David Kent

Reimagining Languaging David Kent

Languaging is a term coined by Swain (1985) relating to the cognitive processing and the production of meaningful and comprehensible output as part of language learning. The term also refers to making meaning, and the shaping of knowledge and experience, through language. So then, what does it mean to reimagine languaging as educators? Thinking about this question, we need to begin by considering ourselves as agents of change, and continually encourage students to engage in aspects of deeper learning. We can aim to approach this through the lens of five perspectives: transformation, education and technology, humanistic, teaching and learning, and by rethinking what education means when considering learner special needs. Transformation involves thinking about what constitutes a classroom today and how our views of instruction need to change. Linked to this are educational and technology aspects, particularly how technology has and will undoubtedly continue to alter and reshape how we must provide learning. This includes the challenge of delivering both instruction and content in more meaningful and increasingly engaging ways, considering how the type of students that we teach need to adapt, how we as instructors need to adapt, and how both of us may perceive such changes from different standpoints. A humanistic perspective then becomes important, as does one where we need to shift our understanding of how we as people fit into the learning landscapes in which we live and teach. If we as educators can do this, then we can perhaps provide a better learning experience, especially if we can equip ourselves with the right methods, approaches, and techniques, and tailor our pedagogy to those students who enter our teaching and learning sphere. We also need to account for aspects of special needs and rethinking education, so that we can understand how to deliver the educational experience to our learners in ways that can help them to appreciate each other's abilities, and how we as educators can assist all learners in achieving their best. To do this, we need to rethink the role of the teacher, which also intertwines with aspects of our mental health, as well as the educational philosophy that we possess when providing such critical provisions of learning. With these aims, this book becomes an essential read for any educator, student, administrator, or stakeholder involved with the teaching of English to speakers of other languages (TESOL), particularly those who want to understand how pre-service and in-service teachers are honing their craft, and how the reimagining of languaging is currently, and will potentially, impact the educational sector.