities to bring the brilliance of their vast linguistic, multisensory, and multimodal semiotic resources to their engineering and science learning.
Department
Teacher Education
Recommended Citation
Greses Pérez and Kathryn Ribay. "Language Heterogeneity: Supporting an Asset-Based Approach to Translanguaging in Engineering and Science Education" Handbook of Race Equity and Asset Based Research in Educational Psychology (2026): 481-493. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032673417-28
