Utilising Translanguaging in Writing Classes in a Higher Education Context: A Case Study

In the recent era full of globalisation and technological developments, one is unlikely to express oneself by neglecting an individual's linguistic and cultural knowledge. Recent theoretical developments have revealed that utilising language learners’ all linguistic repertories could increase their motivation and participation in language learning. However, the effects of translanguaging in language learners’ writing in Türkiye are under-explored. Utilising translanguaging-embedded pre-writing activities with eight Turkish language learners of English, the present study aims to compare the writing scores of the language learners by focusing on the English-only and translanguaging-embedded pre-writing activities. As the piloting study of the PhD thesis, this research also presents additional data obtained through questionnaires. The study reveals that translanguaging integration could positively affect the paragraph writing scores of the learners. In addition, the findings provide additional information about the learners’ perceptions of paragraph writing for English-only and translanguaging-integrated writing tasks. In conclusion, the writing scores of the learners seem to increase through translanguaging integration. The current study has several implications for language learners, writing teachers/instructors, and material development units. Future research should consider the potential effects of translanguaging more deeply, including various language skills and courses.