In this presentation, I will discuss collaborative action research projects in Alberta, Canada, aimed at fostering literacy instruction and learner engagement through language awareness and linguistic landscape activities. Canada’s changing demographics have resulted in mother tongue diversity and many urban schools identifying at least 25 percent of students as being English language learners, making it crucial to include a mix of languages in classroom interactions to engage all learners. Specifically, I examine how mainstream literacy instruction can best help multilingual and monolingual students to flourish and develop as literate beings in ways that matter the most. I discuss strategies focusing on an effort to support classroom teachers and students in leveraging the various languages represented within a classroom through reading bilingual texts and noticing of languages in the community and neighborhoods. Scaffolded on a strong literacy program, participants engaged in active discussion, comparing the features of various languages and taking proactive steps to integrate reflective language awareness goals with multilingual tasks in daily instruction.
Three broad themes emerged through analysis of the data: (a) enhanced language and intercultural awareness among the students and teacher, (b) meaning-making strategies, and (c) enhanced language identities. Results indicated an understanding of multiple dimensions of language, enhanced communicative and intercultural competence, and helped to develop reflective capacity for all learners—including the teacher and guest readers—while bolstering critical home–school–community connections. Language awareness and linguistic landscaping are an important aspect of the studies described and are clearly linked to and concerned with linguistic diversity in education, focusing on how multilingualism is transforming how education is delivered and furthering the relationship between language and social justice.