The Secret Life of English-Medium Instruction: Setting the scene

Abstract

This chapter begins with general background information about this edited short-form book on English-medium instruction (EMI) in action. It discusses the research project that Chapters 2–5 are based on, in particular its development and its main aims. The project and the book are then situated with regard to previous studies of EMI in higher education (HE) in a range of contexts, and the unique features of the research discussed in the book are highlighted, including how it explores the secret life of EMI in a multilingual southern European setting. In the remainder of the chapter, further background information for the remaining five chapters is provided. First, there is an examination of the interrelated processes of internationalization and Englishisation in HE as the general backdrop to the adoption of EMI. This is followed by a discussion of how the term EMI may be understood and how this understanding relates to a more recent coinage, EME (English-medium education). These considerations are followed by background information about the two research sites focused on in the book – the Universitat de Lleida (UdL) and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC). The chapter ends with a short summary of Chapters 2–5.