The provision of student support on English Medium Instruction programmes in Japan and China

Abstract

In non-Anglophone contexts, the internationalisation of higher education is increasingly becoming synonymous with the transition towards English Medium Instruction (EMI). Recent years have witnessed exponential growth in contexts such as East Asia, where EMI provision is increasingly being used to determine funding, university rankings and also fast becoming an important factor in faculty recruitment decisions. There are many perceived benefits of EMI, particularly content knowledge and improved academic English proficiency. However, curriculum innovation is a complex process and without research into the implementation of EMI in different contexts, it is difficult to assess, much less guarantee, whether the goals can be met. Using questionnaire, interview and focus group data from a larger study in Japan and China (Galloway, Kruikow & Numajiri, 2017), this study explored language and academic skills support provision, and attitudes towards it, in depth. The study was also supplemented with data from international students and provides insights into how students are supported in different EMI programmes, as well as staff and students’ perceptions on the role of such support. This includes whether it should be the responsibility of content instructors or language specialists, and the extent to which content staff should be responsible for helping students with academic English.