Title:
"Theoretical and methodological considerations: Multilingual communicative competence and disciplinary knowledge development "
There is a growing awareness of multilingual and multicultural communicative practices in research on translanguaging in English-medium instruction (EMI) in higher education (Jiang & Zhang, 2023; Kuteeva et al., 2020). However, research continues to suggest that high English proficiency remains a strong predictor of students’ academic success, i.e. their ability to display their disciplinary knowledge (Lee et al., 2025). In order to understand the role of students’ multilingual competence, not only in relation to their knowledge display but also their knowledge, we need new, or extended, theoretical models and methodological approaches. This paper explores new theoretical and methodological considerations to explore multilingual language use in student engagement in disciplinary tasks and activities in EMI science courses.
Given that capturing students’ underlying multilingual competence during task engagement has been a challenge, I discuss a methodological approach suitable for appropriate data elicitation and analysis that is grounded within the theoretical framework of the project. Drawing on findings from preliminary analyses of recordings of classroom interaction, learning materials and tasks, and student interviews, I trace the role of multiple languages in disciplinary literacy development from the perspective of both the process (i.e., knowledge development) and the product (i.e., knowledge display) of individual student engagement with learning activities in the EMI classroom.
The presentation concludes by outlining the implications of these theoretical and methodological innovations for reconceptualizing language proficiency and disciplinary literacy in relation to educational policy, as well as teaching, learning, and assessment practices.
References
Jiang, A. L., & Zhang, L. J. (2023). Understanding knowledge construction in a Chinese university EMI classroom: A translanguaging perspective. System, 114, 103024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2023.103024
Kuteeva, M., Kaufhold, K., & Hynninen, N. (Eds.). (2020). Language perceptions and practices in multilingual universities. Palgrave Macmillan.
Lee, H., Rose, H., Macaro, E., & Lee, J. H. (2025). Success of EMI in higher education and its key components: A meta-analytic structural equation modelling approach. Educational Research Review, 100684. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2025.100684
Slobodanka Dimova is a Professor of Multilingualism and Language Testing at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. She is the President of the European Association of Language Testing and Assessment (EALTA), member of the editorial board of the Journal of English-Medium Instruction, and a co-editor of the Routledge Studies in English-Medium Instruction. Her current research interests include policies and practices related to the internationalization and implementation of English-medium instruction (EMI) programs at non-English-dominant universities, performance-based testing, and the use of technology in language testing and assessment.
Title:
"Multilingualism and epistemic diversity in the age of EMI and GenAI"
Recent research in applied linguistics has underscored the need to promote inclusivity, decolonize knowledge, and address epistemic biases. At the same time, an increasing use of large language models (LLMs) may drive both language use and knowledge construction towards further homogeneity and reproduction of existing biases, thereby contributing to “epistemic monoglossia” (Kuteeva, 2023). What can be done to support and promote multilingualism and epistemic diversity in English-medium education?
My talk revisits the concept of multilingualism beyond its broad definition as a variety of linguistic contexts and practices (e.g., Pillar 2016). It shows how multilingualism is entangled with EMI stakeholders’ beliefs, attitudes and conceptions about language structures and uses. Looking across three language dimensions – structural, socio-ideological, and interactional (Kuteeva, 2023) – I discuss how language practices and norms are intertwined with worldviews and individual positionings. Examples from Swedish EMI contexts illustrate how English is simultaneously construed as a standard language, a lingua franca and a part of translingual practices reflecting different perspectives, but also how the discourse of “nativeness” as a proxy for academic literacy persists to this day, despite a backlash against “Englishization”.
To conclude, I argue that EMI does not lead to epistemic monoglossia by default, but more can be done to support multilingualism and epistemic diversity. For example, EAP research focus does not seem to have accompanied the variability of English in EMI contexts, revealing a “heavy bias towards standard language and corpus method” (Macaro & Aizawa, 2024, p. 1364). Numerous EAP studies have examined differences between academic and non-academic writing and speech. But what happens when disciplinary discourse, academic register, local rhetorical traditions, and references to local realities are blended in the context of an EMI lecture or group discussion? As a way forward, I suggest ways to support epistemic diversity, disciplinary literacy, and critical stance by drawing on multilingual repertoires and knowledge of socio-material contexts.
Maria Kuteeva is Professor of English linguistics at Stockholm University. Her research has focused on academic discourse analysis and explored how English is used in multilingual university settings. She is particularly interested in theoretical frameworks that reveal connections between language perceptions, practices, and contexts of use. She has contributed to this line of research in Tension-filled English at the multilingual university: A Bakhtinian perspective (2023, Multilingual Matters). Kuteeva is co-editor-in-chief of Ibérica: Journal of the European Association of Languages for Specific Purposes.
Title: Academic Literacies in CLIL: a bi/multidimensional approach
"Temporality matters: Audio-synchronous textual enhancement as an attention trigger and shaper in reading-while-listening"
Students’ ability to understand subject content and communicate knowledge in ways that are specific to each academic field is necessary for school success. In today’s globalized world, these skills are increasingly required not only in students’ first language but also in English, which is widely used in education and professional contexts. Content and Language Integrating (CLIL) is now a well-established educational approach in many parts of the world due to the growth of globalisation, the role of English as a lingua franca and the interest in expanding students’ bi/multilingual competences. While 20 years ago the main research and pedagogical interests were related to the effect of CLIL on students’ general proficiency in the target language, CLIL has proved to offer valuable research and pedagogical insights beyond that. Drawing on research conducted by the UAM-CLIL research group (http://www.uam-clil.org) and CLILNetLE (https://www.clilnetle.eu/), in this presentation I will discuss the impact of CLIL beyond students’ general language proficiency, on other areas that characterise quality education, such as students’ development of bi/multilingual disciplinary literacies, critical thinking, equity and content/language teacher collaboration. I will revisit the concept of academic literacies in bi/multilingual education, through the analysis of how textual, multimodal and digital literacies are shaped by contextual variables, such as curricular and teacher expectations, educational levels, specific disciplines and out-of-school practices.
Ana Llinares is full professor of Applied Linguistics in the English department at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Spain). She has published widely on Content and Language Integrated Learning, mainly applying Systemic Functional Linguistics and other related models. She is principal investigator of the UAM-CLIL research group (http://www.uam-clil.org) and vice-chair of the COST Action CLIL NetLE (https://www.clilnetle.eu/). She is co-author of highly cited books like the The Roles of Language in CLIL, published by Cambridge University Press, and Applied Linguistics Perspectives on CLIL, published by John Benjamins. She is co-editor of the Journal of Immersion and Content-based Language Education.
Title:
EAP Practitioners as Collaborative Partners in the Disciplines: Facilitating a Sustainable Model of Academic Literacy Instruction"
The rapid expansion of English Medium Instruction (EMI) in universities worldwide has been accompanied by a deficit discourse of students lacking the necessary language proficiency. This perspective obscures the more fundamental challenge faced by all students entering university, namely developing academic literacy, understood as competence in the communicative practices of their chosen disciplines. This competence cannot be acquired through remedial English language courses; rather, it requires the embedding of language and literacy instruction within disciplinary curricula. A sustainable and inclusive model therefore depends on content lecturers integrating academic literacy into their regular teaching and assessment, supported by structured collaborations with English for Academic Purposes (EAP) specialists. However, this provision remains patchy and is constrained by both institutional structures and persistent perceptual barriers.
My talk explores how EAP specialists can make a dual contribution in providing discipline-specific academic literacy support for students and also fostering the professional development of content lecturers. Their expertise in language analysis, pedagogy and materials development enables EAP practitioners to access the discourse conventions of unfamiliar disciplines and to analyse assignment genres as a basis for designing targeted learning resources and student workshops. This expertise is equally valuable in collaboration with content lecturers, as it sharpens their awareness of the specific demands of disciplinary genres, students’ learning needs, and effective strategies for delivering formative feedback.
Following a discussion of examples of successful collaborations from EMI contexts, the talk will conclude by advocating greater institutional investment in embedded, collaborative approaches. Systematically gathering and disseminating evidence of effective practice across contexts is essential to persuading university leaders to move beyond remedial models towards sustainable, institution-wide academic literacy development that enhances teaching quality and benefits all students.