Navigating Language Ideologies and Literacy Practices: Korean Immigrant Mothers’ Transnational Experiences and Perspectives

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 9:50 am Four Seasons Ballroom 4
  In Roundtable Session: Exploring Transnational Perspectives and Experiences (Table 5)

Abstract

Responding to the urgency to dismantle the U.S. educational practices centered around the White, European, middle class, this multi-sited qualitative study investigates Korean immigrant mothers’ language ideologies and literacy practices across transnational living contexts. Drawing from transnationalism and sociocultural perspectives on literacies, the study collected data through interviews with four participants and fieldnotes. Findings highlight the significant role of Korean immigrant mothers in fostering bilingualism and maintaining transnational connections. The heterogeneity of their bilingualism and transnational literacy practices was evident, with all of them influenced by dominant ideologies and discourses. The study underscores the importance of integrating the often-invisible work and marginalized voices of immigrant mothers into classroom practices to support all students’ multilingualism.

Author

• Eunjin Cho, University of Massachusetts - Amherst