Students’ perceptions and experiences of translanguaging pedagogy in teaching English for academic purposes in China

Despite translanguaging pedagogy gaining increasing popularity among researchers, studies on students’ perceptions and experiences of translanguaging pedagogy in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) settings in China remain limited. This mixed methods research shares the findings of both questionnaires (1,008) and follow-up interviews (34) from students enrolled on an EAP course at a Chinese university to explore students’ perceptions and experiences of translanguaging in EAP. Drawing on the concepts of translanguaging and co-learning, the paper reveals that the different translanguaging practices used by the teachers and students (as reported by students) in the EAP classroom helped to enhance student understanding and learning, classroom communication and motivation for learning. However, potential drawbacks are also noted, e.g., in how translanguaging is not conducive for creating a pure English learning environment and can reinforce some students’ over-reliance on Chinese. The findings yield important implications for more careful and intentional pedagogical translanguaging design in EAP curriculum planning in China and beyond.