Specific factors influencing operations management courses taught in English in Spanish business degrees

José A Alfaro-Tanco,Ruth Breeze,Hanne Roothooft

doi:10.3926/jiem.3032

Abstract

Purpose: The objective of the present study is to analyze the effects of the transition to English Medium Instruction on lecturers in Spanish universities in one specific area, namely Operations Management courses taught in Business degrees.Design/methodology/approach: we present an overview of research so far into the effects of English Medium Instruction (EMI) on teaching and learning Operations Management in Business degrees of Spanish universities. Empirically, a survey was administered to 20 EMI lecturers in the area of Operations Management, and s the results in the light of both the bibliography on EMI and the empirical results were discussed. Using online questionnaires, information was obtained from a sample of EMI lecturers in thirteen Spanish Universities.Findings: Most professors report that they initially reacted negatively to the idea of having to teach in English, but now realize that most of their fears were ungrounded. They emphasize that it is very important to invest time in training seminars and the exchange of experiences. Other relevant findings are the perceived lack of incentives to teach in English, the need to use tools and techniques to improve the interaction with students, and the considerable amount of time needed for class preparation.Originality/value: The results of this small-scale study of EMI in OM are consistent with previous research in the area of EMI in other fields, but also provide some ideas that may pave the way for further research and development.

Highlights

Main findings in English Medium Instruction (EMI) ResearchTo pave the way for our present study, we will first review the bibliography concerning the experience of EMI from the lecturers’ perspective, identifying several broad challenges facing universities and individuals all over the world when they embark on EMI programs
The implementation of EMI courses at the university level in Spain has been the object of some research attention (e.g. Doiz, Lasagabaster & Sierra, 2012; Fortanet-Gómez, 2013), and previous research has focused on the perceptions and needs of students (Dafouz & Núñez, 2009; Breeze & Miller, 2012; Breeze, 2014), as well as on the attitudes and beliefs of the teaching staff involved (e.g. Fortanet-Gómez, 2012; Dafouz, Hüttner & Smit, 2016)
We describe a survey administered to 20 EMI lecturers in the area of Operations Management (OM) in Spain, and discuss the results in the light of the bibliography on EMI, bringing out what is specific about this area, and showing how highly focused studies such as this can be useful to break new ground in EMI research

Summary

Introduction

Main findings in EMI ResearchTo pave the way for our present study, we will first review the bibliography concerning the experience of EMI from the lecturers’ perspective, identifying several broad challenges facing universities and individuals all over the world when they embark on EMI programs. Regarding English language competence, as Hellekjaer and Westergaard (2002) noted, for reasons that can be traced back to the past educational traditions of specific countries, in some parts of Europe there is a notable difference between the level of English competence among senior professors and their junior colleagues or students This picture, with the corresponding insecurity among older teachers, has been described by various researchers focusing on EMI in different countries (Ball & Lindsay, 2013; Hu & Lei, 2014; Pulcini & Campagna, 2015; Guarda & Helm, 2016). These perceived differences in English skills did affect teacher confidence and morale (Hellekjaer & Westergaard, 2002; Airey, 2011)

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion