The role of the multilingual assistant in the parent-teacher conference in early childhood education and care: opaque agencies

The study investigates the role of multilingual assistants in parent meetings in Norwegian kindergartens. The researcher specifically focuses on how these assistants act as interpreters and how they exert their influence (or agency) in this role. Using Goffman’s theory of footing, the research analyses how multilingual assistants are rarely directly included as discussion participants, but rather function as mediators of the dialogue. The research question is: What characterises the role of the multilingual assistant in parent meetings, and, more specifically, how does the multilingual assistant exert their influence in this institutional context?

The results show that multilingual assistants mainly function as interpreters between parents and kindergarten teachers. However, they have limited opportunity to actively participate as discussion participants. The study found that although the assistants primarily act as mediators of others’ words, they can still exert a certain degree of influence through their interpretation and communication. This is especially true when they navigate between different roles and balance the expectations of both parties in the conversation. The results highlight the importance of recognising the assistants’ potential contributions beyond mere translation.

The study uses a qualitative research method to investigate the role of the multilingual assistant in parent meetings. The researcher analysed audio recordings of ten parent-teacher conversations in two Norwegian kindergartens. Goffman’s theory of footing was used to explore how multilingual assistants participate in these meetings, particularly focusing on their role as interpreters and mediators. The data were then analysed to identify how the assistants exerted their influence in this institutional context, as well as how they navigated between different roles during the conversations.

Solberg, J. (2023). The role of the multilingual assistant in the parent-teacher conference in early childhood education and care: opaque agencies. Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education, 17(1), 25–36.

Online year: 2022

Issue year: 2023

Review year: 2022