The Influence of English Medium Instruction on Saudi Students’ Academic Outcomes: A Mixed-Methods Analysis of Language Proficiency, Learning Strategies, and Disciplinary Knowledge

Influence of English Language Proficiency on Subject Matter Comprehension and Academic Performance among Diploma Students in Tanzania. A Case of the Institute of Adult Education

English language proficiency plays a critical role in facilitating learning in English-Medium Instruction (EMI) settings, yet many students in Tanzanian higher education institutions continue to experience challenges in comprehending academic content delivered through English. This study examined the relationship between English language proficiency, subject matter comprehension, and academic performance among diploma students at the Institute of Adult Education (IAE), Tanzania. Guided by the Sociocultural Theory and García's Translanguaging Theory, the study employed a convergent mixed-methods design involving 377 participants, comprising 334 diploma students, 32 lecturers, seven examination officers, and four quality assurance officers. Quantitative data were collected using questionnaires and an English Language Proficiency (ELP) test, while qualitative data were obtained through semi-structured interviews. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation, and regression analysis, whereas qualitative data were analysed thematically. The findings revealed significant positive relationships between English language proficiency and subject matter comprehension (r = .641, p < .001) and academic performance (r = .513, p < .001). Qualitative findings further demonstrated that students with stronger English language skills understood lectures more effectively, participated more actively in classroom discussions, and performed better in academic assessments. The study concludes that English language proficiency is an important determinant of both subject matter comprehension and academic performance among diploma students. It recommends strengthening institutional English language support programmes, promoting learner-centred pedagogical approaches, and strategically integrating Kiswahili to enhance comprehension without undermining English language development

Exploring Diploma Students' Perceptions of English as the Medium of Instruction: A Case of the Institute of Adult Education

English remains the official medium of instruction in higher education institutions in Tanzania despite persistent concerns about students' ability to learn effectively through the language. This study explored diploma students' perceptions of English as the medium of instruction at the Institute of Adult Education. Specifically, the study examined students' confidence in using English, comprehension of academic content, and overall perceptions of English as the medium of instruction. The study adopted a quantitative research approach employing a descriptive survey research design. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire administered to 377 diploma students selected through simple random sampling. The collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations) with the aid of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings revealed that students generally held positive perceptions of English as the medium of instruction, recognising its importance for academic learning, access to educational resources, and future career opportunities. However, respondents also reported challenges related to classroom participation, oral communication, and understanding specialised academic vocabulary. The study concludes that although English remains an appropriate medium of instruction in higher education, institutions should strengthen academic English support programmes and promote learner-centred instructional approaches to enhance students' confidence, comprehension, and overall learning experiences.

Improving Female Students' Descriptive Writing Skills Through the Microselection Learning Strategy: A Classroom Action Research Study

Writing in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) represents one of the most demanding competencies for Indonesian junior high school students, particularly those enrolled in Islamic boarding schools (pesantren) where instructional time is constrained by dual academic and religious curricula. This study examined the effectiveness of the Microselection Learning Strategy in improving descriptive text writing skills among ninth-grade female students at Khoirotul Usroh Islamic Boarding School, Stabat, Langkat Regency, North Sumatra, Indonesia. A Classroom Action Research (CAR) design based on the Kemmis and McTaggart cyclical model was employed across two cycles over five weeks, involving all 36 female students as participants through a saturated sampling technique. Data were collected using pre-tests and post-tests evaluated with a five-dimension rubric (title, identification, description, vocabulary, and closing), supplemented by observation sheets, semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and documentation. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive percentage statistics; qualitative data followed Miles and Huberman's reduction–display–conclusion framework. Results showed a dramatic improvement in classical mastery: from 13.89% in the pre-test to 50.00% after Cycle I, and reaching 100.00% at the conclusion of Cycle II. The class mean score rose from approximately 46.9 to 87.1 points. Qualitative findings corroborated these gains, documenting improvements in vocabulary selection, sentence cohesion, paragraph organisation, and student confidence. The Microselection strategy proved highly effective as a scaffolded, cognitive-theory-grounded approach to EFL writing instruction in a boarding school context.

Performing English, Learning Bilingually: The Institutional Promise–Practice Paradox of EMI in Bangladeshi Tertiary Education

English-medium instruction (EMI) has expanded across Bangladeshi higher education as a marker of academic quality, internationalisation, and graduate employability. Yet the institutional promotion of English does not necessarily translate into sustained English-medium classroom interaction or improved opportunities for students’ language development. This qualitative multiple-case study examines how EMI is interpreted, negotiated, and enacted across three private universities in Bangladesh. Data were generated through semi-structured interviews with six teachers of content-oriented English-department courses and 18 final-year undergraduate students, three student focus-group discussions, and three classroom observations. The dataset was analysed using reflexive thematic analysis, supported by iterative coding, memo writing, within-case analysis, and cross-case comparison. Findings indicate that EMI functioned less as a stable English-only instructional model than as a negotiated bilingual practice shaped by uneven English proficiency, time constraints, and institutional expectations. Teachers used Bangla to clarify difficult concepts, sustain interaction, and support comprehension, while students valued English for its academic and professional benefits but often experienced English-only instruction as limiting confidence, participation, and access to disciplinary knowledge. Bilingual mediation, however, rarely formed part of a systematic approach to academic-English development. The central tension therefore lies not simply in teachers’ departure from English-only instruction, but in universities’ expectation that EMI will deliver both disciplinary learning and English proficiency without adequate linguistic, pedagogical, and assessment support. Conceptualising this tension as the EMI institutional promise–practice paradox, the study argues for a linguistically responsive model that combines planned bilingual scaffolding, explicit disciplinary-language development, language-sensitive assessment, and sustained teacher support. By showing how bilingual mediation both sustains and complicates EMI, the study contributes to debates on multilingual pedagogy, linguistic equity, and institutional responsibility in multilingual higher education.

Exploring Moroccan Public Secondary School Teachers’ Perceptions of the Effectiveness of English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI)

English-medium instruction and intercultural competence in Brazil: insights from a public university

This study examines how lecturers in a Brazilian public university perceive English-medium instruction (EMI) and the development of intercultural competence (IC) within their teaching. It aims to understand the importance they assign to IC, the challenges they encounter and the types of institutional support they consider necessary for integrating IC into EMI. This study draws on data from an online questionnaire completed by 31 lecturers across multiple disciplinary fields. Closed-ended items generated descriptive statistics on language use and proficiency, while open-ended responses underwent qualitative content analysis, combining deductive and inductive coding procedures. The instrument was part of a larger project that collected comparable data in Brazil and Portugal. EMI use was selective and concentrated in course materials, readings and slides rather than full English-medium course delivery. Lecturers identified insufficient English proficiency, lack of training, limited institutional policies and restricted opportunities for intercultural exposure as major barriers. They viewed IC as a multidimensional competence encompassing educational, social and professional dimensions. Participants emphasized the need for continuous pedagogical training, sustained language support and institutional recognition of EMI- and IC-related work. Findings highlight the urgency of coordinated institutional policies, integrated EMI–IC professional development, expanded language support and opportunities for intercultural engagement to sustain EMI initiatives in Brazilian higher education. This study provides one of the few empirical examinations of how Brazilian lecturers conceptualize IC within EMI practice. It offers context-specific insights into how structural inequalities and limited institutional frameworks shape EMI adoption in public, tuition-free systems.