Search

This contribution draws on the notion of English as a lingua franca, especially as discussed in James (2006) and Smit (2010), to conceptualise English-medium tertiary education in settings where English functions as additional language and where tertiary education has a history of being undertaken in other, usually national languages. After briefly sketching the recent research undertakings into English as a lingua franca (ELF) as well as the specificities of English-medium tertiary education in mainland Europe, the paper argues for a conceptual framework of ELF as classroom language that combines sociolinguistic, sociocultural and discursive components. In conclusion, the empirical relevance of the proposed framework is substantiated by applying it to a specific case study of tertiary classroom discourse.

Apart from linguistic diversity and multilingualism, empirical research into diversity is only in its beginnings in the Austrian educational context. CLIL research, on the other hand, is well-established but has not tended to focus on pedagogical practices. This study explores teachers' and students' self-reported experiences in Austrian CLIL classrooms with regard to the phenomenon of diversity and the pedagogical practices addressing it. This mixed-methods study used the research instruments (questionnaires, interview guides) developed in the ADiBE project. Three Viennese secondary schools with two classes each participated in the study. In total, 132 students answered the questionnaires. Six focus group interviews with 6-8 participants were conducted (one for each participating class). Teacher questionnaires were distributed in but also beyond the participating schools (N = 30), and eight teachers from the participating schools were interviewed. With regard to the phenomenon of diversity as such, our results suggest a system-inherent ambivalence between segregation and egalitarianism. Concerning pedagogical practices during CLIL lessons, such as language scaffolding, learner-centred design or use of German, the responses of students and teachers show that different aspects of classroom reality carry different weight with the two groups of participants.

The rise of English-medium education has led to considerable academic interest in communicative practices in multilingual university settings. However, there is still little research into disciplinary knowledge construction in higher education contexts where English is the academic lingua franca. To address this gap, we embrace the central role of explaining in education by proposing Exploratory Interactive Explaining (EXINTEX) as an analytical tool, which identifies the elements of explanatory episodes in the joint development of disciplinary knowledge. We then apply this tool at the micro-level of interaction to two comparable contexts differentiated primarily by the presence or absence of a teacher. Our findings confirm the relevance and high level of educational success of EXINTEX episodes in both quantitative and qualitative terms. They further reveal the dynamic interplay of epistemic authority and engagement in the learning process. Additionally, they show how research into educational disciplinary discourse and English as a lingua franca in academic settings can complement and supplement each other.

This paper focuses on Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), an educational approach where a foreign language is used to teach non-language subjects. More specifically, this contribution presents new insights into an under-researched area, namely the potential of CLIL in fostering the learning and use of subject-specific target language vocabulary (SSV). This is investigated in a case study analysing spontaneous oral classroom productions of two groups of advanced, secondary-school students in an Austrian CLIL programme within the subject European economics and politics. Based on a holistic definition of SSV comprising both single and multi-word lexical units, complementary quantitative lexical and qualitative discourse-embedded research methods are employed to present a comprehensive picture of the engagement of learners with subject-specific vocabulary. Findings of the lexical analysis show a substantial and active use of SSV with some homogeneity but also considerable variation between students. Discursive investigations of the affordances for learning arising in interactions indicate that in constructing and negotiating SSV, the students make use of a range of learning and communication strategies, which indicates their heightened level of SSV learning awareness.

The rise of English-medium education in (European) higher education has attracted considerable attention, but most analyses of the topic to date have been conducted in traditional universities. Highly international fields such as that of classical music higher education (CMHE) remain under-researched. Dafouz, E., and U. Smit. 2016. “Towards a Dynamic Conceptual Framework for English Medium Education in Multilingual University Settings.” Applied Linguistics 37 (3): 397–415 and Dafouz, E., and U. Smit. 2020. ROAD-MAPPING English Medium Education in the Internationalised University. Palgrave Macmillan. The ROAD-MAPPING framework provides an analytical tool for examining such complex contexts and unpacking the various factors at play in these multilingual university settings. In this paper, we present a mixed-methods case study at one of Austria’s largest state-funded music universities, comprising a policy analysis, a survey and semi-structured interviews with students, teachers and management. Using the ROAD-MAPPING framework to guide our analysis, we found that university policy and reported practice were coherent among all groups, with German as the default medium of education. English is explicitly designated the second academic language, while multilingualism and multimodality are actively promoted as a means of achieving educational and professional goals. However, we also noted that many strategies for coping with these multilingual teaching and learning contexts seem to be rather ad hoc, suggesting that there is a need for more awareness of multilingual pedagogy, and confirming the value of the ROAD-MAPPING framework for examining such complex settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

English as a foreign language is no longer the sole object of specialized language classes, but increasingly a medium of university-level instruction in a range of content areas. This leads to a complex interaction between new academic content and the means of expressing this expertise through appropriate disciplinary language uses. Conceptually, this study focuses on oral disciplinary-reasoning episodes, in which knowledge structures are explicitly developed. These episodes exemplify diverse ways whereby disciplinary meaning making is co-constructed in English-medium instruction (EMI), with one specific type being language-related episodes which clarify specific items of terminology. Drawing on INTE-R-LICA, an international and interdisciplinary project, the database under investigation covers 671 minutes (67,605 words) of classroom discourse from a Spanish business administration degree programme. Findings suggest a structural diversity within these episodes, which are jointly constructed, and involve a rich variety of discursive strategies to effectuate meaning making. Our results indicate that an understanding of the crucial role of language in this disciplinary meaning-making process is essential for the TESOL profession to remain relevant in the current English language teaching educational landscape. In addition to providing expert input into the potential of a language-sensitive EMI pedagogy, TESOL teacher education will need to foster both language and content teachers' awareness of the disciplinary nature of classroom discourse and its role in developing subject expertise among their students.

While research on CLIL suggests positive impacts on lexical proficiency and on spoken language, the crucial question of the effect of CLIL on advanced learners, both in terms of subject-specific language (SSL) proficiency and content knowledge, has received less attention. We argue that the ability to negotiate a factual position appropriately is a key element of SSL, relating to both content and to foreign language ability. As a theoretical framework for understanding these negotiations of generally opposing standpoints, we use argumentation theory. The study was conducted in upper-secondary CLIL classes on European economics and politics in Austria. From the data set of 16 hours of video-recording, comprising teacher-whole class interactions, group work, and role plays, episodes of argumentation were extracted and analysed. Two types of argumentation patterns emerge, with one focused on the joint construction and learning of new SSL and content knowledge, and the other on the enactment of such knowledge in interaction. Students' engagement in these argumentations gives clear evidence of their SSL proficiency in prepared and unprepared oral production. As the type of classroom event has an effect on the specific argumentation patterns, the need for exposing students to a diversity of educational practice is underlined.

This article discusses the role of English as a lingua franca in higher education and the strategies used to integrate an international dimension into education. It explores the tensions between marketization and inclusivity in higher education and the impact of language on educational justice. The article emphasizes the need for institutions to value linguistic diversity and move away from monolingual ideologies to create more inclusive environments. It also introduces a special issue that explores English as a lingua franca, multilingualism, and linguistic justice in higher education. The studies highlight the need for inclusive approaches to English as a medium of instruction, including the recognition of translanguaging. [Extracted from the article]

At a time of increasing internationalization in tertiary education, English-Medium Education in Multilingual University Settings (EMEMUS) has become a common practice. While there is already ample research describing this phenomenon at a local level (Smit and Dafouz 2012a), the theoretical side needs to be elaborated. This article thus aims to develop a conceptual framework that considers the dynamic nature of EMEMUS. Drawing on recent sociolinguistic orientations and discursive approaches (e.g. Scollon and Scollon 2004; Shohamy 2006; Blommaert 2010; Hult 2010), our framework regards EMEMUS as a social phenomenon and views discourse as the access point to six relevant dimensions. These dimensions are considered as inherently complex, contextually bound, and intersecting dynamically with one another. Focusing on an example from a higher education institution, the article argues for the utility of the proposed framework.

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is one of the most dynamic pedagogic trends in language teaching in Europe, and yet, the enthusiasm with which this innovation is implemented by stakeholders and "made a success" is not fully understood. In this paper we argue for an investigation of CLIL implementation as a form of extended language policy, which relates language management, practice and beliefs, and so expands the notion of policy well beyond a top-down legislation. In this contribution, the suggested centrality of beliefs to CLIL policy analysis will be shown by a detailed investigation into the lay theories of teachers and learners involved in CLIL instruction in Austrian upper secondary colleges of technology, which traditionally attract students considered as relatively unsuccessful foreign language learners. The data consist of 48 in-depth interviews with teachers and students in this setting, covering a range of teacher specialisations and of student abilities. The discursive and content analysis of these interviews shows clear clusters of beliefs relating to language learning, the effects and benefits of CLIL and to the construction of success regarding CLIL. Findings suggest that the strength of beliefs and the relative absence of language management result in a construction of CLIL and of CLIL success that is partly at odds with those of experts or policy-makers, but which is linked directly to local CLIL practices. Issues arising of these mismatches are discussed. (Contains 3 notes.)

One of the effects of the growing importance of global English in professional contexts has been the rise of ESP teaching at all levels. Despite the concurrently increasing demand for ESP teachers, pre-service teacher education programmes in Europe have so far largely neglected this important area. In order to address the professional needs of future ESP teachers, a novel and coherent framework for mediating the findings of corpus linguistics and genre analysis has been developed. The advantages of such a model of mediated corpus-based genre analysis lie in its flexibility of application to diverse ESP settings and target groups, so empowering both student teachers and their future pupils to develop autonomous language capabilities. Following this model, student teachers are familiarized with the potential of specialized corpora as a source of information regarding specific genres, such as contracts of sale, sustainability reports or company profiles, and as a tool in materials development. This model of mediated corpus-based genre analysis, which will be presented and discussed in this paper, has been implemented in an innovative teacher education project at the English Department of the University of Vienna. Feedback from both student teachers and future employers underlines the positive effects of such a linguistics-informed approach to teacher education. (Contains 2 tables and 3 figures.)

Connected to the growing internationalisation of higher education in the world, the English language is increasingly being used as medium of teaching and learning, thereby contributing to the roles of English for transnational mobility, career development, access to new information and research, and the facilitation of global communication. While the label English-medium instruction (EMI) has been widely used in the last two decades to capture this phenomenon, we consider it an unfortunate choice in that it falls short in conceptualising the complexity of English in twenty-first-century higher education. First, EMI solely focuses on English, ignoring the increasing multilingual realities of higher education institutions (HEIs) worldwide; secondly, EMI does not explicitly include reference to higher education, even though learning and teaching at the tertiary level is in crucial ways different to lower levels of education. Thirdly, EMI talks about “instruction” and thus views education as a non-relational process where teachers teach and learners learn. From this unilateral perspective, the co-construction of knowledge as a key feature of higher education remains unacknowledged. Against this backdrop, our paper sets out to argue for the conceptual need for an alternative label, known as English-medium education in multilingual university settings (or EMEMUS). This label, we argue, portrays more accurately and specifically the growing multilingual reality of current internationalised HEIs, the complex and highly situated roles that English plays in relation to other national and local languages, and the importance of interpreting education as a social-constructivist process. Moreover, EMEMUS will enable HEIs to re-examine comprehensively the range of activities that respond locally to global phenomena, from policy issues (e.g. regulations, implementation and management) to university practices (e.g. teaching, research, administration and teacher professional development) in an inclusive and multifaceted manner. Ultimately, this comprehensive conceptualisation aims to redefine English and internationalisation in a much more nuanced light. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing use of English as a medium of education (EME) in higher education has attracted an impressive amount of applied linguistic research, reflecting the pivotal role language plays in teaching and learning processes. This, however, stands in sharp contrast to the equally prolific body of research into the internationalisation of higher education (IoHE) in which the complex linguistic reality of EME – and its potential role in the internationalised classroom – is given little attention. Reviewing the current research and policy agenda, the authors find that the current policy climate offers similar opportunities for conceptual expansion of IoHE and EME, which calls for greater integration of the two fields of study. The authors argue for an interdisciplinary approach, recognising, and more holistically exploiting, the potential of language at the intersection of dynamic and multilayered policies and practices in twenty-first century internationalised higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Immersion & Content-Based Language Education is the property of John Benjamins Publishing Co. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

While Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) has received a considerable amount of research interest lately, its increasing popularity as an approach to teaching content subjects in a foreign language requires concerted investigation that reflects and recognises its fundamentally contextualised nature. In this contribution, we sketch various tasks that require localised, often action research, covering a range of areas highly relevant to CLIL realities, but so far underrepresented in the literature. These are, firstly, policy issues, comprising policy statements as well as stakeholders’ perceptions of CLIL and its success; secondly, classroom discourse as the prime site for the investigation of CLIL practices and their implications for the learning process; and, thirdly, classroom pedagogy, with the focus on potential differences between CLIL and non-CLIL settings. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article offers developments related to the integration of language and content to higher education in Europe. It states that Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) was started in Europe but stimulated by the general policy of the European Union aimed at boosting societal and individual multilingualism. It states that foreign language became popular in numerous countries, especially those that use these languages for educational intentions.

Given the increasing popularity amongst mainland European higher educational institutions to offer some of their classes and courses in English, this paper addresses the roles English plays in such classroom discourse. By focussing on one specific English-medium hotel management programme, it is argued that English functions, on the one hand, as language of the learners' future expertise and, on the other, as their only shared medium of communication, i.e., their lingua franca. A detailed analysis of question-initiated exchanges taken from critical phases throughout the programme accompanied over its whole duration illustrates the realities of this multifunctionality of English as revealed in teachers and students raising, and responding to, different kinds of question at different points in time. On the basis of these discourse-pragmatic findings it is suggested that (language) learning processes depend in their complexity and dynamics on English in its roles as lingua franca and as professional language, but also on how these roles are conceptuald within a generally content-focussed teaching programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent debates on English varieties have focused on the apparent contrast of Global English on the one hand and World Englishes on the other, where the former reflects the status of English as the main global means of communication, while the latter describes the multitude of diverse varieties of English presently used in various parts of the world. The status and description of the variety in question here, BSAE (Black South African English), is one of the examples that apparently contain elements of both Global English and World Englishes. This article reports on the pilot study of a still-ongoing research project which investigates teachers' language perceptions and language use in mainly BSAE-using classrooms. Our aim here is to describe and analyse this specific micro-level situation of language use in view of two macro-level considerations: (i) in how far Global English vs local Englishes manifest themselves in teachers' evaluations and (ii) what this means for the teachers' perceptions of BSAE (Black South African English). From a methodological point of view, the pilot study focuses on teachers' language perceptions as revealed in their assessment of student work and elicited by a questionnaire containing student texts and closed and open-ended questions, which was filled in by 48 respondents in August 2001. The findings show that the respondents used two criteria of assessment (MESSAGE and SENTENCE GRAMMAR), which relate to learner-group centred and external points of reference. While more, and also more-detailed, data will be needed before clear-cut conclusions regarding the macro-level considerations can be drawn, the study outcomes seem to indicate that in actual situations of language use a global norm and local manifestations and expectations co-exist, which might also be the basis for the diffuse but still shared understanding of BSAE as a variety of its own. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigates motivation in pronunciation learning at the English Department of Vienna University in Austria. Kinds of motivational factors students of English have revealed; Motivational factors' interaction with the students' achievements in the obligatory pronunciation module; Relation of learning success to the module-independent factors of students' level of proficiency.

Studies the motivational patterns in advanced EFL pronunciation learners. Attitudes towards various native and non-native accents of English; Evaluations of the target groups, which are British and American; More general motivational patterns and strategies for pronunciation learning.

Evaluates accent recognition and language attitudes. Arguments that accent recognition can influence speaker evaluations; Indepth look at accent recognition as an integral part of future investigations into language attitudes.

In the last issue, in accordance with InJAL's new relationship with AILA, the idea and rationale of AILA Research Networks was explained in general terms. In this issue and the next, individual co-ordinators present their ReNs and the particular activities they are engaged in. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about the topics discussed during the 16th World Congress of International Association of Applied Linguistics (AILA) held in Beijing, China on August 23-28, 2011 is presented. The symposium featured studies from European countries that deal with the secondary and tertiary educational contexts. The AILA Congress also evidenced the growing interest in Research Network's (ReN) focus into micro-and macro language and educational policies.

The article focuses on the linguistic perspectives of the International Association of Applied Linguistics (AILA) on Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). It states that the AILA research network is instrumental in internationalizing research in the CLIL area. It mentions that the decisive instrument in the formation of a research community is the AILA's network symposia. It adds that the network also presents conferences which are academically or pedagogically oriented.

The article offers information on the work of the Research Network on Content and Language Integrated Learning and Immersion Classrooms (CLIL ReN) of the International Association of Applied Linguists (AILA). Topics include a symposium at the April 4-5, 2014 AESLA (Asociación Española de Lingüística Aplicada) Conference in Sevilla, Spain; a session at the AILA2014 conference in Brisbane, Australia; and research on CLIL teaching.

The article offers information on the symposia of the Research Network on Content and Language Integrated Learning and Immersion Classrooms (CLIL ReN) for 2013-2014. It mentions the thematic symposium during the CLIL2013 conference in Ustron, Poland on April 4-6, 2013. It offers information on the 2014 symposia to be held at two conferences in Seville, Spain on April 4-5 and Brisbane, Queensland on August 10-15. Also mentioned is the new website of the network.

The article offers information on the Applied Linguistics Perspectives on Content and Language Integrated Learning Conference (ALP-CLIL) to be held at Miraflores de la Sierra in Madrid, Spain from June 5 to 8, 2013, and the CLIL 2013 Conference in Silezia, Poland from April 4 to 6, 2013.