Ryka Golshani
DARE Project: From language learning to belonging: Negotiating transnational identities of multilingual students in Canadian EAP classrooms
Program(s) of Study: Sociology
Project Supervisor: Dr. Jacqueline Ng
My DARE experience has helped me become a more informed and well-rounded person by exposing me to new perspectives, ideas, and ways of understanding complex issues.
Project Description:
My DARE research examines how multilingual students in Canadian EAP classrooms negotiate their transnational identities and how pedagogical practices can foster deeper belonging and intercultural engagement. The project responds to critiques that traditional EAP instruction often privileges linguistic accuracy and assimilation into dominant academic norms while marginalizing students’ multilingual repertoires. It explores how equity-oriented pedagogies can reposition students’ linguistic, cultural, and migration-related experiences as assets rather than deficits. I assisted with organizing qualitative data, supported the transcription and preliminary coding of interview data, synthesized relevant literature, and contributed to digital knowledge dissemination through blog publications and conference materials. I also supported the development of research-informed instructional materials that bridge theory and practice in EAP contexts.The Dean’s Award for Research Excellence (DARE) - Undergraduate enables our students to meaningfully engage in research projects supervised by LA&PS faculty members. Find out more about DARE.