“Problem in Medium of

Instruction in Class Room”

Presented by Uzair Ahmed

Presented to Dr. Kazim Shah
MPhil 2nd Semester
English as a medium of instruction in the Gulf: When students and
teachers speak
Author : Hassan Belhiah • Maha Elhami

 Hassan Belhiah (2015) in his research on English as

medium of instruction in the Gulf discusses the views of
teacher and students at using English as a medium of
instruction.
 In the Gulf countries (Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi
Arabia, and the UAE) in new educational policy English is
given the status of medium of instruction before this
Arabic was used as a medium of instruction. The reason
to implement English as a medium of instruction is that it
is the language of science and technology.
 They took initiative to excel in field of science and
technology to survive in this world, so English is given the
status of medium of instruction.
Two Approaches
 There are two approaches to learn English First,
the communicative approach to language
teaching (CLT) postulates that it is essential for
students to interact in a language frequently if
they aspire to learn it (Holliday 1994).
 Second, content and language integrating
learning (CLIL) in which CLIL is an approach to
language learning in which subject matter
courses are taught in the target language with
the goal of fostering both language and content
mastery to the desired level (Maljers et al. 2010).
Research Questions
 To what extent has the English language proficiency of
Arab students improved as a consequence of studying
in English?
 (2) To what extent do students report facility in

reading and understanding English (lectures,

textbooks, examination instructions, etc.)?
 (3) What is students’ level of facility in interacting in

English inside the classroom (asking questions,

answering questions, communicating with classmates)?
 (4) Do students and teachers prefer instruction to be

conducted in Arabic, in English, or concurrently in

English and Arabic?
Method
 Five hundred students and one hundred
instructors participated in this study.
Participants were in attendance at six UAE
universities located in the cities of Abu Dhabi,
Dubai, Al Ain, Sharjah, Ajman, and Ras Al
Khaimah.
Results
 While EMI has positive and negative both impact
on teacher and students. Students said that EMI
has improved their listening and speaking skills
Although using EMI can ultimately result in
improving students’ English proficiency.
 But failing to understand lectures or classroom
materials can be demotivating and may have a
negative effect on the academic performance
and morale of students.
 Some students said that it is easier for them to
elaborate their answer in Arabic than English.
Results
Majority of the students are with the opinion
that they can interact in English while some
teachers said that students find difficulty during
class room interaction in English.
 This research claims to adopt bilingual English

–Arabic medium in class room. The study has

implications for language education policy
issues in the Gulf and advocates bilingual
education as a means to improving students’
mastery of English, while preserving their
national identity and indigenous culture.
 Article No 2
English as a medium of instruction: Challenges for
Vietnamese tertiary
lecturers
 To excel in the field of science and
technology English has been adopted as a
medium of instruction at Vietnam. As English
is not the mother tongue. Vietnamese
seeking a well-paid job in foreign companies.
So English become the central important
thing.
Challenges for EMI Lecturers
 First, teachers are reported to experience
linguistic difficulties. They had difficulty in
expressing themselves effectively, especially
in paraphrasing, searching for words, and
refining statements.
 The second challenge for EMI teachers is a

search for effective pedagogy.

 Limited resources. Funding for normal

programmes, the training of teachers and

money for textbooks are all inadequate.
Research Questions
 1. What do (language and content) lecturers
perceive to be their students’ English needs?
 2. How well do lecturers think students’

needs are met?

 3. What challenges do lecturers face in

teaching an EMI course?

Methodology
 To find out the challenges faced by EMI
lecturer. 71 experienced lecturers questions
in two phases. In first phase they have to
answer a questionnaire consist of 25 items
both close and open ended items present at
the questionnaire. In the second phase from
the answer of questionnaire themes were
develop for interview. Lecturers were
interviewed by 16 participants who have done
special EMI courses .
Findings
 Lecturing in English requires specific types of
language skills appropriate to pedagogy.
 Learning in English and teaching in English

are two different things.

 The instructors felt more challenged when

their “foreign accents” and “pronunciation

errors” could not satisfy students who
expected native-like American and British
accents (Ton & Pham, 2010).
Students’ Language Abilities and
Learning Styles
 The diversity of students’ learning styles and
personalities also challenged their teaching. The
lecturers commented on group dynamics or saw
students as inactive and unmotivated.
 Pedagogical Issues
 Pedagogical issues affected both experienced and

novice lecturers, whose EMI experience ranged only

from four months to three years. As the program
was new, they continually searched for suitable
teaching strategies, and codeswitching was one
example. When lecturers perceived difficulties in
instructional interaction they reverted to Vietnamese.
Resources
 The shortage of qualified teaching staff and
inadequate supplies of reference materials,
teaching equipment, Internet access, and
electricity cause further obstacles for the
lecturers.
 Dang et al. (2013) suggested that the Internet

can provide rich teaching resources for

English. This study also indicated the needs
for digital learning facilities, good classroom
conditions, and adequate human resources
 Both the article support EMI besides those
obstacles which are occurring in the
implementation of EMI.To improve the
economical state and excel in the field of
science and technology English is given
importance as a medium of instruction.