Pragmatic Functions of Translanguaging in EFL Classrooms
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21009/ishel.v1i1.57085Abstract
PRAGMATIC FUNCTIONS OF TRANSLANGUAGING IN EFL CLASSROOMS
ABSTRACT
This study investigates the pragmatic functions of translanguaging in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms with two primary objectives: (1) to describe how teachers and learners employ translanguaging as a communicative strategy during classroom interactions, and (2) to analyze the extent to which translanguaging practices influence contextual meaning–making and the effectiveness of students’ English utterances in pragmatically oriented tasks. Employing a qualitative case-study design, data were collected over five class sessions through participant observation, video- and audio-recorded interactions, and semi-structured interviews with two teachers and six students. Discourse-pragmatic analysis was applied to identify patterns of code-switching and their pragmatic functions.
Findings reveal that translanguaging serves as a meaning-negotiation tool, a communication scaffold, and a promoter of metapragmatic awareness. Teachers strategically alternate between L1 and English to clarify instructions, model pragmatic strategies, and draw attention to socio-cultural nuances. Learners, in turn, invoke their first language to stabilize comprehension and co-construct meaning before producing English utterances. These practices enhance students’ situational understanding and expand their linguistic repertoire, leading to more appropriate politeness strategies, register choices, and pragmatic responses in English. The results underscore the pedagogical value of integrating translanguaging into EFL instruction to foster authentic pragmatic competence.
Keywords: translanguaging; pragmatics; EFL; communicative strategy; case study.
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