Pedagogical Translanguaging in Multilingual EFL Classrooms: Evidence from an Indonesian Islamic Higher Education

Abstract

The growing multilingual environment of Islamic higher education provides a valuable context for examining how students draw on multiple languages in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learning. This study investigates translanguaging practices among students in the Arabic Language Education Program at Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) Parepare, with particular attention to the use of Arabic, Indonesian, and English in classroom interaction. Adopting a qualitative case study design, the study collected data through classroom observations, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis involving 28 students and one English lecturer. The findings show that students strategically used Arabic for conceptual support, Indonesian for negotiating meaning, and English for language production. These translanguaging practices facilitated vocabulary comprehension, collaborative learning, the activation of prior linguistic knowledge, and classroom participation. Both students and the lecturer generally perceived translanguaging as a beneficial pedagogical strategy that supported comprehension and increased students’ confidence in EFL learning. The study demonstrates that translanguaging can serve as a pedagogical resource in multilingual EFL classrooms when Arabic and Indonesian are strategically mobilized to support comprehension and interaction while preserving meaningful opportunities for English production. These findings suggest that EFL lecturers in multilingual Islamic higher education can productively integrate students’ existing linguistic repertoires into classroom practices rather than treating languages other than English merely as sources of interference.