Article in:
Journal of English-Medium Instruction
Vol. 1:1 (2022) ► pp. 29–47

Towards multilingualism in English‑medium higher education

A student perspective

| Universidad Complutense de Madrid
| Universität Wien
Reflecting the global push for internationalisation, higher education institutions (HEIs) have experienced a surge in English-medium education in multilingual university settings (EMEMUS). Of the many topics and angles pursued in the equally vast research landscape, multilingualism has so far received comparatively less attention, especially when approached from the perspective of students. By combining recent conceptualisations of multilingualism and of EMEMUS, this paper offers a qualified literature review, discussing four research scenarios that foreground different student groups and some of their multilingual experiences and practices. Based on the ROAD‑MAPPING framework, such discussions retain a level of detail that allows for a comprehensive interpretation across scenarios, offering insights into the complexity and fluidity of multilingualism within EMEMUS.
Keywords: multilingualism, EMEMUS, ROAD‑MAPPING, students, higher education
References

References

Airey, J.
(2017) The ability of students to explain science concepts in two languages. Hermes – Journal of Language and Communication Studies, 23 (45), 35–49. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Barakos, E., & Selleck, C.
(2019) Elite multilingualism: Discourses, practices, and debates. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 40 (5), 361–374. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Block, D., & Khan, S.
(Eds.) (2021) The secret life of English-medium instruction in higher education: examining microphenomena in context. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.Google Scholar
Busch, B.
(2017) Expanding the notion of the linguistic repertoire: on the concept of “Spracherleben” – the lived experience of language. Applied Linguistics, 38 (3), 340–358.Google Scholar
Byun, K., Chu, H., Kim, M., Park, I., Kim, S., & Jung, J.
(2011) English-medium teaching in Korean higher education: Policy debates and reality. Higher Education, 62 (4), 431–449. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Cenoz, J.
(2013) Defining multilingualism. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 33 , 3–18. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Clarke, D. C.
(2020) Language ideologies and the experiences of international students. In M. Kuteeva, K. Kaufhold, & N. Hynninen (Eds.), Language perceptions and practices in multilingual universities (pp. 167–192). Springer. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Codó, E., & Sunyol, A.
(2019) ‘A plus for our students’: The construction of Mandarin Chinese as an elite language in an international school in Barcelona. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 40 (5), 436–452. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Cots, J. M., Llurda, E., & Garrett, P.
(2014) Language policies and practices in the internationalisation of higher education on the European margins: An introduction. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 35 (4), 311–317. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Dafouz, E.
(2021) Repositioning English-medium instruction in a broader international agenda: Insights from a survey on teacher professional development. Revista Alicantina de Estudios Ingleses, 34 , 15–38. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Dafouz, E., Haines, K., & Pagèze, J.
(2020) Supporting educational developers in the era of internationalised higher education: insights from a European project. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23 (3), 326–339. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Dafouz, E., & Pagèze, J.
(2021) The role of languages in internationalised higher education classrooms: From multilingual contexts to disciplinary language practices. In J. Gregersen-Hermans & K. Lauridsen (Eds.), Internationalising programmes in higher education: an educational development perspective (pp. 94–106). Routledge. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Dafouz, E., & Smit, U.
(2016) Towards a dynamic conceptual framework for English-medium education in multilingual university settings. Applied Linguistics, 37 (3), 397–415. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
[ p. 45 ]
(2017) A sociolinguistic approach to the multifaceted roles of English in English-medium education in multilingual university settings. In A. Llinares & T. Morton (Eds.), Language learning & language teaching (pp. 287–306). John Benjamins. https://​benjamins​.com​/catalog​/lllt​.47​.17daf
(2020) ROAD‑MAPPING English medium education in the internationalised university. Palgrave Macmillan. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
(2021) English-medium education revisited: A need for a comprehensive conceptualisation in the age of internationalised universities. European Language Policy Journal 13 (2), 141–159. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Dimova, S., & Kling, J.
(2020) Integrating content and language in multilingual universities. Springer. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Ekoç, A.
(2020) English medium instruction (EMI) from the perspectives of students at a technical university in Turkey. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 44 (2), 231–243. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
García, O., & Wei, L.
(2014) Translanguaging. Palgrave Macmillan. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Goodman, B. A., Kerimkulova, S. I., & Montgomery, D. P.
(2021) Translanguaging and transfer of academic skills: Views of Kazakhstani students in an English-medium university. In B. Paulsrud, Z. Tian, & J. Toth (Eds.), English-Medium instruction and translanguaging (pp. 141–157). Multilingual Matters. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Guo, H., Tong, F., Wang, Z., Min, Y., & Tang, S.
(2018) English- vs. Chinese-medium instruction in Chinese higher education: A quasi-experimental comparison. Sustainability, 10 (11), 4230. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Hawkins, M. R., & Mori, J.
(2018) Considering ‘trans-’ perspectives in language theories and practices. Applied Linguistics, 39 (1), 1–8. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
He, J.-J., & Chiang, S.-Y.
(2016) Challenges to English-medium instruction (EMI) for international students in China: A learners’ perspective. English Today, 32 (4), 63–67. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Holmen, A.
(2020) Integrating content and language: The role of other languages than English in an international univeristy. In S. Dimova & K. Joyce (Eds.), Integrating content and language in multilingual universities (pp. 37–52). Springer. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Hornberger, N. H., & Hult, F.
(2001) Ecological language education policy. In A. Fill & P. Muehlhäusler (Eds.), The ecolinguistics reader: A selection of articles on language, ecology and environment (pp. 280–296). Continuum.Google Scholar
Hultgren, A. K., Jensen, C., & Dimova, S.
(2015) English-medium instruction in European higher education: From the North to the South. In S. Dimova, A. K. Hultgren, & C. Jensen (Eds.), English-medium instruction in European higher education: English in Europe (pp. 1–15). De Gruyter. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Jenkins, J.
(2014) English as a lingua franca in the international university: The politics of academic English language policy. Routledge.Google Scholar
Kaufhold, K., & Wennerberg, J.
(2020) “I need to know this in Swedish because it’s the kärnspråk”: Language ideologies and practices of multilingual students. In M. Kuteeva, K. Kaufhold, & N. Hynninen (Eds.), Language perceptions and practices in multilingual universities (pp. 193–216). Springer. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Kojima, N.
(2021) Student motivation in English-medium instruction: Empirical studies in a Japanese university. Routledge. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
[ p. 46 ]
Kuteeva, M., Kaufhold, K., & Hynninen, N.
(Eds.) (2020) Language perceptions and practices in multilingual universities. Springer. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Lee, G. J.
(2014) Why students don’t participate in English medium instruction classes in a Korean university: A case study. English Teaching, 69 (1), 91–117. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Macaro, E.
(2018) English medium instruction. Oxford University Press. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Madiba, M.
(2014) Promoting concept literacy through multilingual glossaries: a translanguaging approach. In L. Hibbert & C. van der Walt (Eds.), Multilingual universities in South Africa (pp. 68–87). Multilingual Matters. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Meyer, O., Imhof, M., Coyle, D., & Banerjee, M.
(2018) Positive learning and pluriliteracies. In O. Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, G. Wittum, & A. Dengel (Eds.), Positive learning in the age of information (pp. 235–265). Springer. http://​link​.springer​.com​/10​.1007​/978​-3​-658​-19567​-0​_15. Crossref
Palfreyman, D., & Van der Walt, C.
(Eds.) (2017) Academic biliteracies: Multilingual repertoires in higher education. Multilingual Matters. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Paulsrud, B., Tian, Z., & Toth, J.
(Eds.) (2021) English-medium instruction and translanguaging. Multilingual Matters.Google Scholar
Pecorari, D., & Malmström, H.
(2018) At the crossroads of TESOL and English medium instruction. TESOL Quarterly, 52 (3), 497–515. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Preece, S.
(2019) Elite bilingual identities in higher education in the Anglophone world: The stratification of linguistic diversity and reproduction of socio-economic inequalities in the multilingual student population. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 40 (5), 404–420. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Risager, K.
(2012) Language hierarchies at the international university. International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 2012 (216), 111–130. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Smit, U.
(2010) English as a lingua franca in higher education: A longitudinal study of classroom discourse. De Gruyter. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
(2021) Epilogue. In B. Paulsrud, Z. Tian, & J. Toth (Eds.), English-medium instruction and translanguaging (pp. 173–181). Multilingual Matters. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Soler, J., & Gallego-Balsà, L.
(2019) The sociolinguistics of higher education: Language policy and internationalisation in Catalonia. Palgrave Macmillan. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Van der Walt, C.
(2013) Multilingual higher education: Beyond English medium orientations. Multilingual Matters. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Vila, F. X., & Bretxa, V.
(Eds.) (2014) Language policy in higher education: The case of medium-sized languages. Multilingual Matters. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Wilkinson, R., & Gabriëls, R.
(Eds.) (2021) The Englishization of higher education in Europe. Amsterdam University Press. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
Williams, D. G.
(2015) A systematic review of English medium instruction (EMI) and implications for the South Korean higher education context. English Language Teaching World Online, Special Issue on CLIL, 1–23.Google Scholar
Zhang, M., & Pladevall-Ballester, E.
(2021) Students’ attitudes and perceptions towards three EMI programs in mainland China. Language, Culture and Curriculum. CrossrefGoogle Scholar
[ p. 47 ]