Cover not available
Article published In:
Journal of Immersion and Content-Based Language Education
Vol. 5:2 (2017) ► pp.238–264

A survey of English-medium instruction in Italian higher education

An updated perspective from 2012 to 2015

| Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore |
| Università degli Studi di Bergamo |

English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) has rapidly become a widespread phenomenon in Europe, especially in many Italian institutions. The growth of EMI is currently exponential as well as non-regimented; it is therefore very important to obtain updated, local data regarding this phenomenon, which could be of use in developing future national policies. This study describes the data gathered in a 2015 survey of English-Medium Instruction (EMI) which included all Italian universities. The survey concentrated on three areas, the lecturers and students involved and the overall organisation of the courses in both private and public institutions in the North, Centre and South of Italy. The paper updates information on the same topic gathered from a previous questionnaire (Costa & Coleman, 2012), reflecting on what has changed during the intervening three years.

Keywords: English-medium instruction, internationalisation, higher education, tertiary education, Italy
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The Italian university system and the context of EMI
  • 3.Research questions
  • 4.Methodology
    • 4.1Research framework
    • 4.2Sampling
    • 4.3Survey design and format
  • 5.Results of the 2015 Survey
    • 5.1Organisation
      • 5.1.1EMI programmes
      • 5.1.2Subjects, levels, date of introduction and trends
      • 5.1.3Funding for EMI courses and collaboration with other universities
      • 5.1.4Reasons for establishing EMI courses
      • 5.1.5Greatest difficulties in implementing EMI
    • 5.2Teachers and teaching styles
      • 5.2.1Selection of teachers
      • 5.2.2Teacher profile and their levels of English
      • 5.2.3Lecturing styles and teaching materials
      • 5.2.4Teacher training
    • 5.3Students
      • 5.3.1Language domains and linguistic admission criteria
      • 5.3.2Language of assessment
  • 6.Comparing 2015 and 2012 survey results
  • 7.Conclusions and discussion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 6 November 2017
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/jicb.5.2.04bro
References
Agenzia Nazionale di Valutazione del sistema Universitario e della Ricerca (ANVUR)
(2014) Rapporto sullo stato del sistema e della ricerca 2013 [Report on the state of higher education and research in 2013]. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Agenzia Nazionale di Valutazione del sistema Universitario e della Ricerca
(2016) Sintesi. Rapporto biennale sullo stato del sistema e della ricerca 2016 [Synthesis. Report on the state of higher education and research in 2016]. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Aguilar, M., & Rodríguez, R.
(2012) Lecturer and student perceptions on CLIL at a Spanish University. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 15(2), 183–197. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Alexander, R.
(2008) International programmes in German-speaking world and Englishization: A critical analysis. In R. Wilkinson & V. Zegers (Eds.), Realizing content and language integration in higher education (pp. 77–95). Maastricht: Universitaire Pers Maastricht.Google Scholar
Coleman, J. A.
(2006) English-medium teaching in European higher education. Language Teaching, 39(1), 1–14. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Conferenza dei Rettori delle Università italiane (CRUI)
(2015) Parere CRUI sullo schema del decreto di riparto del Fondo di Finanziamento Ordinario per l’anno 2015 [CRUI opinion on the scheme of the Ordinary Financing Fund allotment decree for the year 2015]. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Costa, F.
(2015) EMI Teacher-training courses in Europe. RiCOGNIZIONI, 2(4), 119–127.Google Scholar
(2017) “If we’re gonna do it, do it right, right?” English-medium instruction in Italian universities. In F. Helm, K. Ackerley, & M. Guarda (Eds.), Sharing perspectives on English-Medium Instruction (pp. 77–93). Bern: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
Costa, F., & Coleman, J. A.
(2012) A survey of English-medium instruction in Italian higher education. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 16(1), 3–19. DOI logoGoogle 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, Special Issue, 35(4), 311–317. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Dafouz Milne, E.
(2011) English as a medium of instruction in Spanish contexts. In Y. Ruiz de Zarobe, J. M. Sierra, & F. Gallardo del Puerto (Eds.), Content and foreign language integrated learning (pp. 189–205). Bern: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
Dearden, J.
(2014) English as a medium of instruction: A growing global phenomenon. British Council. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Dimova, S., Hultgren, A. K., & Jensen, C.
(Eds) (2015) English-medium instruction in European higher education: Review and future research. In S. Dimova, A. K. Hultgren, & C. Jensen (Eds.), English-medium instruction in European higher education (pp. 317–324). Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Doiz, A., Lasagabaster, D., & Sierra, J. M.
(Eds.) (2013) English-medium instruction at universities: Global challenges. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.Google Scholar
Dörnyei, Z.
(2007) Research methods in applied linguistics: Quantitative, qualitative and mixed methodologies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
European Commission
(2010) Europe 2020. A European strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
European Parliament, Directorate-General for Internal Policies
(2015) Report on the internationalisation of higher education in 2015. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Fortanet-Gómez, I.
(2010) Training CLIL teachers for the university level. In D. Lasagabaster & Y. Ruiz de Zarobe (Eds.), CLIL in Spain: Implementation, results and teacher training (pp. 257–276). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars.Google Scholar
Higher Education in Focus Series
(2013) The Funding challenge for universities. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Institute of International Education (IIE)
(2013) English-taught master’s programs in Europe. A 2013 update. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Italian Ministry of Education (MIUR)
Atenei [Academic institutions]. Retrieved from [URL]
Istituzione del Ministero dell’Università e della Ricerca Scientifica e Tecnologica. X Legislatura. Legge 9 maggio 1989, n.168 [Establishment of the Ministry of University and Scientific and Technological Research. X Legislature. Law no. 168 of 9th May 1989]. Retrieved from [URL]
Lauridsen, M., & Lillemose, M. K.
(Eds.) (2015) Opportunities and challenges in the multilingual and multicultural learning space. Final document of the IntlUni Erasmus Academic Network project 2012–15. Aarhus: IntlUni.Google Scholar
Macaro, E.
(2014) EMI: Researching a global phenomenon. Launch presentation at the University of Oxford. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
(2008) Education at a glance – 2008. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
(2014) Education at a glance – 2014. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
(2016) Education at a glance – 2016. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Pulcini, V., & Campagna, S.
(2015) Internationalisation and the EMI controversy in Italian higher education. In S. Dimova, A. K. Hultgren, & C. Jensen (Eds.), English-medium instruction in European higher education. English in Europe (Vol. 31, pp. 65–87). Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton.Google Scholar
Ruspini, E.
(Ed.) (1999) Longitudinal analysis: A bridge between quantitative and qualitative social research. Quality & Quantity, 33(3) [Special Issue], 219–227. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Smit, U., & Dafouz, E.
(Eds.) (2012) Integrating content and language in higher education. Aila Review, 251, 1–12. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wächter, B., & Maiworm, F.
(2014) English-taught programmes in European Higher Education: The state of play in 2014. ACA papers on international cooperation in education. Bonn: Lemmens. Retrieved from [URL]Google Scholar
Wagner, E.
(2015) Survey research in applied linguistics. In B. Paltridge & A. Phakiti (Eds.), Research methods in applied linguistics (pp. 83–99). London: Continuum.Google Scholar
Wilkinson, R.
(2004) Integrating content and language. Meeting the challenge of multilingual higher education. Maastricht: Universitaire Pers Maastricht.Google Scholar
Wilkinson, R., & Walsh, M. L.
(2015) Introduction. In R. Wilkinson & M. L. Walsh (Eds.), Integrating content and language in higher education. From theory to practice (pp. 9–20). Frankfurt: Peter Lang. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cited by

Cited by 13 other publications

Arroyo-Barrigüete, Jose Luis, Jose Ignacio López-Sánchez, Manuel Francisco Morales-Contreras & Mirco Soffritti
2022. The impact of English-medium instruction on university student performance. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development ► pp. 1 ff. DOI logo
Burton, Graham Francis & Maria Cristina Gatti
2022. English at the trilingual Free University of Bozen-Bolzano: exploring experiences and perceptions. International Journal of Multilingualism ► pp. 1 ff. DOI logo
Coryell, Joellen E., Maria Cinque, Monica Fedeli, Angelina Lapina Salazar & Concetta Tino
2022. University Teaching in Global Times: Perspectives of Italian University Faculty on Teaching International Graduate Students. Journal of Studies in International Education 26:3 ► pp. 369 ff. DOI logo
Coryell, Joellen E., Monica Fedeli & Anglia Lapina Salazar
2019. Survey of instructional professional development for teaching international graduate students: The case of the Università degli Studi di Padova. EXCELLENCE AND INNOVATION IN LEARNING AND TEACHING :2 ► pp. 22 ff. DOI logo
Costa, Francesca & Olivia Mair
2022. Multimodality and pronunciation in ICLHE (Integration of Content and Language in Higher Education) training. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching 16:4-5 ► pp. 281 ff. DOI logo
Costa, Francesca & Cristina Mariotti
2020. EMI Students’ “International Coexistence” at One Italian University. In English-Medium Instruction and the Internationalization of Universities [International and Development Education, ], ► pp. 229 ff. DOI logo
Di Sabato, Bruna, Brownen Hughes & Ernesto Macaro
2024. Collaborative Professional Development in English Medium Instruction . EL.LE :1 DOI logo
Di Sabato, Bruna & Marco Mezzadri
2023. EMI (English Medium Instruction) all’università: occasioni di confronto tra docenti disciplinaristi e linguisti educativi . In La linguistica educativa tra ricerca e sperimentazione Scritti in onore di Carmel Mary Coonan , DOI logo
Lasagabaster, David
2022. Teacher preparedness for English-medium instruction. Journal of English-Medium Instruction 1:1 ► pp. 48 ff. DOI logo
Lasagabaster, David
2022. English-Medium Instruction in Higher Education, DOI logo
Lasagabaster, David & Aintzane Doiz
2020. Epilogue: Multilingualism in Northern European Universities—Reflections from the South. In Language Perceptions and Practices in Multilingual Universities, ► pp. 379 ff. DOI logo
Wu, Xiaojun & Jing Wu
2020. Criteria evaluation and selection in non-native language MBA students admission based on machine learning methods. Journal of Ambient Intelligence and Humanized Computing 11:9 ► pp. 3521 ff. DOI logo
Zuaro, Beatrice, Josep Soler & Beyza Björkman-Nylén
2022. Language policy in Italian universities. Language Problems and Language Planning 46:3 ► pp. 231 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 1 april 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.