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English-medium instruction in Chinese higher education: a case study

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Abstract

With the relentless internationalization and marketization of higher education in the past decades, English has been increasingly adopted as a medium of instruction at universities across the world. Recent research, however, has shown that despite its various optimistically envisioned goals, English-medium instruction (EMI) is not without problems in practice. This article reports a case study of an EMI Business Administration program for undergraduate students at a major university of finance and economy in mainland China. Informed by Spolsky’s language policy framework, the study made a critical analysis of national/institutional policy statements and interviews with professors and students to uncover EMI-related language ideologies, language practices, and language management mechanisms. Findings evinced a complex interplay of these three constitutive components of language policy in the focal EMI program and revealed considerable misalignment between policy intentions and actual practices in the classroom. These findings raise concerns about the quality and consequences of EMI in Chinese higher education. The article concludes with recommendations for further research on EMI policies and practices in China.

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Notes

  1. All quotes from Chinese-language sources and participants in this study are our own translations.

  2. To safeguard the focal university’s anonymity, references are not provided for quotes from its policy documents.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. English Language and Literature, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, 1 Nanyang Walk, Singapore, 637616, Singapore

    Guangwei Hu & Jun Lei

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  1. Guangwei Hu
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  2. Jun Lei
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Correspondence to Guangwei Hu.

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Hu, G., Lei, J. English-medium instruction in Chinese higher education: a case study. High Educ 67, 551–567 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-013-9661-5

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