Language identities in students’ writings about group work in their mathematics classroom

Abstract

In this article, I explore language identities and processes of negotiation concerning parts of these identities as seen by a group of students from a bilingual mathematics classroom. A collection of 10 students’ individual writings on the questions ‘What language do you use during group work in your mathematics class and why?’ is examined from a socio-political perspective. My data emphasize the importance of addressing the complexity of the identity work that goes on in the students’ texts. Through their writings and despite the perception of limits, students negotiate complementary language identities that are contrary to the established monolingual ideologies in the research context. Students show distinct degrees of agency in their responses as they attempt to produce language identities that are much more complex than those politically ascribed to them.

Keywords:

• language identity
• bilingualism
• students’ writings
• group work interaction
• mathematics classroom