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Article published In: Emerging Assessment Needs and Solutions in EMI in Higher Education
Edited by Slobodanka Dimova and Joyce Kling
[Journal of English-Medium Instruction 1:2] 2022
► pp. 153–179

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Language use in an English-medium instruction university in Lebanon

Implications for the validity of international and local English tests for admissions

ORCiD logo with link | Lancaster University
ORCiD logo with link | Lancaster University
ORCiD logo with link | Lancaster University
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Available under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license.

For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at rights@benjamins.nl.

Open Access publication of this article was funded through a Transformative Agreement with Lancaster University.

Published online: 25 August 2022
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/jemi.21009.ili
Abstract
English-medium instruction (EMI) universities in non-English-dominant contexts often use internationally available tests of English (e.g., TOEFL) and/or locally developed tests to assess the academic English-language proficiency of applicants prior to admission. However, little research has been conducted to establish the extent to which either type of test reflects the real-world classroom discourse, and associated communicative demands, within these often multilingual educational contexts. In this paper, we report on one part of a larger study designed to address this research gap in a particular EMI environment – the American University of Beirut (AUB) in Lebanon. We collected and analysed samples of language use at AUB through non-participant ethnographic observations and video recordings of eight undergraduate classes across academic disciplines. Findings indicated that classes were varied in nature, shifted between registers and levels of interaction, involved a range of translanguaging and English as a Lingua Franca-oriented phenomena, and included meta-commentary about language use. We argue that speaking and listening constructs in English-language admissions tests used in EMI contexts ideally need to be localised or locally developed to best match the unique language use characteristics of these settings.
الملخص
الجامعات المتبعة اللغة الانجليزية كوسيط للتعليم (EMI) والموجودة في سياقات مهيمن عليها غير سياق اللغة الانجليزية غالبا ما تستخدم الاختبارات الدولية الخاصة باللغة الإنجليزية مثل اختبار التوفل و/ أو الاختبارات الأخرى المطورة محليا والتي يتم وضعها بهدف تقييم الكفاءة الأكاديمية للغة الإنجليزية قبيل القبول. ومع ذلك، فقد تم إجراء القليل من الأبحاث التي تهدف إلى تحديد الى اي مدى هذه الاختبارات تحاكي المستوى اللغوي الفعلي تجاه اللغة المستخدمة في القاعات الأكاديمية، وماهي متطلبات عملية التواصل المرتبطة به داخل السياق التعليمي المتعدد اللغات في كثير من الأحيان.
في هذه الورقة البحثية، سنذكر جزئيةً من دراسة أوسع صُممت لمعالجة هذه الفجوة البحثية لبيئةٍ تختص باستخدام اللغة الإنجليزية كوسيط للتعليم (EMI) وهي الجامعة الأمريكية في بيروت-لبنان، حيث قمنا بجمع وتحليل نماذج لاستخدام اللغة في الجامعة الأميركية في بيروت من خلال الملاحظات الإثنوغرافية لغير المشاركين ومقاطع فيديو مسجلة لثمانية قاعات جامعية من تخصصات أكاديمية مختلفة بمرحلة البكلريوس. وأشارت النتائج إلى أن القاعات كانت متباينة بطبيعتها، مع وجود تغيرات انتقالية بين السجلات و بين مستويات التفاعل، وتضمنت مجموعة ظواهر تميل إلى ” العبور اللغوي (Translanguaging)” و”الإنجليزية كلغة التواصل المُشتركة (English as a Lingua Franca) ” بالإضافة إلى أنها تعليقًا تضمنت توضيحيًا حول استخدام اللغة.
وعليه، فإنه يمكننا القول بأن تراكيب التحدث والاستماع في اختبارات القبول باللغة الإنجليزية المستخدمة في جامعات تستخدم اللغة الإنجليزية كوسيط للتعليم (EMI) يجب ان تُكًيّف لتلبي المتطلبات المحلية أو أن يتم إعدادها وتطويرها محليًا؛ لتتناسب مع خصائص اللغة الفريدة بشكلٍ أفضل في هذه السياقات.
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • Background
  • Research context
  • Aims and research questions
  • Methods
    • Sampling of classes
    • Data collection procedures
    • Analysis
  • Findings
    • Macro-analysis
    • Micro-analysis
      • Translingual practices
      • ELF-oriented practices
      • Meta-commentary around language use
  • Discussion
    • Summary of findings
    • Comparison with existing admissions tests
  • Implications
  • Acknowledgements
  • Note
  • References
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