International English Learners’ Perspectives on Multimodal Composing and Identity Representation Via Multimodal Texts

Abstract

Multimodal composing is the construction of meanings through a combination of semiotic modes such as visual, audio, and textual to create multimodal texts. Studies have investigated the application of multimodal composing in the English language, in content area classrooms, and within various educational ESL and EFL contexts. However, the examination of international English learners’ (ELs) perspectives on multimodal composing and identity representation via multimodal texts at post-secondary level has not been fully explored. This study aims to investigate how a group of six international multilingual ELs in a university Intensive English Program (IEP) use multimodal semiotic resources to express ideas and how they reveal their social and literate identities through the processes and products of multimodal composing in a workshop. The study was situated in the framework of sociocultural and literate identities theory. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, workshop observation notes, video-recorded workshop sessions, participants’ multimodal compositions, and the researcher’s logs. Social semiotic multimodal discourse analysis (MDA) and grounded theory were the primary data analysis methods. Participants revealed a variety of perspectives on multimodal composing. They were found to use a combination of words and images to compose paper-based and computer-based multimodal texts constructed from their personal journey learning English regardless of their age, gender, nationality, and social context. Various identities such as those of an international student, an English learner, a writer, a researcher, and a goal-achiever were observed in the data analysis process.