Translanguaging to support the growth of the bilingual lexicon: a realistic review fusing psycholinguistics and educational sciences

Abstract

In this review, we assess the proposition that, by fostering cross-linguistic transfer, translanguaging in the classroom aids in the growth of the bilingual lexicon. In order to solve this issue, we combine research from educational sciences and psycholinguistics to determine how effective teaching strategies for monolingual children can be applied to teaching strategies for bilingual children. We demonstrate that teaching tactics that improve the mental connections between words that are semantically and phonologically related are beneficial for both monolingual and bilingual children. For bilingual children, these strategies should encourage both within- and cross-language connections. We contend that translanguaging techniques like multilingual label quests and multilingual reading and writing can improve cross-language linkages and, as a result, facilitate cross-linguistic learning by encouraging the use of the home language in the classroom.