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Mindfulness
There are always buzzwords that float around in the Education arena. Mindfulness is one of them that is very dear to my heart. Of all of the languages that I have in my repertoire, I have newly added Sanskrit, which is an ancient Indic language of India that can be found in classical Indian epic poems. Religion aside, Sanskrit is used all over the world, including in the United States among people who consciously practice mindfulness. Adding just a few words to your and your students' language diet can have calming effects.
Translanguaging
When thinking of bi-/multilingualism, a new concept I discovered this summer is Translanguaging. It is a tool that teachers who have multiple languages represented in their classrooms are able to use to promote content learning and production of that language in projects that reflect comprehension of individual students and small or large groups. It incorporates the funds of knowledge students possess from home, in addition to those funds of knowledge they share among their peers in English. The end result is learning and a tangible product of that learning that can be in any language and/or English and is also assessed by the students themselves, their peers, AND their parents. What a concept, right?!?
The main question becomes HOW? As educators, we really want to go along with our mandates, plow through our curriculum standards and work towards closing all learning gaps. But translanguaging does not remove any of those goals, it creatively adds to them. If all of the ingredients to a recipe you desired to make for your family were incomprehensible, you would be unsuccessful in creating the dish. However if you were able to leverage what you do know about your ingredients and instructions in your language and share them with someone else, joining what you already know to what you are learning, how much further would you be in accomplishing your culinary goal? It would be simply delicious!
In March of 2016, Francois Grosjean, Ph. D., interviewed García for Psychology Today, explaining what Translanguaging is and clarifying the idea of idiolects. It further expresses what we already know about monolingualism and how it affects the complexity of one's language repertoire. There is no doubt that monolingualism is not the norm, but a rarity. It is also frowned upon on the world stage. According to Abbott (2018), monolingualism has diminished the global status of the United States. Her opinion can be found on The Hill.
I know I've shared a bit much today, but I'm full. I simply believe that I can wear a (San)skirt while Translanguging in the classroom. I hope this has opened some creative boxes for you, especially if you had never considered espousing these terms (mindfulness and/or translanguaging).
Happy Translanguging with Mindfulness!
Abbott, M. (2018). Monolingualism diminishes America's stature on the world stage. The Hill online. Retrieved from http://thehill.com/opinion/education/376707-monolingualism-diminishes-americas-stature-on-the-world-stage
García, Johnson, & Seltzer (2016). The Translanguaging Classroom: Leveraging Student Bilingualism for Learning. Philadelphia, PA: Carlson
Garey, J. (2018). Mindfulness in the Classroom: How it helps kids regulate behavior and focus on learning. Retrieved from: https://childmind.org/article/mindfulness-in-the-classroom/.
Grosjean, F. (2016). What is Translanguaging? An Interview with Ofelia García. Psychology Today online. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/life-bilingual/201603/what-is-translanguaging.
