Enhancing Critical Language Awareness and Translation Strategic Competence in Students of Spanish as a Heritage Language in Arizona: A Multimodal Approach

Abstract

Even though research on Spanish as a Heritage Language (SHL) has increased the use of more critical pedagogies (Beaudrie & Wilson, 2021; Leeman & Serafini, 2016), there is still very limited empirical evidence on how functionalist translation can be used as a critical tool to develop heritage learners’ (HL) Critical Language Awareness (CLA). Most of the existing studies have focused on lexical acquisition, without exploring how translation, from a functional and multimodal perspective, can develop critical reflection on linguistic ideologies, power structures, and identity.This study seeks to address this gap by analyzing the impact of a pedagogical intervention in an SHL course at the University of Arizona. The proposed module is based on a functionalist approach to translation (Nord, 1997) within a multiliteracies framework (New London Group, 1996; Kalantzis & Cope, 2005, 2010), using CLA lenses for both instruction and analysis. A mixed sequential design (Creswell & Creswell, 2018) was used to collect data. The study gathers both quantitative and qualitative data through questionnaires, interviews, translation tasks, critical reflection activities, and classroom observations. Thirty-four students participated: 23 were assigned to the experimental group, which completed the translation module, and 11 to the control group, which followed the regular course sequence. The research questions guiding this project are: (1) Does a multimodal translation module have an impact on the development of students’ Critical Language Awareness (CLA)? If so, how? (2) Do students’ translation competences evolve throughout the module? If so, how? (3) Are there changes in students’ attitudes toward linguistic varieties and their own linguistic identities? The aim is to investigate the effects of this module on students’ CLA and translation competence. In doing so, the study contributes to the advancement of empirical research in heritage language pedagogy and translation studies, providing evidence of how translation can be meaningfully integrated into SHL curricula as both a linguistic and sociopolitical practice. The results show significant improvements in the development of CLA and in the strategic subcompetence of translation competence in the experimental group. Participants in this group progressed from translations focused on linguistic equivalence to more contextualized productions oriented toward audience and translation purpose. Also, positive changes were observed in attitudes toward linguistic diversity and Spanglish, whereas the control group showed no significant transformations.