On Controversies of English as a Medium of Instruction in Higher Education in Russia

Abstract

The paper addresses the topical academic issue of English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) in the Pacific Rim Countries with the focus on the current state of affairs in the Russian Federation. The overall strive for internationalization of higher education makes EMI a highly valuable tool and even commodity in the national systems of education. The article presents the analysis of the current sources on the topic surveying the data on EMI in the higher educational institutions of the People’s Republic of China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Russia. The data show significant advancement in the system of EMI in the first three countries under analysis, whereas in Russia the process of establishing such a system is still under development. The undertaken research reveals sufficient discrepancies between the present-day demands for the formalized layout of the EMI structure in the Russian higher education system and its functioning in work. The authors dwell on the topic at hand highlighting the importance of not only maintaining the structure of English as a Medium of Instruction in Russian universities but also designing and implementing the national system of such instruction in correlation with the global standards.