ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how theoretical and methodological advances have informed the investigation of multilingual literacies and the many ways they are shaped by – and help to shape – an increasingly interconnected world. The work highlighted here views literacy as a situated social practice where languages (and linguistic competencies) are more related than distinct. It views orality and literacy as related points on a continuum rather than polar opposites, defines context interactionally as well as situationally, and considers questions of discourse, ideology and power in the analysis of contemporary linguistic ecologies. This chapter aims to historicize and contextualize recent developments in the field of multilingual literacies, reviews and synthesizes the contributions of research conducted in the Global South, provides an overview of foundational theories and key developments, and indicates promising directions for future research. Drawing on exemplary work in applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, educational anthropology and linguistic anthropology, this chapter will be of interest to educational researchers, policymakers and practitioners (teachers and administrators) who are committed to providing more opportunity (educational, social, economic) for bi/multilingual individuals.
