How to teach an academic subject in English?
Since 2021, Universidad de Chile offers a 10-week long blended learning course to all academic staff, including PhD students, who wish to learn how to teach a subject content through English to a multicultural and multilingual audience.
An instructor with years of classroom seat time and graduate assistant teaching experience may have the equivalent teaching expertise of a football fan […]. He or she would not likely be hired to play in a professional football league. Effective teaching involves the purposeful, research-informed development of innovative lessons
OUR GOALS
1
to investigate the implementation and expansion of EMI globally and locally
2
to develop an awareness of linguistic diversity and variation within EMI
3
to recommend pedagogical strategies suitable to the EMI classroom
TESTIMONIALS
Mario Rivera Meza,
Pharmacist, PhD in Pharmacology. Assistant professor,
Department of Pharmacological and Toxicological Chemistry,
Faculty of Chemical Sciences and Pharmacy.
University of Chile
“My experience with the EMI course was very positive. The course is very well structured and its development follows a logical line based on the development of a concrete class. The opportunity to share experiences with other academics was also very enriching. Finally, it is necessary to indicate that you do not need to have a very good command of English to take this course.“
María Angélica Larraín Barth,
Associate Professor in the Department of Food Science and Chemical Technology
Faculty of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences University of Chile
“The EMI course gave me a new perspective on the use of English as a lingua franca between users of different first languages in a multicultural context. This new point of view has encouraged me to use English as a medium of instruction, despite being a non-native speaker. Also, the flipped classroom approach makes sense to me, as it allows the learning objectives of the course to focus on promoting higher-order thinking skills in line with Bloom’s taxonomy. I have greatly enjoyed the course..”
Claudio Millacura Salas,
PhD in History
Department of Anthropology
University of Chile
“When I took the EMI course, I never imagined how much I would learn. It was not easy, it required a lot of autonomous work, but in the end one can see the progress when reviewing the evidence of what has been done. Without a doubt, I learnt how to organize my way of doing classes and improve my teaching methods.”
COURSE STRUCTURE
Theoretical Part: What is English Medium Instruction (EMI)?
The ‘WHAT’ section
In the theoretical section, consisting of three modules, the course participants will familiarize themselves with the key concepts and themes related to the internationalization process within higher education and explore the effects of the spread of English as a global language and a medium of academia at local and global settings.
Online Community
There are 6 discussion forums in the theoretical part. Discussion forums are used to promote online interaction, encourage active learning, and build a sense of community. The EMI course participants are welcome to pose questions, share ideas, and provide reflections on topics presented in 3 modules.
Summative Task
We use Cornell’s notes for assessment in the theoretical part for the following four reasons:
- This system encourages students to reflect on their notes by summarising the key points briefly using their own words (paraphrasing skills).
- This system is a very efficient way of taking notes before class by allowing students to check the meaning of new words (scientific terminology) in advance and undertake the necessary independent learning (autonomy).
- This system allows professionally review and scan the learnt material , making it easy to locate pieces of information which could be used in discussions and debates during in class time (speaking skills, argumentation).
- This system creates a completely natural learning cycle on the same sheet of paper allowing students to demonstrate their deep understanding of a subject (critical thinking) rather than just facilitating memorisation.
Practical Part: How to teach through English Medium Instruction (EMI)?
The ‘HOW’ section
The practical section is structured to introduce the latest research in teaching and learning through English at HE. The purpose of this part is to enable the future EMI practitioners to testmake pedagogical adjustments relevant to their disciplinary context and adapt their current teaching strategies to meet the needs of the global classroom.
Online Community
There are 10 discussion forums in the practical part. Discussion forums are used to promote online interaction, encourage active learning, and build a sense of community. The EMI course participants are welcome to pose questions, share ideas, and provide reflections on topics presented in from Module 4 to Module 7.
Summative Task
We use Flipped Classroom approach is useful for teaching multilingual and multicultural audience because if offers:
- Flexible learning pace – Students can review materials (videos, readings) at their own speed, which helps with language comprehension.) at their own speed, which helps with language comprehension.
- Better use of class time – In-class sessions focus on discussion, practice, and clarification, promoting deeper understanding and cultural exchange.
- Increased engagement – Learners actively participate, which supports different learning styles and backgrounds.
