Article published in:
Problematizing Language Policy and Practice in EMI and Transnational Higher Education: Challenges and Possibilities
Edited by Curtis Green-Eneix, Peter I. De Costa and Wendy Li
[Australian Review of Applied Linguistics 44:2] 2021
► pp. 180–207

“We have no Chinese classmates”

International students, internationalization, and medium of instruction in Chinese universities

| Yangzhou University
| Universiti Brunei Darussalam
This paper draws on a small-scale qualitative study with international students enrolled in various English- and Chinese-medium instruction programs in Chinese universities. It seeks to explore these students’ educational experiences and their perceptions of China and China’s higher education. Our study provides ample evidence about the irrelevance of Chinese language in the current policies and practices of Chinese universities regarding internationalization and international students. It also counters earlier studies that show how deeply rooted the discourses of native speaker and native-speaking varieties of English are in English-medium-instruction programs around the world. All in all, the paper makes theoretical and empirical contributions to the emerging literature on international students’ education and academic experiences in China. Through accounts obtained from international students of varied backgrounds, the paper also sheds light on nuances of internationalization, medium of instruction, and academic mobilities.
Keywords: China, international students, international student mobility, EMI, CMI, medium of instruction, internationalization of higher education, Chinese universities
Published online: 07 July 2021
https://doi.org/10.1075/aral.20091.liu
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