Abstract
With the availability of English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) courses, an increasing number of international students have been joining Swedish universities. However, the language use in Swedish EMI courses may display unique features; while many Swedish students have high English language proficiency, code-switching between Swedish and English is reported as a common practice by both lecturers and students, even when international students are present. Moreover, the term “international students” is often used to include students of various statuses and linguistic abilities, and the experiences and perspectives of short-term exchange students towards the language use in Swedish EMI courses are rarely documented. The current study investigates the perspectives of short-term exchange students from Japan enrolled in EMI courses at a university in Sweden. Questionnaire and focus group interview confirmed previous studies regarding the language-use practices in the classrooms. Moreover, the rate of speech, turn-taking, and background knowledge were found to hinder the learning and participation of the exchange students. The findings suggest the need to raise awareness of the language practices in Swedish EMI courses to students, lecturers, and other universities in order to support the learning experience of short-term exchange students.
Highlights
Before 2019, study abroad had been steadily increasing over the years and around the world
The questions focused on seeking whether students had difficulty with the accents and code-switching by the lecturer and peers, as well as other difficulties they had experienced in the English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) classroom in terms of language use
I moved on to analyze the findings from the focus group interview in the two major areas of EMI courses: group discussions and lectures
Summary
Before 2019, study abroad had been steadily increasing over the years and around the world. In 2019, there were approximately 40,000 students studying abroad in Swedish universities, a 3% increase from the year before (SCB 2020). Students coming from Japan to Sweden, who are the target group of investigation for this study, were on a steady increase with 348 students in 2019, of which 277 were identified as exchange students Currently a small group of students, an increase can be expected in the number students from Japan in Sweden due to the increasing interest in studying abroad and more universities in Japan making overseas study a requirement for a bachelor’s degree (Take and Shoraku 2018)
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