The construction of multilinguistic identities: a qualitative study about adolescents becoming multilingual agents in the German-Scandinavian Gemeinschaftsschule in Berlin.

Abstract

The era of globalization is characterized through a transnational, global flow of people, capital, and knowledge, and the world is more interconnected than ever before. New ways of defining oneself are emerging through the changes brought to societies through increased international migration and travel. Although some factors such as gender are less flexible characteristics of an individual, others are changing through the closer interaction between people with different backgrounds, speaking different languages. Language has historically been important for producing and reproducing a group s tradition and culture, but it is now becoming an instrumental tool for individuals to move beyond these borders and become a flexible global citizen with heightened social mobility. It is perceived as one of the features that help us construct our identity, which can adapt to different interactional situations. The various linguistic spheres that individuals encounter when growing up with multiple languages are often underlying aspects of the individuals self-identification. There has been little qualitative research done on the issue of multilingualism among adolescents. I believe there are aspects related to the phenomenon of multilinguistic identity that still are undiscovered The purpose of my study has been to explore how the adolescents in the German-Scandinavian Gemeinschaftsschule in Berlin (GSGS) become multilingual agents and how they negotiate their multilinguistic identity. I used three research questions to guide my research. Each of the questions was designed to shed light on important aspects of the processes of constructing a multilingual identity. My first research question was designed to investigate how the adolescents perceive themselves to be, which is also greatly interlinked with choices and experiences made on an everyday basis. Secondly, I wanted to look at their language learning experiences in a multilinguistic educational context. Here I focus on the language learning process. The third research question is designed to give us a deeper understanding of the pupils perception of languages and how being multilingual can be a resource in todays society. Related to this I also explored how they see themselves in the future as multilingual.