CELT 2021 Presenter Information
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Adriana Paiva-Schmidt

Adriana started her career as an educator in language institutes teaching English as a second language. She then shifted her career path and has been in Dual-Language and Immersion education for nearly 20 years. She received a M.Ed. in Interdisciplinary Studies – with a Certificate in Dual Language and Immersion Education at the University of Minnesota.
Session 3 on Friday, March 5, from 4:15-4:45 (PT)
Are We Still Teaching English? Questioning Translanguaging in EFL Contexts
Translanguaging, the notion of interweaving two or more languages in communication (Garcia, 2009), has been embraced in Brazil by policy-makers and prominent universities. As a corrective to English-only policies, translanguaging creates space for diverse voices. However, where English is not a majority language, where one common language is spoken by all students, and where this language is well-developed in schooling and society, is translanguaging pedagogy beneficial? The presenters have experience with multiple Christian schools in Brazil, and put forward a critical view of translanguaging within that context. They suggest that translanguaging in Brazilian schools can actually devalue diversity and limit students’ communicative potential in diverse contexts. They also suggest that the Brazilian experience may be replicated elsewhere, and emphasize the need for research and dialogue on the topic of translanguaging within national Christian school settings.

​García, Ofelia. 2009. Bilingual Education in the 21st Century: A Global Perspective. Malden, MA and Oxford: Basil/Blackwell.