Home / Regular Issue / JSSH Vol. 30 (1) Mar. 2022 / JSSH-8385-2021

 

The Influence of Apprenticeship of Observation on Business Teacher’s Beliefs and Attitudes Towards English-Medium Instruction: A Case Study

Mohammad Mosiur Rahman, Liza Reshmin, Evita Amin and Abdul Karim

Pertanika Journal of Social Science and Humanities, Volume 30, Issue 1, March 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.47836/pjssh.30.1.10

Keywords: Apprenticeship of observation, English medium instruction, higher education, internationalization, language attitude, language beliefs

Published on: 16 March 2022

English medium instruction (EMI) in higher education is now a widespread practise around the world. Teachers’ beliefs and attitudes concerning EMI can be both barriers and facilitators to implementing EMI in their classroom instruction. However, this important issue has not been studied widely. This study explores a case of an EMI teacher from the business discipline working in a private university in Bangladesh, whose beliefs regarding English and EMI adoption were influenced by the apprenticeship of observation. The site of the reported study is the University of Future (pseudonym), a medium-sized private university based in Dhaka. Avro (a pseudonym) was chosen as the case in this study as he was taught in an English medium university and now teaches business courses at the focal university where medium of instruction (MOI) is English. Two thought-based data collection instruments were used to collect the data: a semistructured interview and a narrative frame. The findings of the study show that the language-related beliefs of Avro are consistent with the rationale for the language policy adopted by his university, and his prior educational experience has played an important role in shaping his attitude towards English and EMI adoption in higher education.

  • Airey, J. (2012). “I don’t teach language”: The linguistic attitudes of physics lecturers in Sweden. AILA Review, 25(25), 64-79. https://doi.org/10.1075/aila.25.05air

  • Aizawa, I., & Rose, H. (2019). An analysis of Japan’s English as medium of instruction initiatives within higher education: The gap between meso-level policy and micro-level practice. Higher Education, 77(6), 1125-1142. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-018-0323-5

  • Ali, N. L., & Hamid, M. O. (2018). 13 English-medium instruction and teacher agency in higher education: A case study. In C. S. K. Chua (Ed.), Un(intended) language planning in a globalising world: Multiple Levels of Players at Work (pp. 234-250). Sciendo Migration. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110518269-013

  • Altbach, P. G., & Knight, J. (2007). The internationalisation of higher education: Motivations and realities. Journal of Studies in International Education, 11(3/4), 290-305. https://doi.org/10.1177/1028315307303542

  • Barkhuizen, G., & Wette, R. (2008). Narrative frames for investigating the experiences of language teachers. System, 36(3), 372-387. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2008.02.002

  • Borg, S. (2015). Teacher cognition and language education: Research and practice. Bloomsbury Publishing.

  • Bradford, A. (2016). Toward a typology of implementation challenges facing English-medium instruction in higher education: Evidence from Japan. Journal of Studies in International Education, 20(4), 339-356. https://doi.org/10.1177/1028315316647165

  • Bradford, A. (2018). It’s not all about English! The problem of language foregrounding in English-medium programmes in Japan. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 40(8), 707-720. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2018.1551402

  • Brumfit, C. (2004). Language and higher education: Two current challenges. Arts and Humanities in Higher Education, 3(2), 163-173. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474022204042685

  • Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2017). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.). Sage.

  • Cross, R. (2010). Language teaching as sociocultural activity: Rethinking language teacher practice. The Modern Language Journal, 94(3), 434-452. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.2010.01058.x

  • Dearden, J., & Macaro, E. (2016). Higher education teachers’ attitudes towards English medium instruction: A three-country comparison. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 6(3), 455-486.

  • Evans, S., & Morrison, B. (2018). Adjusting to higher education in Hong Kong: The influence of school medium of instruction. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 21(8), 1016-1029. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2016.1228600

  • Farrell, T. S. (2020). Professional development through reflective practice for English-medium instruction (EMI) teachers. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23(3), 277-286. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2019.1612840

  • Fullan, M. (2007). Leading in a culture of change. John Wiley & Sons.

  • Haidar, S. (2019). The role of English in developing countries: English is a passport to privilege and needed for survival in Pakistan. English Today, 35(3), 42-48.

  • Hamid, M. O., & Baldauf, R. B. (2014). Public-private domain distinction as an aspect of LPP frameworks: A case study of Bangladesh. Language Problems and Language Planning, 38(2), 192-210. https://doi.org/10.1075/lplp.38.2.05ham

  • Hamid, M. O., Jahan, I., & Islam, M. M. (2013). Medium of instruction policies and language practices, ideologies and institutional divides: Voices of teachers and students in a private university in Bangladesh. Current Issues in Language Planning, 14(1), 144-163. https://doi.org/10.1080/14664208.2013.771417

  • Hu, G., & Lei, J. (2014). English-medium instruction in Chinese higher education: A case study. Higher Education, 67(5), 551-567. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-013-9661-5

  • Hu, G., Li, L., & Lei, J. (2014). English-medium instruction at a Chinese University: Rhetoric and reality. Language Policy, 13(1), 21-40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10993-013-9298-3

  • Kagan, D. M. (1992). Implication of research on teacher belief. Educational Psychologist, 27(1), 65-90. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep2701_6

  • Karim, A., Kabilan, M. K., Ahmed, Z., Reshmin, L., & Rahman, M. M. (2021). the medium of instruction in Bangladeshi higher education institutions: Bangla, English, or both? Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2020.1871353

  • Kirkpatrick, A., & Liddicoat, A. J. (2017). Language education policy and practice in East and Southeast Asia. Language Teaching, 50(2), 155-188. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444817000027

  • Kuteeva, M. (2014). The parallel language use of Swedish and English: The question of ‘nativeness’ in university policies and practices. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 35(4), 332-344. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2013.874432

  • Liddicoat, A. J. (2016). Language planning in universities: teaching, research and administration. Current Issues in Language Planning, 17(3-4), 231-241. https://doi.org/10.1080/14664208.2016.1216351

  • Lortie, D. C. (1975). Schoolteacher: A sociological study (Vol. 21). University of Chicago Press.

  • Lourenço, M., & Pinto, S. (2019). Expatriate and home teachers’ beliefs about English-medium instruction at a Portuguese university. European Journal of Higher Education, 9(3), 252-267. https://doi.org/10.1080/21568235.2019.1597750

  • Macaro, E. (2018). English medium instruction. Oxford University Press.

  • Macaro, E., Curle, S., Pun, J., An, J., & Dearden, J. (2018). A systematic review of English medium instruction in higher education. Language Teaching, 51(1), 36-76. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444817000350

  • Pajares, M. F. (1992). Teachers’ beliefs and educational research: Cleaning up a messy construct. Review of Educational Research, 62(3), 307-332. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543062003307

  • Pinto, S. (2017). Language policies in Portuguese public universities: education and research. In C. Guerra, R. Tavares & M. H. Araújo e Sá (Coord), SCoRE’17 – Science Communication for Researchers in Education: Autumn School E-Book (pp. 106-109). UA Editora.

  • Rahman, M. M., & Pandian, A. (2018a). A critical investigation of English language teaching in Bangladesh: Unfulfilled expectations after two decades of communicative language teaching. English Today, 34(3), 43-49. https://doi.org/10.1017/S026607841700061X

  • Rahman, M. M., & Pandian, A. (2018b). The chaotic English language policy and planning in Bangladesh: Areas of apprehension. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities, 26(2), 893-908.

  • Rahman, M. M., & Singh, M. K. M. (2020). Language ideology of English-medium instruction in higher education: A case study from Bangladesh. English Today, 36(4), 40-46. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078419000294

  • Rahman, M. M., & Singh, M. K. M. (2021). English Medium university STEM teachers’ and students’ ideologies in constructing content knowledge through translanguaging. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2021.1915950

  • Rahman, M. M., Islam, M. S., Hasan, M. K., & Singh, M. K. M. (2021). English medium instruction: Beliefs and attitudes of university lecturers in Bangladesh and Malaysia. Issues in Educational Research, 31(4), 1213-1230.

  • Rahman, M. M., Islam, M. S., Karim, A., Chowdhury, T. A., Rahman, M. M., Seraj, P. M. I., & Singh, M. K. M. (2019). English language teaching in Bangladesh today: Issues, outcomes and implications. Language Testing in Asia, 9(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40468-019-0085-8

  • Rahman, M. M., Singh, M. K. M., & Fersi, M. S. (2020). Multiple case studies on the impact of apprenticeship of observation on novice EFL teachers’ cognition and practices. MEXTESOL Journal, 44(4), 1-11.

  • Rahman, M. M., Singh, M. K. M., & Karim, A. (2018). English medium instruction innovation in higher education: Evidence from Asian contexts. Journal of Asia TEFL, 15(4), 1156-1164. http://doi.org/10.18823/asiatefl.2018.15.4.20.1156

  • Rahman, M. M., Singh, M. K. M., & Karim, A. (2020). Distinctive medium of instruction ideologies in public and private universities in Bangladesh. Asian Englishes, 22(2), 125-142. https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2019.1666493

  • Rahman, M. M., Singh, M. K. M., Johan, M., & Ahmed, Z. (2020). English medium instruction ideology, management and practices: A case study of Bangladeshi private university. English Teaching & Learning, 44(1), 61-79. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42321-019-00036-z

  • Roshid, M. M., Webb, S., & Chowdhury, R. (2022). English as a business lingua franca: A discursive analysis of business e-mails. International Journal of Business Communication, 59(1), 83-103. https://doi.org/10.1177/2329488418808040

  • Sarkar, J. P. S., Karim, A., Kabilan, M. K., & Sultana, S. (2021). A phenomenological study of the language ideology, language management, and language practice in English-Medium universities in Bangladesh: Lecturers’ and students’ voices. Qualitative Report, 26(4), 1248-1274.

  • Shouhui, Z., & Baldauf, R. B., Jr. (2012). Individual agency in language planning: Chinese script reform as a case study. Language Problems and Language Planning, 36(1), 1-24.

  • Song, Y. (2019). English language ideologies and students’ perception of international English-Medium-Instruction (EMI) Master’s programmes: A Chinese case study. English Today, 35(3), 22-28. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078418000408

  • Spolsky, B. (2009). Language management. Cambridge University Press.

  • Sultana, S. (2014). English as a medium of instruction in Bangladesh’s higher education: empowering or disadvantaging students? Asian EFL Journal, 16(1), 11-52.

  • Sultana, S. (2018). Language practices and performances of identity of young adults within spaces of a private university in Bangladesh. Bangladesh English Language Teachers Association (BELTA) Journal, 1(2), 1-28.

  • Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods. Sage publications.

  • Zhang, Z. (2018). English-medium instruction policies in China: Internationalisation of higher education. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 39(6), 542-555. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2017.140407

ISSN 0128-7702

e-ISSN 2231-8534

Article ID

JSSH-8385-2021

Download Full Article PDF

Share this article

Recent Articles