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'We Are Looking to Each Other, Waiting to Understand': An Examination of Spatial Repertoires in Newcomers' Communicative Encounters

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Title: 'We Are Looking to Each Other, Waiting to Understand': An Examination of Spatial Repertoires in Newcomers' Communicative Encounters
Language: English
Authors: Subrata Bhowmik, Kimberly Lenters, Rahat Zaidi, Erin Spring, Gustavo da Cunha Moura
Source: Canadian Modern Language Review. 2025 81(2):109-140.
Availability: University of Toronto Press. 5201 Dufferin Street, Toronto, ON M3H 5T8, Canada. Tel: 416-667-7810; Fax: 800-221-9985; Fax: 416-667-7881; e-mail: journals@utpress.utoronco.ca; Web site: http://www.utpjournals.press/loi/cmlr
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 32
Publication Date: 2025
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Descriptors: Multilingualism, Bilingual Students, Communicative Competence (Languages), Immigrants, Resilience (Psychology), Foreign Countries, Code Switching (Language), Affordances, Translation, Self Concept, Cooperation, Semiotics, Sociolinguistics
Geographic Terms: Canada
DOI: 10.3138/cmlr-2024-0034
ISSN: 0008-4506
1710-1131
Abstract: Research has underlined the importance of communicative competence in order for newcomers to succeed and build resilience in their adopted homeland. Studies on this topic, however, have generally assumed the primacy of linguistic competence as the principal locus of investigation without paying due attention to the nuances of how new immigrants use "spatial repertoires" -- interactive assemblages of people, objects, language, and environment -- in accomplishing day-to-day communicative goals. Part of a larger project that examined newcomer resilience, this paper reports on the findings drawn from five newcomer families in Canada regarding their assemblage of spatial repertoires to negotiate their communicative needs. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews, written artifacts, art-based multimodal activities, field observations, and reflective notes. Using spatial repertoires in multilingual communication as the conceptual framework, we found that conditions that allowed our participants the following affordances were conducive for deployment of spatial repertoires: (a) translations and information mining, (b) translanguaging, (c) identity affirmation, (d) collaboration and solidarity, and (e) integration of semiotic resources. The findings provide insights into how these newcomers demonstrated success in achieving their communicative goals despite various challenges experienced as non-native speakers of English. We conclude by discussing the implications of these findings.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: EJ1472264
Database: ERIC
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  Data: University of Toronto Press. 5201 Dufferin Street, Toronto, ON M3H 5T8, Canada. Tel: 416-667-7810; Fax: 800-221-9985; Fax: 416-667-7881; e-mail: journals@utpress.utoronco.ca; Web site: http://www.utpjournals.press/loi/cmlr
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  Data: Research has underlined the importance of communicative competence in order for newcomers to succeed and build resilience in their adopted homeland. Studies on this topic, however, have generally assumed the primacy of linguistic competence as the principal locus of investigation without paying due attention to the nuances of how new immigrants use "spatial repertoires" -- interactive assemblages of people, objects, language, and environment -- in accomplishing day-to-day communicative goals. Part of a larger project that examined newcomer resilience, this paper reports on the findings drawn from five newcomer families in Canada regarding their assemblage of spatial repertoires to negotiate their communicative needs. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews, written artifacts, art-based multimodal activities, field observations, and reflective notes. Using spatial repertoires in multilingual communication as the conceptual framework, we found that conditions that allowed our participants the following affordances were conducive for deployment of spatial repertoires: (a) translations and information mining, (b) translanguaging, (c) identity affirmation, (d) collaboration and solidarity, and (e) integration of semiotic resources. The findings provide insights into how these newcomers demonstrated success in achieving their communicative goals despite various challenges experienced as non-native speakers of English. We conclude by discussing the implications of these findings.
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        Value: 10.3138/cmlr-2024-0034
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      – Text: English
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        PageCount: 32
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    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Multilingualism
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      – SubjectFull: Bilingual Students
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      – SubjectFull: Communicative Competence (Languages)
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      – SubjectFull: Sociolinguistics
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      – SubjectFull: Canada
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      – TitleFull: 'We Are Looking to Each Other, Waiting to Understand': An Examination of Spatial Repertoires in Newcomers' Communicative Encounters
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