Ideological tensions in identity construction of Chinese medical teachers and students in EMI

English-medium instruction (EMI) has been promoted in China’s mainland for over two decades, and its developmental landscape is complex. This article explores ideological tensions and how these tensions are created in the discourse of Chinese medical teachers and students in EMI courses. Drawing on the concept of tension-filled English, this article employs critical discursive psychology (CDP) to analyse ideological tensions in identity construction that emerged in semi-structured interviews with teachers and students about their imagined EMI courses. The analysis identifies two main ideological tensions between monolingual and bilingual approaches to EMI and between standard and practical orientations to English. By observing the interplay among different language ideologies in identity making, this study provides a valuable angle to understand the challenge-ridden experience of EMI teachers and students according to their own contextual needs and disciplinary practices. The findings suggest the importance of EMI stakeholders reflecting on how teaching and learning practices can enable learners (and teachers) to reflexively understand the role of English (and other languages) and leverage their bilingual repertoires for medical careers.

英语作为教学媒介（English-medium instruction, EMI）在中国大陆推广已有近二十余年，其发展态势复杂多样。本文探讨了中国医学教师和学生在EMI课程中的意识形态张力及其在话语中的生成方式。基于“充满张力的英语”这一概念，本文采用批判性话语心理学（Critical Discursive Psychology, CDP）方法，分析了教师和学生在半结构化访谈中关于其想象中的EMI课程时所展现的身份建构中的意识形态张力。分析揭示了两种主要的意识形态张力：一是单语与双语教学法之间的张力，二是标准英语与实践导向英语之间的张力。通过观察不同语言意识形态在身份建构中的相互作用，本研究为理解EMI教师和学生如何在其特定情景需求和学科实践中应对充满挑战的经历提供了一个有价值的视角。研究结果表明，EMI相关参与者应思考如何在教学实践中帮助学习者（及教师）反思性地理解英语（及其他语言）的作用，并利用双语能力为其医学职业生涯服务。