Instructors’ strategic use of L1 through a translanguaging perspective in a Chinese EMI university: Opportunities and challenges

This chapter explores the translanguaging theory and how it is applied by instructors of applied linguistics in an EMI Sino-foreign university in China, focusing on their strategic use of L1 vis--vis other linguistic and knowledge-based resources. We first introduce the theoretical framework of translanguaging and its applications in bilingual education. We then provide an overview of EMI in China, set against the backdrop of Chinese-English bilingual education. This context frames our study, which examines how two non-native English-speaking instructors strategically deployed multilingual resources in two applied linguistics modules, one at the undergraduate level and the other at the graduate level. Our findings suggest a focus on knowledge-based learning where effective learning in the content matter of applied linguistics steers the choice of linguistic resources, and the use of L1 is contingent and conditional based on the instructors’ pedagogical judgement. We also highlight that practical constraints exist due to the Anglophone monolingualism-oriented language policy and lack of effective learning materials. AĀ, critical discussion of such constraints is provided as we conclude this chapter with further reflections and research on the provision of translanguaging space in EMI universities and many non-EMI universities aspiring to offer EMI programmes.