Negotiating language, literacy and identity: A sociocultural perspective on children’s learning strategies in a multilingual ESL classroom in Singapore

Abstract

This article reports on part of a larger study investigating children’s language learning strategies (LLSs) for bringing to bear on the range and patterns of such strategies for enhancing children’s self-regulated engagement in biliteracy learning. Taking a case study approach, the study describes the process of the language learning activities in order to answer two research questions: (1) Do elementary schoolchildren use LLSs in meaningful interaction? (2) If they do, how do they negotiate language, literacy and identity in this process? A cloze passage taskwas set for 36 children to complete in groups of 5 each.Two methods were used in tandem in data analysis – data reduction and interpretation and connecting the inter-relationships and offering explanations. Results show that children use LLSs, as do adults, although the level of cognitive engagement differs; and that ‘successful’ and ‘less successful’ learners contribute to the meaningful interaction in different ways. Counting LLSs is not as significant as scrutinising learners’ effort for negotiating language, literacy and identity. I conclude that there is a need to nestle and reframe a cognitive view of language acquisition within a socially-imbedded system so that these commonly used constructs are not treated in isolation but in osmosis so that they are understood as“interactionally open and ecologically situated” (Canangarajah 2007: 936). Pedagogical implications of context-sensitive and culturally suitable strategiesbased instruction are also discussed.