Multilingualism and identity: articulating ‘African-ness’ in an American high school

Abstract

This paper draws on qualitative research that examines the language practices and learning experiences of ten adolescent multilingual immigrant and refugee English Learners (ELs) from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Specific questions addressed include: How do these students capitalize on home languages as they engage in linguistic practices in English? How do these students take up their identities within the context of a US high school? The project emphasizes a shift away from learning discrete language skills in one language toward a focus on supporting complex language and content learning fluidly across languages and content areas in ways that affirm students’ identities and new learning. Implications for theory and practice will be discussed.

Keywords:

• Multilingualism
• identity
• African immigrant and refugee youth