Negotiating Meaning across Languages: Translanguaging Practices and Policy Development in Higher Education

Abstract

This study examines translanguaging as a pedagogical resource shaping classroom participation and comprehension in a multilingual Philippine university context. Grounded in Cummins’ Interdependence Hypothesis, Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development, and Norton’s Sociocultural Theory of Identity and Investment, it conceptualizes translanguaging as a mediational practice for meaning-making and academic access. A sequential explanatory mixed-methods design was employed. Quantitative data from 185 students, collected via a six-point Likert-type instrument, were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the chi-square test, and phi coefficients. Results indicate significant associations between language comfort, perceptions of translanguaging, and the outcomes of participation and comprehension, with stronger effects observed for participation. Qualitative findings further reveal that translanguaging functions as cognitive scaffolding, a semiotic resource for expression, and an affective support for engagement. However, a tension persists between translanguaging in instruction and English-only assessment policies. In response, the study proposes an interlanguage policy framework that integrates pedagogical flexibility with institutional coherence. The findings underscore translanguaging as an inclusive and effective approach, underscoring the need for context-responsive language policy in higher education.