Pluricultural Competence and Translanguaging Practices: Insights from Thai BIPA Classes

Authors

  • Prima Vidya Asteria

    Department of Indonesian Language Education, Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Surabaya 60213, Indonesia
  • Bambang Yulianto

    Department of Indonesian Language Education, Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Surabaya 60213, Indonesia
  • Syamsul Sodiq

    Department of Indonesian Language Education, Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Surabaya 60213, Indonesia
  • Siriporn Maneechukate

    Faculty of Liberal Arts, Maejo University, Chiang Mai 50290, Thailand
  • Suhailee Sohnui

    Faculty of Humanities, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v7i11.11559
Received: 8 August 2025 | Revised: 19 August 2025 | Accepted: 17 September 2025 | Published Online: 24 October 2025

Abstract

This study investigates the interplay of communication culture, pluricultural competence, and translanguaging in Indonesian and Thai BIPA (Bahasa Indonesia untuk Penutur Asing) classrooms. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and classroom observations with 14 participants, including four experienced instructors and ten Thai learners of Indonesian. Thematic analysis revealed three interrelated themes: translanguaging as pedagogical practice, translanguaging and communication culture, and translanguaging and identity construction. Teachers used translanguaging to scaffold comprehension of complex grammatical structures and to highlight cultural norms such as "basa-basi" in Indonesia and "phuut taam marayaat" in Thailand, while learners reported increased confidence when allowed to mobilize Indonesian, Thai, and English flexibly. These findings demonstrate that pluricultural competence is enacted through communication culture and operationalized by translanguaging, which functions as a bridge connecting linguistic and cultural repertoires in multilingual, high-context societies. Theoretically, the study extends existing models of pluricultural competence by integrating communication culture as a critical dimension of language use and by providing evidence from Southeast Asia, where such research remains limited. Practically, the results highlight the need for teacher education and curriculum design to incorporate translanguaging and intercultural communication strategies, and for policymakers to move beyond monolingual assumptions toward inclusive, culturally responsive frameworks. By legitimizing translanguaging as both a pedagogical and cultural practice, this study demonstrates its potential to foster pluricultural competence, validate learners' linguistic identities, and strengthen intercultural understanding in BIPA education.

Keywords:

Pluricultural Competence; Communication Culture; Translanguaging Pedagogy; Thai BIPA Classes.

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How to Cite

Asteria, P. V., Yulianto, B., Sodiq, S., Maneechukate, S., & Sohnui, S. (2025). Pluricultural Competence and Translanguaging Practices: Insights from Thai BIPA Classes. Forum for Linguistic Studies, 7(11), 1077–1095. https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v7i11.11559

Issue

Vol. 7 , Iss. 11 (November 2025)

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Article

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Copyright © 2025 Prima Vidya Asteria, Bambang Yulianto, Syamsul Sodiq, Siriporn Maneechukate, Suhailee Sohnui

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This is an open access article under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) License.