Bilingual college writers’ collaborative writing of word problems

Numerous researchers have studied bilingual students’ performance on word problems given that reading and writing these requires that they draw on linguistic and mathematical knowledge (Barwell, 2009a and Barwell, 2009b). Some researchers have studied how bilinguals write word problems in the second language, but few have considered how bilinguals use their first language to construct meaning when writing problems in the second language. Drawing on notions of scaffolding (Vygotsky, 1978), intertextuality (Kamberelis and Bovino, 1999 and Lemke, 1992;) and genre (Martin, 2009 and Schleppegrell, 2004), the collaborative writing activity of two bilingual (Spanish/English) college students is analyzed. I show how these writers use multiple meaning-making resources, and traverse the continua of biliteracy (Hornberger & Skilton-Sylvester, 2000). Their uniquely bilingual behavior also includes the strategic use of translanguaging (Baker, 2003 and García, 2009) – discussing the text in the first language and writing it in the second language.

Research highlights▶ Bilingual writers use translanguaging to write word problems, speaking in L1 to write an L2 text. ▶ Writers draw on meaning making resources (texts, talk) and scaffolding each other's production. ▶ They use the stages of the word problem genre to structure their interaction and the text. ▶ Previous research highlights the L2, but I show L1 is an essential resource for bilingual writers.