Present Practices and Future Impact : Multilingualism in the Undergraduate Writing Classroom

Abstract

What is a global university pedagogy in and for the 21st century and how might it address questions of multilingualism and linguistic diversity of faculty and students? In its exploration of these questions, which have implications for teaching with (or against) generative AI, our panel demonstrates the centrality of the undergraduate writing class as the locus of innovative and adaptive ideas about teaching, learning, and the future of liberal arts education. The panel brings together theoretical discussions about translingual pedagogies and specific practical tools in order to foster conversations and further innovations about working with multilingual students in our classrooms. With the rise of first-year writing programs at universities around the world, which often emphasise the importance of writing in English, it is essential to think about how faculty can engage with the issues of a multilingual classroom in ways that resist pedagogies focused on “remediation” or “fixing.” Drawing upon lessons learned from the global circulation of the liberal arts curriculum– with its emphasis on top-notch writing skills in English – the panel will shed light on the under-valued potential of a translingual approach in the English-only composition classroom. This panel is composed of scholar-teachers whose papers highlight the ways that translingual pedagogies offer students the opportunity to develop intellectual authority, creative power, and individual agency. The panel will bring together theoretical discussions about translingual pedagogies and specific practical tools in order to foster conversations and further innovations about working with multilingual students across the global university.

Presenters

Piia Mustamaki
Senior Lecturer, Writing Program, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abū Z̧aby [Abu Dhabi], United Arab Emirates

Nukhbah Langah
Universiti Malaya

Marion Wrenn
Executive Director of Writing, Arts & Humanities, NYU Abu Dhabi, Abū Z̧aby [Abu Dhabi], United Arab Emirates

Deborah Williams
Professor, Liberal Studies, New York University, New York, United States

Details

Presentation Type

Workshop Presentation

Theme

Communications and Linguistic Studies

KEYWORDS

Pedagogy, Composition Studies, Liberal Arts, Global University, First-year Writing, Multilingualism

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