Article published In:
Journal of Second Language Studies: Online-First Articles

Towards cultivating plurilingual selves in early-years foreign language learning

| University of Carthage , Tunisia

Although plurilingualism has been extensively researched in the area of foreign-language education and identity formation, no such effort has been equally documented outside the European context. In view of this disparity, the present article focuses on this research area in a context where the mainstream language learning experience ascribes only peripheral importance to the transformational value accentuated by pluringual pedagogies. It is accordingly believed that these alternative pedagogical initiatives, such as the awakening to languages approach, language learning is a space where youngsters undergo intellectual, affective, and attitudinal transformations. The article reports on three studies with different methodological courses, yet all subsumed under the framework of awakening 5-to 8-year-old children to foreign languages. Both quantitative and qualitative results, reported from this experimental triad, attested to the emergence and development of the plurilingual self as a form of identity that is well receptive to intercultural diversity. Aside from the empirical substance accentuating the plurilingual self as a researchable concept, the present findings would give substance to the voices for reshuffling priorities in the early foreign language learning agenda.

Keywords: early-years learning, foreign language, plurilingualism, self, awakening to languages
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Literature review
    • 2.1An overview on identity
    • 2.2FLL as a transformative space
    • 2.3The Awakening-to-languages approach
  • 3.Research context
  • 4.The main hypotheses
  • 5.Study 1
    • 5.1Methodology
    • 5.2Results
  • 6.Study 2
    • 6.1Methodology
    • 6.2Results
  • 7.Study 3
    • 7.1Methodology
    • 7.2Results
  • 8.Discussion
  • 9.Conclusion
  • References
Published online: 25 April 2024
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/jsls.00028.maa
References (67)
Abendroth-Timmer, D., and Hennig, E.
(2014) Plurilingualism and multiliteracies international research on identity construction in language education. Bern, Switzerland: Peter Lang International Academic Publishing Group. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Aronin, L., and Singleton, D.
(2012) Multilingualism. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Atkinson, D.
(1999) TESOL and culture. TESOL Quarterly, 331, 625–654. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Auger, N.
(2023) The Language Diamond: An Intercultural Model to Teach and Learn (through) Languages. Education Sciences, 13 (5). DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Azaoui, B.
(2012) Awakening to languages and ENA: For an identity construction of allophones at school. In F. Sauvage & F. Demougin (Eds.), Identity construction at school: Linguistic and plural perspectives (pp. 349–359). Paris: L’Harmattan. [in French]Google Scholar
Barker, C. and Galasinski, D.
(2001) Cultural Studies and Discourse Analysis: A Dialogue on Language and Identity. Thousand Oaks: SAGE.Google Scholar
Ben Maad, M. R.
(2016) Awakening young children to foreign languages: openness to diversity highlighted. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 29(3), 319–336. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2020) Any role for foreign languages in promoting children’s critical thinking? The case of stereotyping. Language Awareness, 29(1), 60–77. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2015) Enhancing early childhood intercultural awareness in the digital age: A pilot study. Cahiers de l’Enfance Tunisienne, 25(1), 42–59.Google Scholar
Berlin, J.
(1988) Rhetoric and ideology in the writing class. College English, 50 (5), 477–494. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Block, D.
(2007) The rise of identity in SLA research, post Firth and Wagner (1997). Modern Language Journal, 911, 861–874. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Bono, M.
(2006) La compétence plurilingue vue par les apprenants d’une L3: le plurilinguisme est-t-il toujours un atout? Education et Sociétés Plurilingues 20 (1), 39–50.Google Scholar
Bourdieu, P.
(1992) Language and symbolic power. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Polity.Google Scholar
Breidbach, S., and Küster, L.
(2014) ‘Bildung’, ‘multiliteracies’ and ‘identity’: Key concepts in language education in the light of sociocultural theory and dynamic systems theory. In D. Abendroth Timmer & E. Hennig (Eds.), Plurilingualism and multiliteracies: International research on identity construction in language education (pp. 129–144), Peter Lang, Berlin.Google Scholar
Byram, M.
(2012) Language awareness and (critical) cultural awareness – relationships, comparisons and contrasts, Language Awareness, 21:1–2, 5–13, DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Caligiuri, P., Jacobs, R., & Farr, J.
(2000) The attitudinal and behavioral openness scale: Scale development and construct validation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 241, 27–46. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Candelier, M.
(2003) Janua Linguarum – La Porte des Langues – L’introduction de l’éveil aux langues dans le curriculum. Strasbourg: European Center for Modern Languages of the Council of Europe.Google Scholar
(2015) Le CARAP – un instrument d’appui pour l’élaboration et la mise en œuvre de propositions curriculaires. In D. Spiță, M. Lupu, D. Nica, and I. Nica.), Les approches plurielles dans l’éducation aux langues: l’intercompréhension (23–39), Iaşi: Éditions Universitaires Alexandru Ioan Cuza.Google Scholar
(2017) “Awakening to Languages” and Educational Language Policy. In: Cenoz, J., Gorter, D., May, S. (Eds.) Language Awareness and Multilingualism. Encyclopedia of Language and Education. Springer: Cham. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Candelier, M., Daryai-Hansen, P., & Schröder-Sura, A.
(2012) The Framework of Reference for Pluralistic Approaches to Languages and Cultures: A Complement to the CEFR to Develop Plurilingual and Intercultural Competence. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 6 (3), 243–257. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Castellotti, V. and Moore, D.
(2002) Social representations of languages and teaching: Reference study. Strasbourg: Language Policy Division.Google Scholar
Coelho, D., Andrade, A. I., & Portugal, G.
(2018) The ‘Awakening to Languages’ approach at preschool: developing children’s communicative competence. Language Awareness, 27 (3), 197–221. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Corsi, E.
(2023) Insight into plurilingual and pluricultural identity in multigenerational homes: A case study of three young adults, Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 44:4, 288–308, DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Crozet, C., & Liddicoat, A.
(1999) The challenge of intercultural teaching: Engaging with culture in the classroom. In J. Lo Bianco, A. Liddicoat, & C. Crozet (Eds.), Striving for the third place: Intercul tural competence through language education (pp. 113–123). Mel bourne: Language Australia.Google Scholar
Council of Europe
(2001) Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, and Assessment. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
(2020) Common European framework of reference for languages: Learning, teaching, assessment: Companion volume. Council of Europe. [URL]
Cummins, J. and Davison, C.
(2007) International Handbook of English Language Teaching. Series: Springer International Handbooks of Education. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
De Sousa, U.
(1999) Shakespeare’s Cross-Cultural Encounters. London: Macmillan Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
de Lotbinière, M.
(2009) Tunisia turns to a new language partner. The Guardian, [URL] (retrieved on 09/09/2021).
Dot-Pouillard, N.
(2015) Se réveiller conservateur, s’endormir progressiste » : le dialogue entre mouvements de gauche et islamistes en Tunisie. Les carnets de l’IREMAM [URL] (retrieved 09/09/2023).
Egli Cuenat, M., and Höchle Meier, K.
(2016) PluriMobil meets DYLAN – practical resources for supporting intercultural and plurilingual learning in vocational student mobility. In Lüdi, G., Höchle Meier, K., Yanaprasart, P. (pp. 294–313), Managing plurilingual and intercultural practices in the workplace. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Galante, A.
(2020) Plurilingual and pluricultural competence (PPC) scale: The inseparability of language and culture. International Journal of Multilingualism, 19(4), 477–498. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Guldin, R.
(2020) Metaphors of Multilingualism: Changing Attitudes towards Language Diversity in Literature, Linguistics and Philosophy. London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Henry, A. and Thorsen, C.
(2018) The ideal multilingual self: validity, influences on motivation, and role in a multilingual education. International Journal of Multilingualism, 15(4), 349–364. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hermessi, T.
(2017) An Evaluation of the Place of Culture in English Education in Tunisia. In Hidri, S., and Coombe (Eds.), Evaluation in Foreign Language Education in the Middle East and North Africa. Switzerland: Springer International. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hermans, H. J., Kempen, H. J., & Van Loon, R. J.
(1992) The dialogical self: Beyond individualism and rationalism. American Psychologist, 47(1), 23–33.Google Scholar
Hosack, I.
(2011) Foreign Language Teaching for Global Citizenship. Retrieved from [URL]
Hufeisen, B.
(2018) Institutional Education and Multilingualism: PlurCur® as a Prototype of a Multilingual Whole School Policy. European Journal of Applied Linguistics, 6 (1), 131–162. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Huhtala, A., and Lehti-Eklund, H.
(2012) Language students and emerging identities. Apples: Journal of Applied Language Studies, 6 (2), pp. 5–17.Google Scholar
Jerad, N.
(2004) La politique linguistique dans la Tunisie postcoloniale. In J. Dakhlia (Ed.) Trames de Langues: Usages et métissages linguistiques dans l’histoire du Maghreb (pp. 525–544) Institut de recherche sur le Maghreb contemporain. [in French] DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kearney, E., & Ahn, S-Y.
(2013)  Awakening to world languages: Intercultural awareness in very young learners. Learning Languages, 18 (2), 44–48.Google Scholar
Korhonen, T.
(2014) Language Narratives from Adult Upper Secondary Education: Interrelating agency, autonomy and identity in foreign language learning. Apples: Journal of Applied Language Studies [online] 8 (1), 65–87.Google Scholar
Kramsch, C.
(1993) Context and Culture in Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Kumaravadivelu, B.
(2008) Cultural globalization and language education. Yale University Press.Google Scholar
Lau, S., Juby-Smith, B., & Desbiens, I.
(2017) Translanguaging for transgressive praxis: Promoting critical literacy in a multi-age bilingual classroom. Critical Inquiry for Language Studies, 14 (1), 99–127. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Le Nevez, A., Hélot, C., and Ehrahrt, S.
(2010) Negotiating plurilingualism in the classroom. In Le Nevez, A.; Hélot, C. & Ehrahrt, S. (Eds.), Plurilinguisme et formation des enseignants : Une approche critique/Plurilingualism and teacher education: A critical approach (pp. 21–22), Berlin: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
Lin, A.
(2013) Toward paradigmatic change in TESOL methodologies: Building plurilingual pedagogies from the ground Up. TESOL Quarterly, 47 (3), pp. 521–545. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lobe, B., Livingstone, S., Olafsson, K., and Simões, J.
(2008) Best practice research guide: How to research children and online technologies in comparative perspective. London: EU Kids Online.Google Scholar
Melo-Pfeifer, S.
(2017)  Drawing the plurilingual self: how children portray their plurilingual resources . IRAL, 55(1), 41–60. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Miller, J.
(2009) Teacher identity. In: Burns, Anne / Richards, Jack C. (Eds.), Second language teacher education. New York: Cambridge University Press. 172–181. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Moon, S.
(2010) (Im)Possibilities of “undoing” identity in a third space. Journal of Curriculum Theorizing, 26(2), 129–135.Google Scholar
Moore, D. and Gajo, L.
(2009) Introduction – French voices on plurilingualism and pluriculturalism: theory, significance and perspectives, International Journal of Multilingualism, 6(2), 137–153. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Murphey, T., Chen, J., & Chen, L. C.
(2005) Learners’ constructions of identities and imagined communities. In P. Benson & D. Nunan (Eds.), Learners’ stories: Difference and diversity in language learning (pp. 83–100), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Norton, B.
(2000) Identity and language learning: Gender, ethnicity, and educational change. Harlow, England: Longman.Google Scholar
Piccardo, E.
(2019) “We are all (potential) plurilinguals”: Plurilingualism as an overarching, holistic concept. OLBI Working Papers, 10 1, 1001–1021.Google Scholar
Phillipson, R.
(1992) Linguistic imperialism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Ross, A.
(2015) Constructions of identities by young new Europeans: Kaleidoscopic identities. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Rosenberg, M.
(1979) Conceiving the Self. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Pennycook, A.
(2001) Critical Applied Linguistics: A Critical Introduction. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Prasad, G.
(2016) Beyond the mirror towards a plurilingual prism: Exploring the creation of plurilingual “identity texts” in English and French classrooms in Toronto and Montpellier. Intercultural Education. 27 (1): DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ridley, C., and Lingle, D.
(1996) Cultural empathy in multicultural counseling: A multidimensional process model. In P. Pedersen, & J. Draguns (Eds.), Counseling across culture (pp. 21–46), Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Rose, M.
(2015) Immunizing the mind: How can education reform contribute to neutralising violent extremism? Retrieved from [URL]
Silva, V., & Lourenço, M.
(2023) Educating for global citizenship and peace through awakening to languages: A study with institutionalized children. Porta Linguarum, 40 1, 181–197. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
van der Zee, K., van Oudenhoven, J., Ponterotto, J., & Fietzer, A.
(2013) Multicultural Personality Questionnaire: Development of a short form. Journal of Personality Assessment, 95 (1), 118–124. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wardle, F.
(2007) Diversity in Early Childhood Programs. Retrieved from [URL]
Welsch, W.
(1999) Transculturality: The puzzling form of cultures today. In M. Featherstone and S. Lash. London (Eds.) Spaces of culture: City, nation, world (pp.194–213). London: Sage. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Weedon, C.
(2004) Identity and culture: narratives of difference and belonging. Maidenhead: Open University Press.Google Scholar