Jiajia Eve Liu

Faculty of Education
The University of Hong Kong

Angel M. Y. Lin

Professor & Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Plurilingual and Intercultural Education
Simon Fraser University (British Columbia, Canada)

Journal Article: (Re)conceptualizing “Language” in CLIL: Multimodality, translanguaging and trans-semiotizing in CLIL

This article points out the urgent need to revisit and reconceptualize the roles of “language” in CLIL (content and language integrated learning). It argues that, to prepare students for the multimodal communication landscape in today’s societies and to truly value their linguistic and semiotic diversity in learning, the “language” dimension in CLIL needs to be reconceptualized as a multimodal dimension, and CLIL classroom practices need to adopt an updated pedagogy of multiliteracies rather than focusing on “mere language” practice. The article reviews the recent development of theories and studies of multimodality and trans-semiotics and discusses their implications for what to teach and how to teach in today’s CLIL classrooms. It proposes the notions of translanguaging and trans-semiotizing to emphasize a dynamic and dialogic process of meaning (co)making process drawing on multiple linguistic and semiotic resources to enable students to both gain access to and critically engage in meaning/knowledge co-making/co-design. Ultimately, it aims at reconceiving CLIL to contribute to a more equitable school and classroom culture.

To Cite

Liu, J. E., & Lin, A. M. (2021). (Re) conceptualizing “Language” in CLIL: Multimodality, translanguaging and trans-semiotizing in CLIL. AILA Review, 34(2), 240-261.