English-medium Instruction Policy Research Articles

Ideologies of teachers and students towards meso-level English-medium instruction policy and translanguaging in the STEM classroom at a Malaysian university

Abstract English medium instruction (EMI) as a language policy in higher education is based on monolingual conceptions and limits the use of the full linguistic repertoire of bilinguals/multilinguals in the university classroom. Informed by the constructs of language ideology (Spolsky, Bernard. 2009. Language management. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press), translanguaging (Li, Wei. 2018. Translanguaging as a practical theory of language. Applied Linguistics 39(1). 9–30) and pedagogical translanguaging (Creese, Angela & Adrian Blackledge. 2010. Translanguaging in the bilingual classroom: A pedagogy for learning and teaching? The Modern Language Journal 94(1). 103–115), this case study aimed to examine the ideologies held by micro-level stakeholders (i.e., teachers and students) towards institutional English-only EMI policy, translanguaging, and the significance and scope of pedagogical translanguaging in EMI classrooms. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six teachers and 10 students at a public research university in Malaysia. Also collected were a variety of publicly accessible institutional documents, including the focal university’s programme brochures, promotional materials and policy statements on its website. Analyses of the interviews and documents revealed that although EMI was officially adopted in the programmes, both teachers and students advocated for translanguaging and underscored its important role in the transmission of new information, effective communication, and scientific meaning-making. In light of these findings, the study concludes that an inclusive language policy is required that allows teachers and students to access all their linguistic resources.

From policy dumping to a participatory framework: re-envisioning the English medium instruction policy in Kazakhstan’s mainstream schools

ABSTRACT Situating EMI policy and planning within the mainstream school in Kazakhstan, this study probes how STEM (sciences, technology, engineering, mathematics) teachers manage the policy, what challenges they confront, and how they respond to the challenges. Employing ‘agency’ as a conceptual frame, the study analyzed 58 teachers’ interviews representing six regions of the country. Findings suggest that teachers’ lower-level English proficiency and lack of English teaching experience challenge them to cope with the policy. However, teachers do demonstrate signs of what we describe as ‘responsive agency’, referring to teachers’ employment of available resources to make up for their language deficiencies. The policy apparently suffers from ‘policy dumping’ and disjunction because the traditional policymakers/actors put the burden of policy implementation mainly on teachers without providing them the required support and resources they need. Policy dumping renders local teachers eliminated from decision-making processes. The way forward is a non-traditional and non-technocratic participation framework.

English medium instruction in Ethiopian university mission statements and language policies

AbstractEthiopia, with no colonial language legacy, adopted English medium instruction (EMI) policy with the establishment of its first higher education institution, University College of Addis Ababa, over seven decades ago. Over the last two decades, the country has significantly expanded its higher education institutions (HEIs) to increase skilled human capital that contributes to economic growth and alleviating poverty. The expansion of HEIs has inevitably increased English taught programmes, which means universities must teach entirely through English presenting myriad issues as most students, especially in rural Ethiopia, have limited English proficiency. This study aims to explore higher education policy statements and how these policy statements were interpreted in public universities’ mission statements. The study further examines language support policy for effective implementation of EMI policy. Data gathered from publicly available Ministry of Education and universities’ official websites were analysed using qualitative content analysis. In our analysis we identified two language-relevant key concerns: English language support and internationalisation. The study uncovered a gap in the statements concerning provision of English language support, despite research evidence and government acknowledgement of students’ and teachers’ weaknesses in the language of instruction. The findings of this study call for Ethiopian universities to focus more on improving provision of targeted language support for students experiencing language-related challenges, and for policymakers to rethink monolingual EMI policy, to raise the quality of education in such contexts.

English-medium instruction (EMI) as the great (un)equaliser: experiences of former EMI students in Turkey

ABSTRACT English-medium instruction (EMI) has gained traction in Turkey in recent decades. However, strict English proficiency requirements at EMI universities pose a problem for many students, whose English skills are much below the level required for EMI. These challenges cause some students to drop out of EMI and lead to an elite appropriation of EMI universities, thus perpetuating already existing inequities in Turkish higher education and society at large. However, little is known about barriers to EMI education. Understanding student experiences in this pipeline is important to shed light on how EMI contributes to social inequities. This study uses a Bourdieusian framework and a phenomenological design to explore the experiences of students who dropped out of a Turkish EMI university. Data were collected through 90-minute semi-structured interviews with five former EMI students. The results indicated that while the participants leveraged several forms of capital throughout their time at the focal EMI university, the mismatch between the capital possessed by the participants and that expected and endorsed by the EMI university alienated the participants, leading them to drop out eventually. The discussion includes implications for EMI policy and suggestions for context-driven EMI implementation.

Japan’s English Medium Instruction Policy Evolution in Higher Education

Japan’s English medium instruction (EMI) started early and developed rapidly with the support of government policies, rapidly improving the internationalization of its higher education. However, Japan’s one-size-fits-all mandatory policy does not take into account the English proficiency of teachers and students, the features of the curriculum, and the lack of corresponding support. This has posed several challenges for both teachers and students.

English-medium instruction in multilingual university settings

Abstract To identify stakeholders’ conflicting interests regarding English-medium instruction (EMI) in multilingual university settings, this cross-case study utilised part of the data from a larger project examining the perceptions and experiences of stakeholders (i.e., students, teachers, and management) in business schools at a Chinese university and a Dutch university. Semi-structured interview data from 20 second- and third-year students and 13 staff members comprising management and teachers, both universities in total, were analysed using the ROAD-MAPPING framework. The results revealed conflicting interests in both contexts but in different forms and with different causes. Students’ opinions at the Chinese university conflicted most with teachers and management in terms of perceptions of counterparts’ English proficiency, while teachers at the Dutch university revealed concerns about the position of the national language, Dutch, which was less emphasised by the administration. We discuss these conflicting interests through the lens of Bourdieu’s capital theory, which posits a hierarchy of permanent conflicts in the field of higher education. Drawing carefully on each case, we present generalised suggestions to inform EMI policy and practice that could lessen conflicting interests among stakeholders.

Azerbaijani Higher Education to implement mass English Medium Instruction (EMI) Policies

In the last decade, Azerbaijani universities’ upward implementation of English-medium instruction (EMI) policy has spread among most of the country's universities, public and private. Students are no longer enthusiastic about getting an education in their native language, neither they see Russian as a medium of instruction that used to be a vehicle for a brighter future. Research suggests that the rapid implementation of EMI policy is primarily motivated by the pursuit of internationalization (Williams, 2023), participation in international projects (Mammadova, 2020), and international academic mobility (Mammadova, 2023). As a result, attributed to the mass abandoning of the country by young early career specialists who have recently graduated from Higher Educational Institutions (HEI), the country annually loses a high number of qualified personnel (see Figure 1) who heavily resort to their linguistic competencies and go after a ‘better life’. Figure 1 demonstrates the average value for Azerbaijan to leave the country during the period between 2015 and 2022. With an average of 4.74 points out of 10, the minimum 4 index point was observed in 2016 and a maximum of 4.4 index points in 2022. In turn, the UN Migrant Stocks (2021) reports that by mid-2020 Azerbaijan had an emigration rate of 10.6 percent of its entire population. According to Chaikhana Media (2022), ‘there's a brain drain in Azerbaijan, highly-skilled people do leave their country even though they have had a high salary in Azerbaijan.’

Enhancing EMI pedagogical curricula to prepare pre‐service English teachers for socioculturally diverse classrooms

AbstractWith the rise of English as a global academic lingua franca, the implementation of English medium instruction (EMI) in South Korea's higher education system has grown substantially. This mixed‐methods study contributes to the scholarship on EMI policy and practice by drawing on data from the training experiences and self‐assessment of 327 pre‐service English teachers (PSETs) regarding their preparation to serve as secondary English teachers, the latter being key to high school students’ achievement in higher education. We examine teachers’ English competencies and explore their challenges and associated needs in implementing EMI for their professional success. Our quantitative analysis shows that, for PSETs, English‐speaking skills are the most challenging aspect of learning and teaching English. Moreover, current opportunities to improve their English proficiency through EMI courses appear to be inadequate. Subsequent analysis shows that English proficiency serves as a significant mediator of the association between EMI satisfaction and self‐efficacy about teaching English through English. Our qualitative analysis further confirms that PSETs have less exposure than expected to language‐related resources in their educational context, and they express a need for greater knowledge of student well‐being and linguistic and cultural diversity. We provide a set of recommendations to enhance the quality of EMI policies and curricula, including offering tailored language modules to develop well‐qualified secondary English teachers.

Gaps between policy aspirations and enactment: graduate students’ struggles with academic English amidst a turbulent transition to the EMI environment in Kazakhstani universities

ABSTRACT This study investigated multilingual students’ linguistic challenges at English-medium instruction (EMI) universities in Kazakhstan. Using language policy and planning as a theoretical lens, this study looked at EMI policy in general, particularly the academic English challenges of students due to a haphazard implementation of the EMI policy in Kazakhstani universities. The data were collected through an online survey and semi-structured interviews held with students and instructors at eight purposefully selected EMI universities in Kazakhstan. The data analysis revealed that over 70% of students had no prior exposure to EMI, 66.9% were dissatisfied with their English proficiency, 65.3% were dissatisfied with their literacy skills, and 72.6% did not enjoy reading and writing in English. Therefore, their transition to the EMI environment was chaotic and stressful. The EMI policy and practice seem to have failed because the macro-level policy from the top is not in sync with the resources and preparation at the micro-level (teachers and students). The ambitious goals of internationalization, global competitiveness, and human capital development through EMI cannot be achieved without careful planning, systematic implementation, and appropriate support mechanisms for students and instructors.

Navigating the potentials and barriers to EMI in the post-Soviet region: insights from Kazakhstani university students and instructors

ABSTRACT Kazakhstan has made remarkable strides forward in internationalisation of its higher education by adopting a trilingual education policy, joining the Bologna Process, cooperation with foreign universities, and academic mobility. As a result, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of English medium instruction (EMI) programmes offered by Kazakhstani universities. However, despite the growing popularity of EMI, there is very little empirical evidence on how EMI is received in Kazakhstan. Using a qualitative research design, this study investigated graduate students’ and instructors’ perceptions and experiences of EMI in three purposefully selected universities in Kazakhstan. The data collected through semi-structured interviews revealed that EMI, in general, is seen as a prestige and high social status, a passport that facilitates entry to universities and job markets around the globe, and a pedagogical tool. However, the data also explored that EMI is a factor that creates inequalities and hardships, causing stress and anxiety in students. There are also concerns over the way the EMI policy is implemented on the ground, indicating a gap between policy aspirations and implementation that can be witnessed in many other countries around the world.

Language ideology, development of English proficiency, and performance in professional communication: voices of STEM + business graduates of English medium university

The current study aims at unpacking the language ideologies of the STEM + Business graduates in relation to English medium instruction (EMI) and how they perceive the contribution of EMI towards English proficiency development. It also intended to unfold the extent to which EMI education may have contributed to their employability and fulfillment of workplace communication needs. Inspired by inadequate evidence on the effect of EMI on English Language Proficiency (ELP) and employability, the researchers engaged with the participants who could draw on their EMI experiences in developing ELP, attaining employability, and fulfilling workplace communication needs in English. Theoretical aspects of language ideologies, ELP, and employability set the conceptual ground of the study. Adopting the interpretive phenomenological approach and harnessing semi-structured interview questions, the study collected data from eight participants. The study found that the language ideologies of the graduates were shaped by the perceived role and importance of English to serve academic and economic purposes through the availability of curriculum corresponding to global standards, access to knowledge, English-oriented atmosphere and ELP development, and EMI policy adoption and implementation in higher education institutions was seen as a panacea to avail the facilities described above. The participants also confirmed that EMI education benefitted their ELP, enabling them to obtain jobs and perform workplace communication in English.

Researching EMI policy and practice multilingually: reflections from China and Turkey

In the field of English medium instruction (EMI), multilingual research approaches are crucial to carrying out effective and ethically responsible research, because EMI policies and practices are inherently multilingual. This paper is a partial replication study that adopts a ‘researching multilingually’ analytical framework to interrogate the challenges and affordances of using multiple languages during two EMI research projects. In the project in Turkey, the lead researcher, who is an English-Turkish bilingual, analysed policy documents (n = 145) and interview data (n = 67) drawing on her knowledge of both languages. Additionally, 85 EMI classroom observations were conducted. In the project in China, the research team of two L1 English speakers and two L1 Chinese speakers investigated 93 bilingual policy documents and conducted interviews with 26 policy arbiters by drawing on both languages during data collection and analysis. Together, these reflections highlight how multilingual approaches can be utilised throughout the research process, from team formation, research design, data collection, data analysis, and presentation of findings in research reports.

Policy from below: STEM teachers’ response to EMI policy and policy-making in the mainstream schools in Kazakhstan

ABSTRACT Following the government’s trilingual education reforms in Kazakhstan, STEM subjects such as sciences, mathematics, and computer science were to be taught through English Medium Instruction (EMI) in mainstream schools. Policy observers thought that it was bound to challenge concerned teachers because they were not yet sufficiently prepared to teach these subjects through EMI. The present study seeks to examine the EMI policy and explore how STEM teachers in different parts of Kazakhstan understand the processes of policy-making and implementation. The study employs the public sphere paradigm as a conceptual frame, which emphasizes that language policy and planning (LPP) should be studied from the complex practices of the local stakeholders/communities. The study draws on qualitative interviews with 58 STEM teachers from six regions of Kazakhstan. Data show that the policy was made rather abruptly without any systematic piloting, or a careful analysis of teachers’ English language needs, and their pedagogical concerns. However, notwithstanding the lack of appropriate support, teachers still demonstrate some signs of self-reliance and responsive agency, where they creatively negotiate/appropriate the policy. We conclude that a well-meaning policy may face an implementational crisis when the onus falls only on teachers, without supplying them with the necessary support they need.

Perceptions and Coping Strategies in English Writing Among Chinese Study-Abroad Graduate Students

With the internationalization of higher education, more Chinese students are pursuing their postgraduate study in English-medium instruction (EMI) institutions abroad. Related studies have mostly investigated EMI policies and implementation and students’ attitudes; however, they have not examined how Chinese students cope in English-as-a-second-language environments, specifically in academic writing. This study examines Chinese students’ perceptions of English academic writing, difficulties, and coping strategies to complete academic writing requirements in Malaysian universities. Respondents, totalling 128, filled out a 51-item questionnaire. T-test was used for data analysis, and nine students were selected for qualitative interview. The results indicate significant differences in participants’ chances of practicing English writing before and after studying in Malaysia. Although they experienced challenges, such as insufficient prior English writing practice, lack of knowledge in English academic terms and expressions, and difficulty in identifying research gaps, they succeeded with help from teachers, peers, and workshops. Implications for EMI are provided.

Inquiry-based science teaching in English Medium Instruction science secondary classrooms: teachers’ understanding and perceptions

This mixed-method study, employing inquiry-based science teaching theory, delves into the interaction of English Medium Instruction (EMI) and scientific inquiry by investigating science teachers’ understanding and perceptions of conducting inquiry-based science activities in EMI classrooms. Drawing on a questionnaire of 166 EMI science teachers and in-depth individual interviews with five of them, the findings suggest that these EMI science teachers encountered similar challenges to other science teachers teaching science in their first languages through an inquiry-based approach. They were found to hold a ­scientific ­method-oriented understanding of inquiry-based science teaching and a conflict between Chinese learning culture and ­inquiry-based science learning culture. Furthermore, the findings indicate that EMI science teachers faced additional challenges in inquiry-based science classrooms in the EMI context, including (a) the tension between passive English learning and the mutual learning of scientific inquiry and English, and (b) the contradictory stance between ­inquiry-based science teaching and EMI policy. This study has implications for policymakers in terms of the teaching and provision of ­inquiry-based science in the EMI classroom.

Academic Success in English Medium Courses: Exploring Student Challenges, Opinions, Language Proficiency and L2 Use

The growth of English medium instruction (EMI) programs at universities worldwide has raised questions about the implications of teaching through L2 English on students’ content learning outcomes. This study examined the impact of four factors on students’ academic success (e.g. content learning) in the Turkish EMI context: (1) students’ language-related challenges; (2) students’ opinions about the effectiveness of EMI; (3) students’ perceived language proficiency levels; and (4) the amount of L2 English used in EMI classes. Students’ perceived academic performance was taken as a proxy of EMI success. The study employed a quantitative empirical design using questionnaires and regression analysis. Data were collected via an online questionnaire from 498 students at an EMI university in Turkey. The results revealed that students’ language-related challenges and perceived language proficiency were the only predictors that were associated with academic success in their EMI courses at a statistically significant level. The amount of English used in the classroom was not found to predict success in EMI, suggesting that students may benefit from multilingual models of teaching. These findings underscore the importance of adequate language support for students on EMI programs, and implications are discussed with respect to EMI policy, program planning, and teacher pedagogy.

Teachers as change agents in the implementation of English-medium instruction policy in Vietnam

AbstractNotwithstanding a considerable amount of literature published on issues related to English as a medium of instruction (EMI) such as stakeholders’ perceptions of EMI benefits and challenges, the impact of EMI on students’ language and academic achievement, and classroom language practices, very few studies have investigated teacher agency in the implementation of EMI policy at the micro level. It is argued that teachers play a critical role in educational change (Fullan 2007). Teachers are considered as primary policymakers who can exercise their agency to implement and respond to national language policy changes which lack clear planning to suit their grassroots level context, instead of being viewed as passive policy recipients in conventional language policy and planning. This echoes a call for more research on teacher agency in different EMI contexts. Drawing on Fullan’s (1993) concept of change agentry, this study seeks to bridge this gap by exploring to what extent content lecturers manifest their capacity to become change agents in response to the change from Vietnamese to English as a medium of instruction in Vietnamese higher education. Research data were based on interviews with fifteen content lecturers and five classroom observations. The findings revealed the vision and agentive actions of local or grassroots level content lecturers in EMI education as active actors who did not seem to passively comply with top-down policies (García and Menken 2010). Instead, they flexibly reinterpreted or reframed them to benefit their students. The study is concluded with implications for teacher agency in the EMI context.RésuméMalgré une quantité considérable de littérature publiée sur les questions liées à l’anglais moyen d’instruction (EMI) telles que les perceptions des parties prenantes des avantages et des défis de l’EMI, l’impact de l’EMI sur la langue et la réussite scolaire des élèves et les pratiques linguistiques en classe, très peu d’études ont étudié l’agence (capacité d’agir) des enseignants dans la mise en œuvre de la politique EMI au niveau micro. On soutient que les enseignants jouent un rôle essentiel dans le changement éducatif (Fullan 2007). Les enseignants sont considérés comme les principaux décideurs politiques qui peuvent exercer leur agence pour mettre en œuvre et répondre aux changements de politique linguistique nationale, lorsque celle-ci manque de planification claire, et peuvent s’adapter à leur contexte de base, au lieu d’être considérés comme des bénéficiaires passifs de décisions prises dans la politique et la planification linguistiques conventionnelles. Cela fait écho à un appel à davantage de recherches sur le libre arbitre des enseignants dans différents contextes EMI. S’appuyant sur le concept d’agent de changement de Fullan (1993), notre étude cherche à combler cette lacune en explorant dans quelle mesure les chargés de cours manifestent leur capacité à devenir des agents de changement en réponse au passage du vietnamien à l’anglais comme langue d’enseignement dans l’enseignement supérieur vietnamien. Les données de recherche sont basées sur des entretiens avec 15 chargés de cours et cinq observations en classe. Les résultats ont révélé la vision et les actions agentives des enseignants de contenu locaux ou de base dans l’enseignement de l’EMI en tant qu’acteurs actifs qui ne semblaient pas se conformer passivement aux politiques qui leur sont imparties (García et Menken 2010). Au lieu de cela, ils ont réinterprété ou recadré ces politiques avec souplesse au profit de leurs élèves. L’étude se conclut avec des implications pour l’agentivité des enseignants dans le contexte de l’EMI.

The role of translingual peer involvement in resolving understanding troubles in the English medium of instruction classroom

The internationalization of educational settings has been increasingly leading to wider recognition of English Medium Instruction (EMI) in higher education institutions, and a growing number of studies have investigated EMI policies of universities with diverse research foci. However, only little attention has been paid to classroom interactional dynamics with a particular focus on actual teaching/learning practices, and an examination of translanguaging as a pedagogical resource in multilingual learning environments has not been an exception. Although previous studies have explored lecturers' translanguaging practices in EMI classrooms, students' translingual contributions seems terra incognita. In this regard, using multimodal Conversation Analysis, this study closely examines translingual peer involvement through students’ multilingual and multimodal repertoires that become observable while resolving troubles in understanding. Based on the video-recorded classroom interactions in an undergraduate program on Mathematics and Science Education at a state EMI university in Türkiye, the current study demonstrates how students actively participate in ongoing interactions to resolve understanding troubles. The findings show how translingual peer involvement emerges across English and Turkish languages, and an invented language, and creates space for the lecturer to enhance learner contributions. The study brings new insights into EMI classroom discourse in an emerging context.

Reproducing inequality while celebrating diversity: an ethnographic study of international students’ EMI learning experiences in China

ABSTRACT The adoption of English medium instruction (EMI) in higher education has gained popularity in China's tertiary education as a result of globalization. International students in Chinese universities are celebrated as part of soft power projection to extend China's global impact. Informed by Piller and Cho's concept of “Neoliberalism as language policy” (2013) and Collins' “social reproduction theory” (2009, 2012), this study attempts to explore the EMI learning experiences of a cohort of international students at a border university in China. The policy documents, in-depth interviews, classroom observation, reflective journals and online interactions converge to reveal that, international students in EMI programmes experience exclusion and inequality despite the welcoming discourses of diversity. The paper highlights the necessity to pay attention to the ways in which higher education institutions reproduce inequalities of social stratification of international students through explicit and implicit institutional practices. It is argued that EMI policy in China's peripheral regions targeting international students from less-developed countries tends to perpetuate and accentuate educational inequalities. The study sheds light on a more inclusive pedagogical approach to alleviating international students' marginalisation and educating students of diverse linguistic, cultural, socioeconomic backgrounds for global citizenship in the context of China's Belt and Road Initiative.

Student support and teacher education in English for Academic Purposes and English Medium Instruction: Two sides of the same coin?

The massive increase in the use of English Medium Instruction (EMI) in universities around the world has been accompanied by an ever-growing body of publications. The majority focus on EMI policies, teacher identities, and teachers’ and students’ attitudes towards EMI, whilst there seems to be little research into pedagogical approaches to language and literacy support for students as well as into practices in EMI teacher education, areas that are fundamental to the successful delivery of EMI. Recommendations come predominantly from conceptual papers (e.g. Dafouz, 2018, 2021; Galloway & Rose, 2021; Lasagabaster, 2018), and it is noticeable that some of these papers, in line with other EMI publications, rarely draw on English for Academic Purposes (EAP), a field that offers a rich set of theories and practices relating to student support and teacher education that are based on a decades-old research history.