Abstract
This paper draws on the researcher’s PhD research and thesis, which investigated Omani engineering students’ in-class learning-related barriers in an Omani English-medium engineering programme. An interpretive qualitative design was used to examine students’ EMI in-class-related challenges and difficulties. Semi-structured interviews were utilized to collect the main data of the study. Twelve engineering students, eight engineering teachers and five EAP instructors. Subsequent classroom observations of four EAP and four engineering workshops yielded field notes to provide further context. Data were analysed thematically. Findings pointed to salient classroom-related problems in EMI varied in their nature; some related to reading, writing and speaking skills, as well as spontaneous classroom discussions and oral tasks. These challenges varied from one specific engineering discipline to another due to the conceptual and epistemological differences between them. Additionally, the study identified the most significant obstacles including insufficient previous learning, the inadequacy of pre-sessional and in-sessional course resources, limited interaction between EAP instructors and subject tutors, and inadequate teacher development opportunities in EMI offered to subject tutors. The original study showed that various measures can be taken to improve EMI. Whilst findings resonate with other studies of EMI classrooms across the globe, this study provides a unique contribution by considering specific case of Omani engineering programmes. Conclusions were drawn and recommendations are now made for EMI policy, teacher collaboration and teacher development.
Keywords
Background
Using English as a medium of instruction has rapidly expanded across the non-Anglophone countries, particularly in higher education (HE) (Aizawa & Rose, 2020). While use of EMI can be highly advantageous for both students and their institutions when competing on the global stage, this also entails many students completing their major using English and a foreign language (EFL) (Kim, 2020). This is the case in many degree programmes throughout the Arabian Gulf, namely, Oman where the phenomenon merits closer consideration. In reaching Oman’s highly ambitious Vision 2040 to improve educational outcomes and English proficiency careful planning based on evidence of current practice is required. Undergraduate engineering students in Oman can have opportunities to develop their content and language knowledge in one-year foundation courses before starting their majors and through foundational language courses throughout their three-year degree programme.
English Medium Instruction (EMI) is viewed as ‘the use of the English language to teach academic subjects (other than English itself) in countries or jurisdictions where the first language of the majority of the population is not English’ (Macaro et al., 2018, p. 37). If English as medium of instruction is implemented effectively and wisely, it can offer students learning opportunities that are comparable to other international good practices and can enhance students’ competitive edge in the international labour market (Holi et al., 2021; Kim, 2020; Tamtam et al., 2010; Thompson et al., 2022). The adoption of EMI has prompted interaction and cooperation on a global scale among Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) throughout numerous disciplines (Crystal, 2012). Nevertheless, the use of EMI in EFL contexts has presented several in-class difficulties and challenges for both students and teachers. In governmental Omani HEIs, particularly considering the post-foundation stage, it has been noted that engineering students encounter numerous academic as well as linguistic obstacles in their content courses. This is particularly the case for engineering students after pre-sessional programmes and during ongoing in-sessional technical English sessions in governmental colleges. These challenges are likely to occur because of prior schooling – their previous language of instruction (Arabic) in general and post-basic education, their linguistic identity, and several other educational and socio-cultural factors. As a result, the divergence in teaching modes and language use have often negatively impacted them and their studies. The literature has previously noted similar issues (Belhiah & Elham, 2015). Troudi and Jendli (2011) also linked challenges in EMI settings to prior education: educational background and general English competency and proficiency were found to shape students’ perceptions and accommodation strategies when coping with EMI in a new learning environment.
A plethora of studies have been carried out on linguistic difficulties encountered by students during EMI learning as well as their possible causes around the world (Abdel-Jawad & Abu Radwan, 2011; Airey, 2020; Aizawa et al., 2020; Aizawa & Rose, 2020; Alhassan et al., 2021; Basturkmen, 2018; Hung & Lan, 2020; Jones et al., 2022; Kamaşak et al., 2020; Macaro, 2020; Macaro et al., 2018; Toh, 2020; Wilkinson, 2013). However, most of these studies investigated EMI challenges in HEIs in general, not a specific discipline such as engineering. Recognising that students are not just learning English language but are using English for Academic Purposes (EAP), has moved researchers towards investigating specific genres and tasks relevant and pedagogical frameworks. For instance, Ye (2020) emphasises the need to outline context-specific challenges and support solutions in EAP, for undergraduate engineering students in in this case. Therefore, this study investigates the challenges faced by EMI Omani engineering students and explores the possible causes of these challenges. Taking account of the disciplinary-specific needs of different subjects in HEIs, Flowerdew (2016) emphasises the need for more research and practice in English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP). In Singapore, Hill et al. (2020) 25 undergraduate engineering students’ assignments are examined, whilst also gaining their perceptions on learning transfer from an ESAP writing course. Their findings indicate a strong learning transfer.
Nevertheless, recent studies have also emphasized numerous factors which may impact the success of students’ language skills in HEI EMI settings. Chung and Lo (2023) found that proficiency levels prior to commencing EMI instruction played a significant role. Sánchez-Pérez (2023) compared the different outcomes of 51 EFL and 47 EMI Spanish undergraduates engineering students. She found that EMI students significantly improved vocabulary and lexical complexity when compared to EFL students. However, she argued that there was a greater need to integrate improving language proficiency with other study skills in the EMI instruction. In terms of how to effectively scaffold learning and design engineering writing tasks, Eriksson (2018) notes that collaboration between language and disciplinary teachers is essential. Huang and Wible (2024) in the Taiwanese EMI undergraduate engineering context also note that EAP teachers liaising with subject teachers appeared to improve student engagement in making meaningful use of core reading texts. Effectively making use of students’ L1 to strengthen L2 in EMI settings – translanguaging – is another factor which is increasingly garnering attention among researchers in the field (Ou & Gu, 2024).
Many of the challenges and solutions in these global contexts outlined are likely to be of relevance to Omani HEI. Nevertheless, further understandings of needs and appropriate EMI, EAP and ESAP pedagogies and practices to support student challenges are required in Oman. While Lee (2024) argues that EMI is part of an internationalization strategy to prepare a globally competitive workforce, it is also acknowledged that an appropriate theoretical EMI framework is lacking. Lee (2024, p. 1) puts forward a focus on ‘cognitive skills (reasoning and knowledge), non-cognitive knowledge (self-efficacy and motivation)’ as well as language proficiency. Similarly, Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) (Stander et al., 2022) has also been proposed in numerous EMI settings. These frameworks undoubtedly overlap with conceptions of EAP and ESAP, characterized as ‘enhancing learners’ language and communication skills in learning engineering content and in fulfilling institutional expectations’ (Khamis et al., 2013, p. 107). This paper brings together these three strands of research – EMI, EAP and ESAP – insofar as they are appropriate to the context in question. It is argued that by examining teachers’ and students’ understandings of the challenges faced by engineering students, the problems and their solutions can be more clearly articulated. The problem-solving mindset of the discipline of engineering (Pirlo, 2023) and social constructivist approaches (Vygotsky & Cole, 1978) to teaching and learning are guiding principles in answering the research questions. However, there is currently a dearth of evidence-based findings on how undergraduate EMI engineering students in Oman can be supported.
To address this gap and effectively build on existing literature, this original study aims to address two key research questions (RQs): (1) what were the in-class challenges of engineering students on EMI programs implemented in Omani public colleges? and (2) what were the main deliberating factors behind the challenges?
Study Design
To obtain the primary data required for the study, the researcher’s full involvement and interaction with student and teacher participants was required. A qualitative interpretative exploratory research design utilizing interviews was chosen to obtain thorough understanding of the social phenomena in question. In interviews, the researcher was able to make use of follow-up questions and prompt, probe and clarify some issues raised by the respondents (Creswell & Guetterman, 2020) whereby participants’ views about their in-class EMI-related challenges were elucidated. To answer the RQs, a case study approach was adopted. Case study findings are usually descriptive and narrative and may not be generalisable except where applicable (Creswell & Creswell, 2023). The study used purposive sampling to provide invaluable insights (Denscombe, 2010) and to recruit the target participants for the study including engineering teachers and students and EAP teachers.
The present study is centred on a college of technology in Oman. For practical, convenient access and geographical considerations this college was chosen in relation to obtaining appropriate access and permissions. The college, however, is not in any way untypical in terms of its curriculum offer and scale. All the study participants were Arabic native speakers who undergone through the same educational system in Oman, before enrolling in Omani higher education institutions. Consequently, the chosen student participants were relatively homogenous in terms of their educational background and the number of years of pre-university English language instruction. Seven students were chosen from Mechanical and Industrial (which includes chemical engineering); Civil and Architectural (which consists of quantity surveying and architectural engineering); and five students Electrical and Electronics (which includes computing, electrical power and electronics, and telecommunications). The recruitment of the participants was done randomly on a voluntary basis.
Twelve Omani national engineering students, all Arabic native speakers, participated in this study. Three female and nine male participants were selected from the population of students majoring in mechanical, computing, electric and telecommunication engineering. Student participants were aged 21–23 years old. All participating students attended Arabic-medium schooling prior to enrolling into an English-medium HEI. They spent 1–3 years in their foundation and post-foundation programmes studying English, mathematics and IT before progressing to their content-based engineering courses. Eight engineering teachers along with five EAP instructors from multiple nationalities were also interviewed.
Semi-structured interviews were conducted in the Omani Arabic dialect. As Brinkmann and Kvale (2018) emphasise, participants tend to be more relaxed and confident, and richer data can be elicited when they can express themselves in their mother tongue. The interview data were originally coded in students’ L1—Arabic—with substantive sections subsequently translated to English. Manual, inductive and thematic approaches were used to analyse the data (Braun & Clarke, 2006, 2021). Interviews with students were predominately conducted in Arabic to enable them to better express their opinions and articulate views through their mother tongue. However, all teachers were interviewed in English. Arabic was used to elicit information from student participants as it would enable students to express themselves more easily and comfortably than English. The transcription was done in Arabic and then translated into English and got checked by a colleague who a professional translator who is Arabic L1 speaker to ensure greater accuracy of translation and there was no translation problems reported.
Braun and Clarke’s (2006, 2021) qualitative analytic method is widely utilised as it provides a theoretically flexible and accessible approach when working with qualitative data. This study utilised this thematic analysis model following the six recommended steps: familiarisation, generation of preliminary codes, identification of themes, review, explicit naming of themes and the writing up stage. Data were scrutinised systematically and discussed with a trusted colleague to meet trustworthiness criteria (Nowell et al., 2017).
To triangulate and corroborate interview data, a total of ten sixty-minute non-participant and overt classroom observations were also conducted in the engineering subject classes at the post-interview stage. Field notes highlighted significant incidents, key words, themes and interactions (Richards, 2003). The main research questions and initial impressions from the interview data were also borne in mind. Despite being inherently subjective and selective in nature (Curdt-Christiansen, 2019), the observations were useful to triangulate the main findings and yield meaningful insights into the live teaching and learning context. An initial departmental meeting and calibration session on conducting classroom observations were scheduled prior to commencing the research (White & Klette, 2024). These measures sought to establish general criteria and mitigate bias. Several ethical measures were considered throughout the study including issues around consent and the anonymity of the participants being assured through assigning pseudonyms to maintain confidentiality (Patton, 2015).
This paper now reports on the findings and elaborates on their implications for EMI in Omani higher education.
Findings and Discussion
RQ 1 highlights two key challenges for students, namely in-class reading and writing tasks and oral communication skills. RQ 2 explores the underlying factors which influence the persistence of these issues: previous learning experiences of students, foundation and post-foundation resources, lack of cooperation and collaboration between EAP and subject-specific professors and staff development needs. Findings draw on data shown in Holi (2018) alongside other data which is shown for the first time in this paper. Findings are discussed in relation of their current significance and considering more recent studies. To guarantee the appropriateness and inter-relatedness of codes, an open coding strategy was adopted to discover any potential issue related to the data. Further, the codes were defined, reviewed, described and re-written to assure their relevance. The table below shows some examples of codes along with their associated sub-codes:
Samples of codes and their related sub-codes.
Source. (Holi, 2018, pp.108–109).
Challenges of In-Class Reading and Writing Tasks
The findings elicited numerous challenges which students face. It became clear during interview sessions with EAP and engineering teachers that in-class reading activities represented a significant difficulty. 11 out of 12 students also highlighted reading as a significant challenge. One student reiteratively referred to the considerable demands engineering textbooks placed on them:
Engineering textbooks are written in a highly complicated technical language. I find this language difficult to understand. Moreover, some of major subjects are very difficult to be understood in English, even the machine manuals and instructions (S5).
The language proficiency gap noted by S5 was also highlighted in comments from S2:
I face some challenges with comprehension in reading regarding understand things, writing them using my own words too (S2).
This would clearly highlight the types of problems students identify as experiencing with not only understanding texts but also paraphrasing them. Challenges can relate to terminology, grammar, and inferring meaning. Despite having addressed these linguistic and academic study challenges at foundation level and through ongoing EAP sessions, insufficient mastery appears to cause ongoing difficulties.
Ten out of twelve students referred to report writing specifically as a challenge, while eight out of twelve alluded to referencing conventions. Handling academic texts in English is undoubtedly regarded as useful for EFL students in EMI programmes (Shen, 2013). The EMI language-related obstacles highlighted through the present research also resonate with other findings from the literature, (i.e., Airey, 2020; Aizawa et al., 2020; Aizawa & Rose, 2020; Alhassan et al., 2021; Basturkmen, 2018; Jones et al., 2022; Kamaşak et al., 2020; Macaro, 2020; Macaro et al., 2018; Soruç et al., 2021, Toh, 2020; Wilkinson, 2013). Previous research indicates that EFL students learning in EMI settings frequently face multiple challenges, limiting their ability to effectively complete writing tasks and adequately cope with the literacy requirements and expectations for their study. Lack of awareness regarding academic referencing conventions can be a serious concern (Pecorari & Petrić, 2014), to which sanctions are attached. Awareness raising and support in enabling students to produce texts, such as reports, which match engineering community standards is thus a considerable task to be shared between engineering and EAP teachers (Green, 2016; Petrić & Harwood, 2013). These challenges and glimpses of how provision has had a positive impact are encapsulated in the following representative quote from an engineering student:
For me report writing is a major problem. After learning and reviewing technical concepts and terms in class, the situation did actually improve though. After all, engineering is all about problem-solving and we must do this in our writing skills too. Also, I have other challenges: selecting and organising ideas, using texts and lectures, referencing correctly. I actually find it easy to write shorter essays but now we write longer ones. (S2).
Engineering teachers corroborated that students face challenges with lab reports and report writing generally. As noted in Holi (2018, pp. 127–129),
students must be acquainted with the writing conventions, register and vocabulary of this genre…students need to be exposed to academic tasks which mirror those which they will be required to write in their discipline of study. Moreover, tasks ought both to enhance learners’ awareness of the distinctive features of the tasks and to help them develop strategies that can be applied in similar future situations.
The students themselves also placed lab reports on the agenda. The following student directly contrasts the seemingly arduous aspects of writing with the practical components of the discipline, which are depicted in more motivating terms:
I experienced difficulties when it comes to writing lab reports especially the structure of the reports. I find it hard composing introductions and conclusions. Analysis and synthesis of information is tough too. I feel the practical parts of the engineering discipline are easier for me than the theoretical parts which I always find challenging. Learning through doing things like experiments and demonstrations really appeals to me. I get motivated operating gadgets and machines and working with numbers. (S3).
Despite the obstacles highlighted, what is encouraging is that the students seem to have a good awareness of the building blocks necessary for achieving success in reading and writing. The problem-solving mindset of the discipline is also a positive feature when addressing the challenges (Pirlo, 2023). Nevertheless, there is still clearly work to do for these students to further develop in their reading and writing discipline-specific work. Research findings from Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) studies can certainly be informative in terms of how language progression alongside subject knowledge can be facilitated (Stander et al., 2022).
In-Class Speaking and Discussion-Related Challenges
In addition to the challenges related to academic writing, students highlighted the difficulties they encountered with English-medium classroom discussions. Communication skills intertwined with cognitive skills appear to reiteratively cause concerns. S1 puts it as follows:
There are several challenges and difficulties that I faced with the English language, namely: how to express myself in English… I feel like I have the ideas but how to say them is a big challenge for me. Moreover, there is difficulty with how to pronounce and understand some technical vocabulary related to engineering (S1).
From the observational data, it was revealed that ‘students’ speaking problems were apparent during classroom sessions when students had to answer questions, give their opinions and discuss the subject at hand. Where public speaking was offered as a post-foundation course, many students still faced difficulties in expressing themselves in English’ (Holi, 2018, pp.129–131). Several of the students used Arabic when working with peers and consulting teachers on in-class activities. Pronunciation and spelling of discipline-specific technical lexis represented another challenge. The following succinctly captures this scenario:
…If I don’t understand anything, I will ask my friends to explain it to me in Arabic but when I check with the teacher, I normally just ask them to explain it in simple English and if the teacher is an Arabic-speaking teacher, I will directly ask him to explain in Arabic (S2).
Corroborating this statement, Arabic use was frequently observed as a coping mechanism among students to facilitate oral activities in classes. Another student also confessed how communication with teachers through English constituted a barrier for them, as demonstrated in the interview extract below:
A big part of learning English is speaking but effective communication with my teachers is a real problem because of my limited speaking abilities (S3).
Classroom observations corroborated how these speaking difficulties are enacted during sessions. Indeed, it was not only students who lacked confidence when communicating with their peers and teachers. The teachers themselves – many from countries such as India or the Philippines whose first language was neither English nor Arabic – code switched between English and Arabic depending on their own linguistic competence and students’ comprehension. Although this was sometime beneficial, overreliance on Arabic appeared to impede some students’ ability to effectively operate in an EMI setting.
One student pointed to the emotional, linguistic and cognitive hurdles experienced in this EMI setting:
I have difficulties in starting discussions or asking questions about classroom-related problems to the teachers in English or even seeking clarification of anything that is not clear for me. I find speaking hard because I am making mistakes in front of my friends and classmates. When it comes to exams, I feel the questions and exam rubrics are a bit unclear for me and I don’t know what to do (S6).
Clearly, it is important to build students’ confidence in the areas mentioned. Classroom observations corroborated use of pidginised English or Arabic when students were struggling to comprehend input. Nevertheless, this may be seen as a form of ‘translanguaging’– using the affordances of bilingualism to overcome communicative obstacles (García, 2009; Ou & Gu, 2024). This is in line with Graham et al. (2021) who note how English is a medium of instruction in a Qatari HEI, but not the only medium of instruction they observed in a Qatari HEI. Wang (2022) in a longitudinal case study of a multi-lingual setting also questioned the ideology behind an English-only policy and produced favourable evidence in support of translanguaging pedagogy. It seems that in Oman, judicious use of translanguaging may well be a useful tool to improve EMI learning.
Key Debilitating Factors: Inadequate Prior Learning Experiences
Unsurprisingly, previous learning backgrounds were reported to be a critical barrier impeding potential future academic successes. 75% (nine out of twelve students) recounted their previous learning experience during foundation and post-foundation stages, noting a more positive impact on subsequent discipline-specific study. However, students unanimously referred less favourably to learning at primary and secondary school. The following quote presents a nuanced view with the English teacher attempting to build students’ confidence. However, the overall effect does not appear to have been successful:
I had a bad experience with English during my school days. My English wasn’t good enough and I couldn’t speak English in front of others. My English teacher was wonderful, and he encouraged us to speak the language without bothering about our mistakes. He was telling us English is neither your first nor your second language and to make a mistake is not a big issue (S9).
Despite the teachers’ reported attempts to instil confidence and motivation, this student goes on to admit that accuracy in English was not adequately addressed and negatively affected their examination grades. Another student outlined their prior English language learning experience as follows:
I did not allocate enough time to English during the entire period of my schooling years. But when we joined the college, we found the situation is quite different from schools. At the college, you must speak in English with the teachers and friends and that was the first shock for me. I was about to quit college due to such unexpected language-related challenges. I started studying English in my school and my English teacher was not a native speaker and speaks with an accent. I couldn’t understand what he was saying as he was speaking only in English. After that, I had a private teacher who taught me the basic grammar rules and structures, and this was useful for me. After joining the college, I started understanding things. (S6).
Four other participants also highlighted resorting to private tuition as a coping strategy to address inadequate learning during school years. S6 noted that their English was improving and that they were eventually able to successfully communicate in English with peers and instructors. However, not all students may have access to private tuition which may lead to inequity in terms of opportunities and outcomes. Chung and Lu’s (2023) study all noted how proficiency prior to entry has a significant impact on outcomes. Therefore, language and study skills support and scaffolding are essential to bridge possible gaps. A socially interactive setting, where fellow students as well as the teacher provide a collaborative learning environment, can provide opportunities to reach the zone of proximal development (ZPD) (Vygotsky & Cole, 1978).
Enculturation: Disciplinary Discourses
Learners acquire specific language skills and the ability to take part in their target discourse communities by opportunities afforded to engage through discipline-specific literacy practices and their associated identities (Ochs, 1986; Prior & Bilbro, 2012). Through this process of language socialisation or enculturation, students can gain greater confidence to use their disciplinary discourses – in this case, engineering. This chimes with Vygotsky and Cole’s (1978) social constructivist framework for academic socialisation. Holi (2018, pp. 35–39) advises, ‘students should be integrated into their academic community and its specialised discourse. Without this integration, students are at a loss as they seek to understand the knowledge being presented to them and function as fully-fledged members of their professional community’. Holi (2018) went on to cite the following example from an engineering teacher which reflects the consequences of a failure to adequately enculturate students with the discipline:
When I discuss certain topics with them …they are not able to visualise things. The technical part, I feel that is the thing they need to improve on. I mean the way they visualise things … they find it very difficult to visualise… for example ‘force’, they understand the meaning, but it is difficult to visualise it. But in terms of technical, e.g., ‘viscosity’, they find it very difficult to grasp because they are not fully immersed in the engineering terms and concepts. For example … they find it very difficult to define. So generally, they look for only a one-word meaning, one word rather than the whole concept (ET 2).
Students were unanimous in identifying the need for technical terminology to become part of the engineering discourse community. One student noted how often they lacked the strategies to address this issue themselves, which contrasts with Sánchez-Pérez (2023) who found significant gains in lexical complexity among EMI students. Even when they looked up a new word in the dictionary, they were unable to adequately follow the definition. To address this issue specifically, scaffolded glossaries may provide support. More broadly, ensuring that a process of academic socialisation and enculturation caters to students’ needs at every stage requires further scrutiny.
Foundation and Post-Foundation Resources
Entering tertiary education, students noted the importance of interventions at foundation and post-foundation stages:
I think the post-foundation courses have been useful for me and particularly in developing my speaking skills. The post-foundation course offers us the opportunity to study general English because the kind of English we study in our engineering lectures is highly technical and it is not useful for our communication and everyday life. But the post-foundation course should be kept in for at least two years to help us practise in English in a friendly environment (S9, cited from Holi, 2018).
Ten out of twelve participants considered post-foundation provision to be worthwhile, notwithstanding some disadvantages. Oral communication skills received positive evaluations and was seen as having a direct impact on their future academic success. Technical writing input was credited with significantly ameliorating quality in terms of academic writing.
While there was consensus on how post-foundation sessions positively influenced their learning, participants rightly noted several flaws:
The post-foundation courses deal with general terms and English which you would hardly encounter during your degree. Reading texts and listening scripts are mostly general, and they deal with some technical issues but not engineering-related issues. I think the best way to help students to be familiar with engineering texts and terms is by introducing them during the foundation and post-foundation levels and this would help them a lot. Additionally, teachers should ask students to choose their presentation topics from themes related to engineering rather than general topics. Public-speaking topics also should be engineering oriented topics and shouldn’t be general. Relevant illustrations, diagrams, and pictures should be used to support presentations (S7).
Clearly, participants have identified how an English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP) method would be more valuable. This is congruent with the findings of Hill, Khoo and Hsieh (2020) who report that undergraduate students in a Singaporean university noted a high degree of academic appropriate skills transfer in their ESAP course for engineering.
EAP and Engineering Teachers: Communication and Collaboration
The question remains as to how EAP courses can be developed with greater subject specificity. Subject-specific staff are increasingly seen as playing a role in this process (Pawan & Ortloff, 2011). However, participants did not always see the direct connection between EAP materials and subject materials and were unaware of any collaboration between the two departments. Closer collaboration, it is argued, could generate a strong intervention to support students with a genre-specific language learning intervention. As asserted in Holi (2018, p. 141), ‘although a complete lack of communication and cooperation between EAP teachers and engineering tutors would be indefensible in an English-medium context, it seems that this sustained and meaningful cooperation rarely exists’. An EAP tutor confirms this phenomenon:
Unfortunately, I would say there is no communication or cooperation. Last semester, I think one year ago I taught Technical Writing, and I found a lot of engineering terms, engineering stuff there. And I felt like I would need to sit with engineering teachers in the department to see which of these are important for our students and which are not. But because of the pressure at that time, we didn’t have time to do that (EAP T3).
This lack of communication, both formal and informal, between the EAP and engineering department is unfortunate and contrasts with Eriksson (2018), who noted that for constructive alignment to occur between the course objectives attainment and the students’ needs and abilities, collaboration between EAP and discipline-specific experts is crucial. Dudley-Evans and St John (1998) go even further to suggest that some form of team teaching is optimal. However, the engineering department also illustrate that even minimal interaction between the two teams fails to occur:
We don’t have any contact or interaction with the English Language Centre or their teachers. This is because most of the students start the study of the core subjects in their first-year level, they come, they take their class, and then, they go out. So, we don’t have any sort of interactive meetings, cooperation or communication with the English Language Centre, or anything of that sort (Eng. T4).
When probed further on the matter, all parties expressed a view that more collaboration and cooperation would be beneficial to departments and students. It was a widely held view that the University ought to initiate a formal committee or process by which this can take place. This practice is also supported by Bond (2020) who advocates increased collaboration and visibility of EAP within universities so that language issues are addressed.
EMI Staff Development for Engineering Teachers
It is not only incumbent upon EAP teachers to improve students’ academic literacy; subject specialists also have a role to play. Offering staff development opportunities to subject specialists on EMI pedagogies has been reiteratively seen as a key theme throughout this study. The teachers themselves have also highlighted how useful this intervention would be in the Omani context so that advice on how to support with cognitive challenges, intertwining both language and content, could be addressed. Development opportunities for engineering teachers should incorporate what Young et al. (1995), cited in Fisher and Webb (2006, p. 343), refer to as dimensions relevant to as needs for teachers of the future. These dimensions include knowledge in terms of curriculum, learner-centredness, the inter-professional, organisational and connective knowledge (making connections to related disciplines). Staff development which addresses this agenda would empower teachers to better cater for their students in the EMI context.
Indeed, it is not only students that have problems. Teachers do, too, as an engineering teacher stated:
English is a second language for me, but I think my English is generally good as I had schooling and tertiary education in English. However, I feel I am not trained enough on how to teach content through English. I think I need some pedagogical training on the approaches of how to teach engineering (Eng. T5).
Development opportunities could nonetheless enhance the skills of teachers at all career stages and levels of experience. Another engineering lecturer conceded:
…actually, we do need training on EMI methodology and approaches because knowing the content and English is not enough. Training would be useful for us as the successful delivery of content may be influenced by the language competency of the content instructor and his teaching approaches, strategies and techniques (Eng. T3).
As per Holi (2018, pp.24–25), ‘EMI policies need to be designed, articulated and implemented with the awareness that there are complex dynamics involving general language proficiency, as well as domain-specific vocabulary and oral and written conventions’. The synergy between language and content carves out an important role for EAP specialists and thus scope for partnerships between EAP and subject teachers (Huang & Wible, 2024).
In sum, this research has identified how participants faced numerous challenges related to EMI engineering learning in academic reading and writing, oral skills, subject-specific lexis and overall understanding. Weaknesses stemming from previous learning contexts were also reported to exacerbate participants’ ongoing learning difficulties. The results appear to be in line with related literature (Alhassan, 2019; Al-Mashikhi, 2014; Belhiah & Elham, 2015; Çankaya, 2017; Chang, 2010; Chuang, 2015; Ekoç, 2020; Evans & Morrison, 2011; Floris, 2014; Goodman, 2014; Holi, 2018; Holi, 2020; King, 2014; Ryhan, 2014; Shamim et al., 2016; Tamtam et al., 2013; Tatzl, 2011; Troudi & Jendli, 2011; Vu, 2014; Wilkinson, 2013), in that students experienced an array of in-class challenges related to the use of EMI in their discipline. According to Kachru’s (1985) ‘concentric circles’, English can be studied in institutions in the ‘inner circle’ (e.g., Australia, Canada, UK), the ‘outer circle’ (e.g., Nigeria, Pakistan) or the ‘expanding circle’ where countries like Oman use English as an international language (Siddiqui & Saha, 2020). To ensure that Omani engineering students can firmly establish their place as professionals on the global stage and fulfil their potential, the research has pointed to some key areas in which EMI provision must be improved.
Conclusions and Implications
To address the difficulties related to EMI delivery in Omani engineering education, the key contribution of the study was to provide an in-depth understanding is necessary regarding the factors creating barriers to students’ university success. According to the findings of this study, most participants considered that (poor) previous learning background constituted a major inhibiting aspect in their present EMI learning. Moreover, insufficient enculturation and socialisation into engineering discipline-specific discourse and genre was noted. This represented a considerable hurdle in terms of literacy skills, namely, reading and writing. However, positive affordances of translanguaging were also noted as creative ways for students to overcome these hurdles through leveraging the benefits of their bilingualism. Overall, early intervention to improve EMI implementation in schools was shown to be needed, alongside ongoing targeted interventions to equip learners at the foundation and post-foundation stages (Murray & Nallaya, 2016). To achieve the latter, it was emphasised that collaboration, cooperation and team-teaching opportunities between EAP and subject specialists need to be taken up. Barron (2003) suggests problem-based learning (PBL) and task-based learning (TBL) as guiding approaches when subject teachers and EAP teachers set up tasks and collaborate. Subject specialists should become more involved in staff development to become expert EMI teachers, while EAP teachers need to step up to become ESAP practitioners, with expertise in the language dimension of the disciplinary content.
In the EMI classroom, Vygotsky and Cole’s social constructivist framework has been viewed in this study as desirable. Likewise, cooperation, collaboration and team-teaching would also crystalise Vygotsky and Cole’s (1978) theory in practice: effective learning stems from meaningful socializing and interaction between individuals who have a range of skills and expertise. This closer cooperation and collaboration embedded EAP support; the importance of language is made visible by ongoing EAP or ESAP support (Bond, 2020; Lea & Street, 1998; Wingate & Tribble, 2012). The case has been made to strengthen EMI provision for engineering students with a problem-solving and confidence-building dynamic (Pirlo, 2023). While this study has focused on one department in one Omani university, some findings may well resonate with other EAP learning environments across the globe. Future research should focus on ascertaining how successful any interventions are in improving EMI. More qualitative and quantitative data is needed to further enhance understandings of successful practices and processes, as well as their outcomes. Here are some specific implications for each stakeholder to take into consideration: policymakers need to improve EMI through ongoing reform/teacher training in primary, secondary and tertiary education as has been laid out in Vision 2040. Students need to focus on technical vocabulary and writing conventions from an earlier stage of their studies. Additionally, EAP teachers and language centres need to aim at greater specificity in language subjects and collaborate with subject specialists; this could impact their professional development, too. To improve the overall learning experience of engineering students in EMI programs, the General Foundation Program’s curriculum ought to focus on ESP and EAP to scaffold EMI better; the General English courses have not been doing this, and students have been struggling more than they should because of it. More focus on implementing social constructivist models which progressively improve students’ Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) would be beneficial.
These findings of the study are significant as they illustrated the in-class challenges experienced by Omani engineering students and the contributing factors. However, it did not consider employers, engineering graduates and industry professionals whose voice would have further enriched understandings. Recent innovations such as the advent of ChatGPT and its impact on teaching and learning should also be included in future studies. Although the study highlighted some gaps where students’ prior learning is insufficient, an in-depth investigation of prior learning and course preparedness was beyond the focus of this study. More longitudinal studies may also consider how students’ and teachers’ understandings evolve over time. Additionally, this study highlighted many pedagogical implications for improving the uses and policies of EMI in EFL contexts. Moreover, the findings might help teachers, practitioners and decision-makers in improving engineering education. The present study findings may contribute to the development of instructional materials that cater for assisting engineering professors to better deliver their content through the medium of English. This could also help students to navigate their EMI-related challenges more effectively and purposefully. The findings can be impactful by promoting the use of EMI in engineering and science-related education as they raise EAP teachers’ and engineering teachers’ awareness about their students’ difficulties and challenges in their EMI programmes and how best to adopt teaching materials and coping strategies to handle their students’ learning difficulties and problems. Ultimately, the current study adds to the existing EMI-related literature, and more specifically, to in-class EMI challenges in the Arabian Gulf region.
This study is not without limitations. For instance, the small-scale nature of the findings from this case study might also limit their generalizability but can nonetheless be illuminative for a range of HEI contexts and transferable to other similar contexts which seek to address these perennials yet constantly evolving challenges. Another limitation is that the study centred on a specific case within a single college, one of seven colleges of technology in, Oman, which may impede generalisation, though it may give insight into, and this has the potential to be transferable and applicable to other similar settings. Moreover, present study did not consider non-language-related challenges encountered by students which could impact on students’ learning experiences and academic performance. Considering such non-language-related challenges could have given more insights into students’ difficulties and challenges by studying through the English. Nevertheless, the major contribution to the field has been piecing together and making visible numerous perspectives of students, EAP teachers and engineering teachers on the challenges in their context. Empowered with such understandings, it is then possible to take steps in effecting significant and positive change.
Footnotes
Ethical Considerations
The Ethics Review Committee at Al Musanna College of Technology (ACT), Oman approved my interviews to gain access and permission.
Consent to Participate
All respondents were given written consent for review and signature before starting interviews.
Funding
The author received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.