Abstract
This article offers an alternative view of mobile learning, moving away from a focus on technology to an emphasis on the mobilization of multiple resources by the learner and the interactivity between the learner and the environment. We present an analysis of an episode of self-directed online learning by a multilingual learner using the perspective of translanguaging. We argue that the mobilization process is a process of translanguaging whereby the learner goes beyond not only the boundaries between different-named languages but also linguistic codes, transcending modalities and making use of the technological environment and artifacts. In so doing, we highlight the need for researchers to broaden the definition of language and language learning and look more closely at the details of how learners orchestrate and coordinate their mind and body to adapt to the affordances of the diverse range of multilingual, multimodal, and multisemiotic resources.
About the authors
Wing Yee Jenifer Ho (b. 1989) is Assistant Professor at the Department of English, City University of Hong Kong. Her research interests include mobile language learning, informal language learning, translanguaging, and multimodality. Her publications include “Language learning sans frontiers: A translanguaging view” (2018, co-authored with Li Wei).
Li Wei (b. 1961) is Chair of Applied Linguistics at the UCL Institute of Education, University College London. His research interests include different aspects of bilingualism and multilingual. His publications include Translanguaging: Language, bilingualism and education, with Ofelia Garcia (2014), which won the British Association of Applied Linguistics 2015 Book Prize.
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, special thanks must go to the Memrise team, in particular, Ed Cooke and Ben Whatley, for their support in this project. We are grateful to all the volunteers who participated in this research. This study would not have been possible without their understanding and patience. We would also like to thank the Bloomsbury Colleges Research Studentship for funding Ho’s PhD research, on which this article is based. The thesis, and therefore this article, benefited hugely from the exchanges we have had with Carey Jewitt and Jeff Bezemer, who provided valuable insights in different stages of the study. We are grateful for Stephen Cowley for giving us the opportunity to be part of the special issue and for the constructive comments from him and the reviewers and editors that helped to improve the quality of this article significantly.
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This is the original transcript from ELAN. There are three layers: Speech (from Valerie), Speech (from Memrise), and Gaze.
1: 06:53 – 07:06
2: 07:06 – 07:18
3: 07:18 – 07:30
4: 07:30 – 07:43
5: 07:43 – 07:51
6: 07:51 – 08:04
© 2019 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
