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.

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]

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.

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. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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.)