Translanguaging and code-switching in Southern African Science and Mathematics Education: Mapping pedagogical practices and teacher development implications

In the linguistically diverse Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, English, along with colonial languages, serves as the primary medium of instruction in science and mathematics. This creates significant barriers for students with limited language proficiency who struggle to master complex scientific and mathematical concepts. This conceptual paper presents a qualitative meta-synthesis of twelve studies investigating translanguaging and code-switching as pedagogical strategies in science and mathematics classrooms in multilingual SADC contexts. Four key themes emerge from the analysis: codeswitching practices in multilingual teaching contexts, codeswitching as a learning empowerment strategy, teachers’ beliefs about native language instruction, and students’ perceptions of multilingual learning experiences. The findings demonstrate that while translanguaging and code-switching offer substantial pedagogical benefits, their effectiveness depends on consistent implementation grounded in sound educational theory. Teachers require robust pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) that encompasses both disciplinary understanding and multilingual competencies to navigate the documented tensions between concerns about English language development and diverse student perspectives on the use of native language. The study argues that effective multilingual pedagogy requires systematic implementation, culturally responsive approaches, and comprehensive teacher development frameworks. These findings have critical implications for educational practice, advocating for the integration of translingual competencies in teacher education programs to cultivate culturally responsive pedagogies that advance educational equity. The paper concludes that initial teacher education and professional development must systematically integrate multilingual pedagogical competencies through structured training, lesson study approaches, and collaborative teacher-led professional learning communities.