TRANSLANGUAGING: PERCEPTIONS AND REPORTED PRACTICES OF PUNJABI TEACHERS OF ENGLISH

Abstract

The study aims to explore Punjabi teachers of English perceptions and reported practices regarding translanguaging in Government primary schools of Sialkot. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted to analyze the teachers’ perceptions and their reported practices at the primary level. In this research, eighteen Punjabi teachers of English through purposive sampling were included from six Government primary schools of Sialkot. In this regard, three participants were selected from each school for data collection. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed through NVIVO using thematic analysis with the key aspects of Lev Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory (1987) and translanguaging. The results revealed that teachers’ positive perceptions towards ‘translanguaging’ and their reported practices asserted that it is a helpful tool for teaching English; incorporating students’ native language alongside English as the medium of instruction is beneficial at the primary level. The study concludes with recommendations for further research on ‘translanguaging’ practices