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31 SES 05 B: Heritage Language
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31. LEd – Network on Language and Education
Paper Participatory Classroom Observation in Atayal Indigenous Language Education in Taiwan Proposal Information National Dong Hua University, Taiwan Presenting Author:This paper reports findings from the first year of an interpretive ethnographic study situated in Atayal Indigenous language education in Taiwan. Focusing on participatory classroom observation, the study examines how Indigenous language teaching is enacted within everyday school practices that are closely intertwined with community knowledge, family experience, and culturally situated values. Positioned as a grounding phase within a longer-term research design, the first-year study prioritizes understanding classroom life before introducing pedagogical intervention or evaluative judgment. The research addresses a central concern in Indigenous and minoritized language education: while policy discourses increasingly emphasize revitalization and culturally responsive pedagogy, far less is known about how such orientations are enacted in daily classroom life. Rather than evaluating outcomes or implementing instructional change, this first-year study prioritizes observing and understanding classroom practice on its own terms, attending to how language teaching unfolds through routine interaction, teacher talk, and culturally situated meaning-making. The study is guided by the following exploratory research questions:
Conceptually, the study is informed by an interpretive ethnographic perspective, emphasizing prolonged engagement, situated meaning-making, and reflexive understanding of classroom life prior to pedagogical intervention (Erickson, 1986; Hammersley & Atkinson, 2007). The analysis draws on funds of knowledge (Moll et al., 1992; González, Moll, & Amanti, 2005), translanguaging (García & Wei, 2014; Li, 2018), and culturally responsive teaching (Gay, 2018; Ladson-Billings, 1995) as sensitizing frameworks rather than evaluative criteria. These perspectives guide close attention to how family experiences, community narratives, moral values, and multilingual resources are mobilized and negotiated in everyday classroom instruction. Rather than measuring instructional effectiveness, the study seeks to develop contextual, relational, and ethically grounded understanding of Indigenous language teaching practices, establishing a foundation for collaborative and culturally responsive research in subsequent phases. Although situated in Taiwan, the paper speaks to broader European and international discussions on Indigenous education, intercultural pedagogy, and the role of ethnographic research in understanding schooling in culturally diverse contexts. Similar challenges surrounding minoritized languages, community–school relations, and the gap between policy and practice resonate across Indigenous education settings globally. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The study employs participatory classroom ethnography as its primary methodological approach. Fieldwork was conducted in an Indigenous elementary school serving predominantly Atayal children, with a focus on lower-grade Atayal language classes. Data were generated through fourteen sessions of sustained classroom observation across two academic semesters. The primary data sources consist of structured observation records documenting classroom interaction, instructional activities, teacher talk, and student participation. Post-observation reflective memos were used to capture emerging interpretations and analytic insights. The researcher adopted a participatory yet non-interventionist observer role, engaging with the classroom context while refraining from pedagogical intervention. A research assistant who is both a pre-service teacher and an Atayal community member contributed to observation and interpretation, supporting culturally grounded reflection and reflexive dialogue. Data analysis followed an inductive thematic approach, guided by iterative reading of fieldnotes and analytic memo writing. Attention was given to recurring patterns in teaching strategies, language use, cultural references, and interactional dynamics. Rather than employing predefined coding schemes, themes were allowed to emerge from sustained engagement with the observational data. Ethical approval was obtained at the institutional level. The study emphasizes informed consent, anonymization, and respectful engagement with Indigenous educational contexts. Observation was deliberately foregrounded as both a methodological and ethical stance, allowing trust-building and contextual understanding to precede action-oriented research. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings As an exploratory, observation-based pilot study, this paper offers ethnographically grounded insights into the everyday realities of Atayal Indigenous language classrooms. Preliminary analysis suggests that language teaching is deeply relational and narrative-based, with teachers frequently embedding vocabulary instruction within personal stories, ethical reflections, and references to family and community life. These practices highlight how Indigenous language teaching is intertwined with cultural values and lived experience rather than treated as isolated linguistic instruction. Classroom interaction is characterized by fluid movement between Atayal and Mandarin, functioning as a pedagogical resource that supports meaning-making and student engagement. Such multilingual practices enable students to access abstract concepts while maintaining cultural relevance and continuity. At the same time, the findings point to structural constraints, including limited instructional time and curricular pressures, which shape teachers’ instructional choices and delimit what is feasible within everyday classroom practice. In this first-year phase, classroom observation is not positioned as an end in itself, but as a relational and ethical entry point for engaging with schools and teachers. Sustained observation allows the researcher to develop contextual understanding, establish trust, and gain insight into teachers’ pedagogical reasoning prior to initiating more intervention-oriented inquiry. The purpose of this pilot phase is therefore to understand classroom life on its own terms and to lay the groundwork for collaboration, rather than to evaluate or modify existing practice. The outcomes of the first year establish a contextual and relational foundation for a second-year action research phase, in which the researcher plans to work more closely with teachers through collaborative lesson planning, reflective dialogue, and interviews. Beyond the Taiwanese context, this study contributes to international discussions on Indigenous language education by illustrating how observation can function as a preparatory stage within longer-term, collaborative, and ethically grounded research designs. References Moll, L. C., Amanti, C., Neff, D., & Gonzalez, N. (1992). Funds of knowledge for teaching: Using a qualitative approach to connect homes and classrooms. Theory into Practice, 31(2), 132–141. González, N., Moll, L. C., & Amanti, C. (Eds.). (2005). Funds of knowledge: Theorizing practices in households, communities, and classrooms. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. García, O., & Wei, L. (2014). Translanguaging: Language, bilingualism and education. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. Li, W. (2018). Translanguaging as a practical theory of language. Applied Linguistics, 39(1), 9–30. Gay, G. (2018). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Teachers College Press. Ladson-Billings, G. (1995). Toward a theory of culturally relevant pedagogy. American Educational Research Journal, 32(3), 465–491. Erickson, F. (1986). Qualitative methods in research on teaching. In M. C. Wittrock (Ed.), Handbook of research on teaching (3rd ed., pp. 119–161). New York, NY: Macmillan. Hammersley, M., & Atkinson, P. (2007). Ethnography: Principles in practice (3rd ed.). London, UK: Routledge. 31. LEd – Network on Language and Education
Paper Parental Motivation and Barriers in Estonian Heritage Language Education in Finland University of Helsinki, Finland Presenting Author:Across Europe, heritage and migration-related languages are increasingly acknowledged in education policy, yet their position in everyday educational practice remains uneven (Cummins, 2000; Seals & Peyton, 2016). Parents play a central role in family language policy and in decisions concerning children’s participation in heritage language education, but parental perspectives are still underrepresented in research on participation, non-participation, and discontinuation (Aksinovits & Verschik, 2024). This paper presents findings from a completed large-scale parent survey (n = 427) conducted as part of an interdisciplinary study on the family language policy of the Estonian diaspora in Finland. Estonian speakers constitute one of the largest immigrant groups in Finland, yet participation in Estonian heritage language education remains comparatively low (Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2025). Heritage language teaching is typically organised as supplementary provision outside the mainstream curriculum, contributing to its structurally marginal position within the education system (Yli-Jokipii, 2024). This paper examines how parents navigate this context and how motivation and barriers are shaped not only by family-level considerations but also by institutional and systemic conditions. The paper addresses three research questions: The study is guided by a three-level analytical framework distinguishing micro-, meso-, and macro-level influences, commonly used in multilingual and language policy research (Cummins, 2000). A transdisciplinary perspective informs the analysis (Douglas Fir Group, 2016). While micro-level factors include family language practices and parental attitudes, the analysis places particular emphasis on the meso and macro levels, which are critical for understanding participation beyond individual family choice. The meso level focuses on institutional and organisational conditions such as access to classes, scheduling in relation to mainstream schooling and extracurricular activities, group heterogeneity, availability of learning materials, and communication between schools and families (Yli-Jokipii, 2024). The macro level addresses broader structural and ideological factors, including the status of heritage language education within the education system, curriculum positioning, assessment practices, and societal language hierarchies (Cummins, 2000; Seals & Peyton, 2016). Heritage language education is understood as supporting intergenerational language transmission, linguistic and cultural continuity, and children’s multilingual development (Seals & Peyton, 2016; Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2009). In line with Network 31’s focus on Decolonising Language Education, the paper approaches decolonising as attention to coloniality in contemporary educational practice, specifically how majority-language norms and the marginal positioning of supplementary provision shape participation and attrition (Cummins, 2000). Rather than framing parental decisions as purely individual choices, the analysis foregrounds how educational structures and policies influence families’ opportunities to maintain heritage language learning (Aksinovits & Verschik, 2024). By presenting large-scale parental evidence, this paper contributes to European discussions on strengthening heritage language education through improved access, clearer information flows, and greater institutional recognition. The findings provide an empirical basis for policy-relevant recommendations aimed at reducing participation barriers and supporting more inclusive language education in multilingual contexts (Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2025). Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used This paper is based on a completed web-based survey of parents in Estonian-background families living across Finland (n = 427). The survey forms part of a broader interdisciplinary study on the family language policy of the Estonian diaspora in Finland (Aksinovits & Verschik, 2024). The paper reports quantitative findings from the completed dataset. The study is guided by a three-level analytical framework distinguishing micro-, meso-, and macro-level factors influencing participation in heritage language education, drawing on established approaches in bilingual and multilingual education research (Cummins, 2000; Douglas Fir Group, 2016). While micro-level factors include family language practices and parental attitudes, this paper places particular emphasis on the meso and macro levels, which are critical for understanding participation beyond individual family choice. The meso level focuses on institutional and organisational conditions, including access to heritage language classes, scheduling in relation to mainstream schooling and extracurricular activities, group heterogeneity, availability of learning materials, and communication between schools and families (Yli-Jokipii, 2024). The macro level addresses broader structural and ideological factors, such as the status of heritage language education within the education system, curriculum positioning, assessment practices, and societal language hierarchies (Cummins, 2000; Seals & Peyton, 2016). The questionnaire was structured into three main blocks based on parents’ relationship with heritage language education: • parents whose children participate in Estonian heritage language education; • parents who are aware of available opportunities but have decided not to enrol their children or to discontinue participation; • parents who report having no information about heritage language education opportunities. This structure enables systematic comparison of motivations, barriers, and information gaps across groups. Survey items included Likert-scale questions, multiple-choice items, and selected open-ended responses to contextualise quantitative patterns, in line with mixed and transdisciplinary approaches to multilingual research (Douglas Fir Group, 2016). Heritage language education is understood as supporting intergenerational language transmission, linguistic and cultural continuity, and children’s multilingual development (Seals & Peyton, 2016; Dörnyei & Ushioda, 2009). This context is particularly relevant in Finland, where Estonian speakers constitute one of the largest immigrant groups, yet participation in Estonian heritage language education remains comparatively low (Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2025). Quantitative analysis employs descriptive statistics and group comparisons to identify emerging patterns across the three parent groups. Open-ended responses are coded to refine and interpret the quantitative results. Ethical principles of informed consent, voluntary participation, and anonymisation were strictly followed. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings The findings show that parental motivation to support Estonian heritage language education in Finland is strongly linked to intergenerational language transmission, cultural continuity, and children’s multilingual development. Parents emphasise the importance of maintaining Estonian as a family language, sustaining transnational ties with Estonia, and supporting children’s sense of belonging across linguistic and cultural contexts. Many parents also associate heritage language education with broader educational and cognitive benefits. At the same time, the results identify a set of systemic barriers that significantly constrain participation and continuity. These include limited availability of classes, long travel distances, late scheduling and conflicts with mainstream schooling and extracurricular activities, and insufficient or fragmented information about available opportunities. Parents also highlight challenges related to heterogeneous learning groups, uneven access to appropriate learning materials, and concerns about the pedagogical quality and continuity of provision. A key finding concerns the institutional positioning and perceived status of heritage language education. Parents report that when heritage language teaching is marginalised within the education system and positioned outside the mainstream curriculum, weakly recognised in assessment practices, and insufficiently integrated into school communities. Its perceived value decreases, particularly in higher grades. This contributes to increased dropout and reduced long-term engagement. The study demonstrates that parental decisions are shaped not only by family-level motivation but also by meso- and macro-level structures that regulate access, recognition, and legitimacy. From a decolonising language education perspective, the findings illustrate how dominant language hierarchies continue to influence participation in heritage language education. The paper argues that improving participation requires coordinated policy and school-level measures that address both access and legitimacy, including clearer information pathways, stable provision, pedagogical support for heterogeneous groups, and stronger institutional recognition of heritage languages within education systems. References Aksinovits, Larissa; Verschik, Anna (2024). Family Language Policy in the Estonian Diaspora in Finland: Language Ideology and Home Language Education. Languages 9(7), 225 https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9070225 Cummins, Jim (2000). Language, power, and pedagogy: Bilingual children in the crossfire. Bilingual Research Journal 25, 405–412. Douglas Fir Group (2016). A transdisciplinary framework for SLA in a multilingual world. The Modern Language Journal, 100, 19–47. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12301 Dörnyei, Z. & E. Ushioda (toim.) 2009. Language identity and the L2 self. Bristol: Multilingual Matters. Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2025). Call and background for the applied study. Seals, Corinne A.; Peyton,Joy Kreeft (2016). Heritage language education: Valuing the languages, literacies, and cultural competencies of immigrant youth. Current Issues in Language Planning 17, 87–101. Yli-Jokipii, Maija (2024). Oman äidinkielen opettaja osana kielellisesti ja kulttuurisesti vastuullista koulutusjärjestelmää. Tampere: Tampereen yliopisto. 31. LEd – Network on Language and Education
Paper Heritage Language Teacher as a Transcultural Agent in Digital Arabic Language Education University of Inland Norway, Norway Presenting Author:In a time when transnational movement has intensified as the result of globalization, internationalization, and war, heritage language education plays a crucial role in sustaining families’ ties to multiple linguistic and cultural practices among diasporic communities, and the growing Arabic diaspora is no exception (UNESCO, 2019). Due to the uneven integration of heritage language education in mainstream schools across Europe (Iversen, 2024), many Arab communities have established local, community-based Arabic heritage language (AHL) programs. While these programs mainly focus on Arabic language education, they vary considerably in their emphasis, with some incorporating Islamic teaching, others emphasizing national cultures and identity (Soliman & Khalil, 2024), and yet others foregrounding broader understandings of culture beyond language, religion, and national identities (Said, 2024). The scale, organization, and pedagogical focus of these initiatives differ significantly across contexts, particularly within Europe. With technological advances, a growing number of schools now offer digital Arabic language education (Hilmi, 2021), including programs targeting heritage learners. This trend accelerated during the Covid-19 pandemic, which increased the popularity of digital heritage language learning and prompted educators to adapt their teaching approaches to the emergent digital landscape (Cun, 2024). However, little is known about how Arabic heritage culture (AHC) is negotiated in these settings. Against this backdrop, this study addresses the following research question: How does a heritage language teacher of Arabic draw on available transcultural resources to negotiate Arabic heritage culture in digital heritage language education? I am using the term Arabic heritage culture (AHC) to emphasize the relation between culture and learners in the context of heritage language education. Studies on heritage education increasingly suggest transcultural approaches and pedagogies to support students’ heritage language, identity, and literacy development in community schools (Iversen, 2024; Orellana, 2016). These approaches understands culture and identity as fluid, complex and dynamic rather than static or confined to geographic or national boundaries, hens challenging monolingual and monocultural norms that marginalize students’ complex identities (Orellana, 2016; Zaidi et al., 2024). Transcultural pedagogies emphasize the heritage teacher’s role as cultural agent, guiding learners in developing transcultural and translingual competencies as they navigate multiple social and cultural realities. This involves fostering transcultural awareness– critical reflection, social sensitivity, and embracing in-betweenness – and supporting learners’ transcultural repositioning, that is their ability to adapt and reorient themselves across cultural boundaries (Zaidi et al., 2024). This requires attention to power dynamics and creating transcultural educational spaces (Orellana, 2016). Yet, despite this growing body of work, research on digital Arabic heritage language education from transcultural perspective remains limited. Although Amro and Iversen (2025) adopt a transcultural lens in a digital educational context, most transcultural studies still focus on physical classrooms and language practices, often overlooking broader dimensions of heritage culture beyond language and religious instruction (Abourehab & Azaz, 2020). This study draws on a seven-month digital linguistic ethnography in a transnational context: a community-based school offering online Arabic heritage language education, where one teacher in Italy taught five of her students, children and grandchildren of Arab immigrants in the United States. The study explores how this teacher mobilized transcultural resources and enacted her role as a transcultural agent. The study contributes to understanding how heritage language education can move beyond static cultural transmission toward transcultural and transformative pedagogies. Reconceptualizing the teacher as a transcultural agent, promoting inclusive, context-responsive pedagogies, and leveraging digital and transnational settings can better support students in navigating and reimagining their complex cultural realities. These insights highlight the need to reshape heritage language education to reflect the dynamic and evolving nature of culture and transcultural identities in today’s globalized world and the need of strong teacher preparation in transcultural awareness. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used I employed a digital linguistic ethnographic approach, to examine how an Arabic heritage language teacher drew on available cultural resources to negotiate Arabic heritage culture, conducting the study without physical co-presence in the educational setting. The study encompassed seven months of online classroom observations with one teacher and five of her students. Data included video and audio recordings, field notes, interviews with the teacher and students, and digital documents such as student work, interactive curricula, and lesson plans. I adopted “linguistic ethnography” to refer to a methodological framework that integrates digital ethnography with linguistic analysis to explore how individuals construct knowledge, communities, and identities, and how digital technologies, in return, shape participants’ linguistic and cultural practices (Blommaert, 2018; Varis & Hou, 2020). This research site was a community-based online language school serving children and adolescents from the global Arab diaspora. The school presents itself as a multicultural institution offering “culturally rich Arabic language experiences” emphasizing “ authentic cultural experiences, providing a comprehensive understanding of the language and its context,” as highlighted on its website. The school also highlights its policy that emphasizes drawing on students’ diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. I followed weekly one-on-one sessions with the teacher, Sara, and five U.S.-born students (ages 7–13), all given pseudonyms: Bob and Daylina, with familial ties to Iran, Palestine, and Italy, and Dana, Sherine, and Diana, with roots in Palestine and Jordan. Older students had one-hour sessions, while younger ones had 30-minute sessions. All grew up in bilingual, culturally diverse environments where English dominated but Levantine Arabic remained present in family life. They enrolled to improve oral communication and literacy skills, deepen heritage cultural knowledge, and maintain connections to both their families’ countries of origin and the broader Arab world. Consistent with Blommaert and Jie (2020), ethnographic analysis unfolded alongside fieldwork. Early on, my attention was drawn to the teacher's strategies for navigating Arabic heritage culture. Continuous reflection, adaptation, and documentation of “rich points” shaped the emerging focus. After fieldwork, I closely read classroom interactions, interviews, school documents, and student work. Using the abductive, iterative, and recursive logic of ethnographic inquiry (Skukauskaitė & Green, 2023), I adopted a transcultural lens and analysed the teacher’s heritage culture negotiation in relation to relevant theory and prior research. This process enabled attention to aspects of her pedagogical practices and evolving role. Three primary functions of her cultural pedagogical practices and agency emerged. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings Adopting a transcultural lens, the study shows how the teacher strategically leveraged the school’s digital and transnational structures and policies to navigate the complexity of Arabic heritage culture. She drew on cultural resources from learners’ familial countries of origin, their current country of residence, and her own to support engagement with Arabic heritage culture and transcultural identities. The study theorizes heritage language teachers’ agency in digital environments and informs the design of inclusive, context-sensitive AHL education in transnational settings and across Europe and beyond. The findings suggest reconceptualizing the teacher’s role in digital transnational Arabic Heritage Language (AHL) education. Extending work that frames teachers as cultural agents (Zaidi et al., 2024), the study shows that digital and transnational contexts demand a more dynamic, multifaceted role than in face-to-face settings. As a transcultural agent, the teacher navigates fluid and evolving cultural flows, facilitating cultural reflection, transformation and identity negotiation across local, heritage, diasporic, and global contexts (Orellana, 2016; Zaidi et al., 2024). The digital, transnational setting intensifies demands on the teacher’s transcultural awareness and pedagogical preparation (Zaidi et al., 2024). Digital structures afforded more immediate access to diverse transcultural materials, enabling deeper, more transformative engagements with students’ identities and realities. The school’s transnational policies positioned Arabic heritage culture in secular, non-religious terms, emphasizing geography and Arab cultural communities. This enabled drawing on students’ familial resources and highlighted the diversity of Arabic heritage culture, contrasting with mosque- affiliated AHL schools (Iversen, 2024), and aligning with research showing that non-religious, non-nationally affiliated schools foster inclusivity by embracing diversity and supporting students’ heritage needs (Said, 2024). Overall, the findings echo calls for stronger heritage teacher preparation in transcultural awareness (Sun & Li, 2024) to better support students in navigating complex cultural realities in globalized, digital, and transnational contexts. References Abourehab, Y., & Azaz, M. (2020). Pedagogical translanguaging in community/heritage Arabic language learning. Journal of multilingual and multicultural development, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2020.1826496 Blommaert, J. (2018). Durkheim and the internet: On sociolinguistics and the sociological imagination (1 ed.). London: Bloomsbury Academic. https://doi.org/10.5040/9781350055223 Blommaert, J., & Jie, D. (2020). Ethnographic fieldwork : A beginner's guide (2nd ed.). Multilingual Matters. Cun, A. (2024). Creating more opportunities through multimodal literacy and positioning in online and in-person Chinese heritage language classrooms. Language and education, 1(1), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2024.2352428 Hilmi, D. (2021). Impact of Arabic online learning in the perspective of how the brain learns. Ijaz Arabi Journal of Arabic Learning, 4, 59-73. http://repository.uin-malang.ac.id/8014/ Iversen, J. Y. (2024). Transculturation in Arabic literacy education within and beyond mainstream education in Norway and Sweden. European educational research journal EERJ. https://doi.org/10.1177/14749041241235718 Orellana, M. F. (2016). Immigrant children in transcultural spaces : Language learning and love. Routledge. Said, F. F. S. (2024). Arabic heritage schools as sites of multilingualism and positive identity building in the UK. In K. Cruickshank, J. L. Bianco, & M. Wahlin (Eds.), Community and Heritage Languages Schools Transforming Education (1 ed., Vol. 1, pp. 80-100). United Kingdom: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003302704-5 Skukauskaitė, A., & Green, J. L. (2023). Ethnographic spaces of possibilities: Interactional ethnography in focus. In A. Skukauskaitė & J. L. Green (Eds.), Interactional ethnography designing and conducting discourse-based ethnographic research (1 ed., Vol. 1, pp. 1-18). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003215479-1 Soliman, R., & Khalil, S. (2024). The teaching of Arabic as a community language in the UK. International journal of bilingual education and bilingualism, 27(9), 1246-1257. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2022.2063686 Sun, Z., & Li, G. (2024). Rethinking Chinese heritage language (CHL) teaching in translocal realities: Pedagogical adaptations and missed opportunities to bridge transcultural gaps in Canada. In R. Zaidi, U. Boz, & E. Moreau (Eds.), Transcultural pedagogies for multilingual classrooms: Responding to changing realities in theory and practice. Multilingual Matters. UNESCO. (2019). Global education monitoring report, 2019: Arab states: Migration, displacement and education: Building bridges, not walls. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000371320 Varis, P., & Hou, M. (2020). Digtial approaches in linguistic ethnography. In K. Tusting (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of linguistic ethnography. Taylor & Francis Group. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315675824-17 Zaidi, R., Boz, U., & Moreau, E. (2024). Introduction: Transcultural pedagogies for multilingual classrooms. In R. Zaidi, U. Boz, & E. Moreau (Eds.), Transcultural pedagogies for multilingual classrooms: Responding to changing realities in theory and practice (Vol. 115, pp. 1-15). Multilingual Matters. 31. LEd – Network on Language and Education
Paper Study Guidance in the Mother Tongue - Knowledge and Action for Collaboration to Improve School Results, Well-being and Epistemic Justice Uppsala University, Sweden Presenting Author:Study Guidance in the Mother Tongue (hereafter SGMT) is a form of educational support provided in the Swedish compulsory school, provided principally for newcomers but also for other students “who need it” (SFS 2011:185). SGMT aims to support learning among students who risk failing one or more subjects due to their emerging proficiency in the majority language Swedish, through the provision of tutoring in the students’ mother tongue or their strongest language of schooling. Research indicates that SGMT provides invaluable learning support for newcomers, by addressing the major challenge they face in learning in Swedish schools, i.e. access to education and other supports that schools offer, in a language they understand (Ministry of Education and Research, 2019). Apart from supporting academic achievement, SGMT tutors are also believed to support the general health and well-being of students (Lindén, 2024; Lundberg, 2020; Oxley, 2025), and enhance their understanding of the Swedish school and social context (Reath Warren, 2016). However, structural and organizational problems prevent SGMT from reaching its full potential (Avery, 2017; Reath Warren, 2017).More specifically, a lack of collaboration between school teachers and SGMT tutors has been identified as a crucial problem, dialogically impacting on and impacted by tutors’ agency, and the conduct of quality SGMT (Dávila Thorstensson, 2016; Straszer et al., 2019). The Swedish National Agency for Education (hereafter SNAE) has published models and recommendations for collaboration, based on development work conducted in Swedish municipalities (Gareis et al., 2020). To our knowledge, the only research focusing specifically on this area shows that collaboration in planning, implementation, documentation and follow-up of SGMT is made possible through routinization and gives SGMT tutors agency and access to a work-life community (Eliaso Magnusson & Uddling, 2023). Willingness to collaborate, personal enthusiasm and time are three aspects that teachers identify as central for making collaboration possible (Uddling & Eliaso Magnusson, 2024). The aim of this study is, through an intervention project, to investigate the impact of different aspects of collaboration in SGMT on tutors, teachers and students. The intervention is a professional development module including lectures, workshops and practical implementation of new routines and practices in SGMT. Throughout the intervention SGMT is presented as a process where collaboration is key (Gareis et al., 2020) The study is located in focus municipality which has an identified need for improvement of routines for SGMT. The study aims to improve our knowledge of how collaborations between key actors in SGMT (school teachers, SGMT tutors, students but also school and municipal unit principals) can contribute to satisfaction with tutoring and students’ academic performance, and well-being among tutors and students. If the results of the project have positive outcomes, there is potential to facilitate greater epistemic justice in Swedish schools, so all students, regardless of their background have equal opportunities to engage fully with knowledge (Fricker, 2007) and tutors and emergent multilingual learners alike are recognised as knowers (Fricker, 2015). The central research question we address is: How can knowledge of and routines for collaboration during SGMT impact on its practice and outcomes? Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used This intervention study involves SGMT tutors, teachers, school principals and leaders at the municipal unit where SGMT tutors are employed, in a suburban municipality that has an identified need to develop SGMT. The project employs a qualitative approach, with some methods from linguistic ethnography (Copland & Creese, 2015) and has five phases: Phase 1: Pre-intervention questionnaire to chart existing knowledge and impressions of SGMT in the municipality. This will include likert-style items asking informants to rate the knowledge and/or satisfaction with a range of aspects in SGMT, including pedagogical routines for assessing the need for SGMT, administrative routines for ordering SGMT, school routines for organizing SGMT, routines for collaboration between teachers and tutors, routines for following up SGMT. Data generated: Questionnaire responses. Analysis: Descriptive statistics Phase 2: Professional development intervention: (developed in collaboration with the municipality). This includes lectures on theories and research relevant to SGMT, workshops with pedagogical tools for conducting SGMT as a process (Gareis et al., 2020), discussions with and between tutors, teachers and principals, and practical implementation of new routines, followed by discussions where the implementation is discussed and evaluated by the participants. Data generated: Documents, Audio-recordings of discussions during the intervention, field notes. Analysis: Thematic content analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2022) Phase 3: Observation and documentation of routines in collaboration. A smaller number of teachers and tutors who express that they have developed good routines for collaboration are observed as they plan, implement and follow up SGMT. Data generated: Audio- and video-recordings, field notes, photographs. Analysis: Thematic content analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2022). Phase 4: Semi structured interviews with tutors, teachers and principals. In the interviews, the focus is on aspects including collaboration, student responses and impressions on overall outcomes of new routines. Data generated: Interview transcripts. Analysis: Thematic content analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2022); Positioning analysis (Bamberg, 1997) Phase 5: Post-study questionnaire. This questionnaire covers the same topics/questions as the pre-study. Results of the two questionnaires will be compared. Data generated: Questionnaire responses. Analysis: Descriptive statistics While the professional development intervention has a broad focus, including the development of all aspects of SGMT, the research takes a narrower focus on the aspect of collaboration, identified as so crucial. The project is undergoing ethics approval. All informants will be given written and spoken information about the project, and sign informed consent forms. The project will follow all the recommendations of the Swedish Research Council. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings This project is on-going and at ECER, we aim to present the project design and preliminary results from phase 1 and 2. The study we are conducting is unique, and will contribute to and strengthen the small base of knowledge that exists on collaboration in SGMT in Sweden. The implications of the project will be highly relevant in Sweden, in other Nordic countries where similar forms of multilingual support exist, but also internationally, where knowledge about educational approaches that support linguistically diverse students is still lacking (Reath Warren et al., 2025; Wernicke et al., 2021). The results of the project have implications at a pedagogical level, where improving routines for collaboration can improve the classroom practice of SGMT. The results also have broader implications for democracy and justice in schools. SGMT and newcomers’ and multilingual students’ learning are marginalized areas in research and in practice. All knowledge that contributes to improving learning conditions and epistemic justice for teachers, tutors and emergent multilingual students can help schools act. In a world where conditions for learning and knowing are in intense fluctuation, engaging with practitioners in research is ever more essential, to bring lived experience and theoretical perspectives together to improve learning conditions for all students. References Avery, H. (2017). At the bridging point: tutoring newly arrived students in Sweden. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 21(4), 404–415. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2016.1197325 Bamberg, M. G. W. (1997). Positioning Between Structure and Performance. Journal of Narrative and Life History, 7(1–4), 335–342. http://www.clarku.edu/~mbamberg/Material_files/Positioning_Between_Structure_and_Performance.pdf Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2022). Thematic Analysis: a practical guide. Sage. Copland, F., & Creese, A. (2015). Linguistic Ethnography - Collecting, analysing and presenting data. Sage. Dávila Thorstensson, Liv. T. (2016). The pivotal and peripheral roles of bilingual classroom assistants at a Swedish elementary school. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 0050, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2016.1224224 Eliaso Magnusson, J., & Uddling, J. (2023). Studiehandledares möjligheter till agency i samverkan med lärare. Nordand, 18(3), 157–172. https://doi.org/10.18261/NORDAND.18.3.1 Gareis, M., Oxley, S., & Reath Warren, A. (2020). Studiehandledning på modersmålet i praktiken. Skolverket. Lindén, S. (2024). Stöttning för utveckling av språk och kunskap i studiehandledning i svensk grundskola (PhD dissertation, Institutionen för ämnesdidaktik, Stockholms universitet). Retrieved from https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-233739 Lundberg, O. (2020). Defining and implementing social integration: a case study of school leaders’ and practitioners’ work with newly arrived im/migrant and refugee students. International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-Being,15(sup2), https://doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2020.1783859 Ministry of Education and Research. (2019). För flerspråkighet, kunskapsutveckling och inkludering. Modersmålsundervisning och studiehandledning på modersmål (SOU 2019:18) https://www.gov.se/rattsliga-dokument/statens-offentliga-utredningar/2019/05/sou-201918 / Oxley, S. (2025). Meaning making: Study guidance in the mother tongue A reflexive study of tutors’ encounters with their work and working conditions [Master]. Uppsala University. Reath Warren, A. (2016). Multilingual study guidance in the Swedish compulsory school and the development of multilingual literacies. Nordand, 11(2), 115–142. Reath Warren, A. (2017). Developing multilingual literacies in Sweden and Australia: Opportunities and challenges in mother tongue instruction and multilingual study guidance in Sweden and community language education in Australia. [Ph.D., Stockholms universitet]. http://su.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1116085&dswid=8210 Reath Warren, A., Iversen, J. Y., & Straszer, B. (2025). Setting the scene. Teacher education for working in linguistically diverse classrooms (A. Reath Warren, J. Y. Iversen, & B. Straszer, Eds.; pp. 1–30). Language Science Press. https://langsci-press.org/catalog/book/482 SFS 2011:185 The compulsory school ordinance (Retrieved from https://www.riksdagen.se/sv/dokument-lagar/dokument/svensk-forfattningssamling/skolforordning-2011185_sfs-2011-185 Straszer, B., Rosén, J., & Wedin, Å. (2019). Studiehandledning på modersmål. Educare - Vetenskapliga Skrifter, (3), 49–61. https://doi.org/10.24834/educare.2019.3.4 Uddling, J., & Eliaso Magnusson, J. (2024). Samverkansdidaktik. Lärares hantering av ett utökat ansvar. In M. Flisbäck, T. Nord, & J. Uddling (Eds.), Välfärdssamhällets omvandling i praktiken. Om ansvarsförskjutningar och samverkans gränser (pp. 165–190). 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