English Medium Instruction (EMI) as Linguistic Capital in Nepal: Promises and Realities

Sah, Pramod K.; Li, Guofang

doi:10.1080/19313152.2017.1401448

Cited by 97 publications

(85 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Assuming that language support is not necessary for first language speakers imposes a form of 'class ethnocentrism' on higher education. Sah and Li (2018) found that EMI policy leads to linguistic marginalization and educational inequality with injustice for children from a lower socioeconomic status in Nepal.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The dilemma of English as a medium of instruction policy in science college programs

Alhamami

Almelhi

2021

SiELE

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Achieving science undergraduate programs learning outcomes relies on the students’ proficiency in the language of instruction, a challenge that many policymakers ignore. This study is to understand the influence of English as a medium of instruction (EMI) policy in four undergraduate science programs, namely, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics, in Saudi Arabia. The data were collected from the following groups of participants: 1461 science alumni records, 769 current undergraduate science students’ surveys, and 111 science university instructors’ surveys. The results of alumni records indicated that grades of the intensive English program in the first year predict the alumni cumulative grade point average (GPA) once they finish their four-year program. The results demonstrated that the higher is the alumni’s English proficiency, the better is their cumulative GPA. The results of the current science students’ questionnaire showed their preferred language of instruction could be predicted by their attitudes and society’s attitudes. Most of these students preferred to learn sciences in their native language (Arabic), which contradicted the policy of the current program. The instructors’ questionnaire results showed that instructors held divergent perspectives on the usage of EMI and students’ native language in the undergraduate science programs. To conclude, educationists and programs policymakers need to locate more attention and interventions toward the language of instruction. It is also recommended that universities provide science students with more English courses. Science students should also have English for science purposes courses to familiarize them with the science terms and prepare them to read science materials.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The dilemma of English as a medium of instruction policy in science college programs

Alhamami

Almelhi

2021

SiELE

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“…In Chapter 3, while exploring perceptions, problems, and possibilities of mothertongue-based multilingual education (MTB-MLE) in the Philippines, Cruz and Mahboob illustrate how the ideological dominance of English as a medium of instruction (EMI) has obstructed the successful development of multilingualism in education. Such tend of EMI is, in fact, common in other contexts such as Nepal (see Sah & Li, 2018). As Cruz and Mahboob argue, such a dominant language ideology can be improved through scholars' and activists' support and advocacy for MTB-MLE.…”

Section: Book Reviewmentioning

confidence: 96%

Plurilingualism in Teaching and Learning: Complexities Across Contexts

Sah

2018

JFDE

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“…The government aided schools have started shifting their medium of instruction to English where private institutions have made only English environment. Sah (2018) mentions that there are very limited success stories of EMI and the ad hoc implementation of it without any adequate policy may be counterproductive. Similarly, Paudel (2017) from his research concludes that EMI implementation is difficult in the context of Nepal due to poor English competence of the teachers and lack of suitable training to handle it in the multilingual situation.…”

Section: Review Of Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…EMI is a model of teaching in which non-English subjects are taught through the medium of English. The use of EMI is linked to the demand of English for economic progress and global communication (Phillipson, 2017;Sah & Li, 2018). With the increasing demand of English from both parents and students, EMI has become a well adopted and preferred phenomenon in public schools of Nepal.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using English as a Medium of Instruction: Challenges and Opportunities of Multilingual Classrooms in Nepal

Paudel

2021

Prithvi J. Res. Innov.

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English as a medium of instruction has great influence in school education in Nepal. It is taken as a pluralistic language which promotes harmony and tolerance, and increases career, opportunities, hope and progress. At the same time, there is a danger of survival for local languages due to the imperialistic role of English. In such a context, this paper has tried to explore the results created due to the extensive use of English as a medium of instruction. To address this objective, the study employs a phenomenological research design under the qualitative approach. The information was collected from eight teachers and eight parents of eight different community schools through interviews and purposively selected two focus group discussions. The collected information from both the tools and sources were coded, triangulated, analyzed, interpreted and presented into three different themes. The results show the use of English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) in school education as a debatable issue due to the fear of loss of local languages despite its advantages. This implies that the government should make an appropriate language policy and education system to maintain a harmonious and mutual relationship between English and other languages in school education so that children can get opportunities in English language, and become aware of their languages.

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English Medium Instruction (EMI) as Linguistic Capital in Nepal: Promises and Realities

Cited by 97 publications

References 23 publications

The dilemma of English as a medium of instruction policy in science college programs

The dilemma of English as a medium of instruction policy in science college programs

Plurilingualism in Teaching and Learning: Complexities Across Contexts

Using English as a Medium of Instruction: Challenges and Opportunities of Multilingual Classrooms in Nepal

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