Institutional Roles and Identity Construction of Applied Linguistics Faculty Involved in Interdisciplinary Collaborations for Multilingual Student Success

This article analyzes the academic identity constructions of applied linguists in the context of interdisciplinary collaborations as they seek to integrate language and content at the curricular core of an increasingly multilingual and multicultural university in Western Canada. The study draws on transcripts of audiotaped monthly meetings, framed as a professional learning community, where participants shared and discussed existing literature on interdisciplinary collaborations in support of multilingual student success, as well as their experiences with collaboration in the institution. In this qualitative study, data were analyzed thematically, and the themes that emerged suggest complex connections between institutional roles and professional identities with the changing roles of the participants in the institution interacting with the construction of their academic identities. Overall, we conceptualize these applied linguists as cross-boundary academics who perform translational functions within the institution in negotiating their disciplinary knowledge with faculty across the disciplines. As such, they contribute to building capacity in working in a multilingual environment through their efforts to integrate language and content instruction jointly with their disciplinary colleagues.