A Bilingual (English/Samoan) Translanguaging Digital Resource for Reading Comprehension Using Biblical Texts

Abstract

There is concern internationally about the effectiveness of instruction to raise achievement in reading comprehension for English-language learners internationally and in New Zealand (Amituanai-Toloa, 2005; García, 2003; Lai & McNaughton, 2008; McNaughton 2002; Sweet & Snow, 2003). In some countries, the achievement disparities with mainstream students for particular groups of second-language learners are not reducing and indeed may be increasing. Literacy achievement in New Zealand underpins all other achievements at school with evidence of international research of reading achievement showing a consistent trend of high average performance but still very large disparities (Amituanai-Toloa, 2005; Lai et al., 2009; Si’ilata, 2014) especially with Pasifika learners in reading comprehension (Lai et al., 2009). The challenge put forward by teachers is to manage these different strengths and learning needs of diverse learners, in particular, Pasifika students and to utilise these strengths of cultural and linguistic resources in teaching and learning interactions in school (Si’ilata, 2014). To meet this challenge, this study aims to integrate translanguaging strategies through utilising texts familiar to Pasifika students in order to develop a bilingual resource using the digital tool, Padlet, to improve reading comprehension.