Description: English Medium Instruction (EMI) is a burgeoning field of interest for researchers and practitioners; however, to date its sociocultural and political implications have not been widely considered. This book addresses that concern by situating EMI within wider sociopolitical contexts of knowledge and language. It foregrounds the notion of 'Critical EMI, ' bringing together applied linguists to revisit EMI in higher education from critical sociocultural perspectives. The notion of criticality is conceptualized as an attempt at addressing issues of ideology, policy, identity, social justice, and the politics of English. The chapters explore Critical EMI concerns in diverse settings across five continents, and present insights for the theory, research, policy, and practice of EMI. The book also problematizes the neocolonial spread and dominance of English through EMI. Calling for an explicit and inclusive EMI praxis, it is essential reading for researchers of applied linguistics and English language education, as well as teacher practitioners.
Brief description: Seyyed-Abdolhamid Mirhosseini is an Associate Professor at The University of Hong Kong. His main research area is the sociopolitics of language education. His notable publications include Worldwide English Language Education Today: Ideologies, Policies and Practices (co-edited with Al-Issa, 2020), and Doing Qualitative Research in Language Education (2020).
Review Quotes: 'This extremely interesting collection of chapters focuses on EMI in a range of contexts and stands out from a crowded market with the explicit aim to be critical as opposed to simply analytical, descriptive or even celebratory. Each chapter is a highly readable account of the author's research, drawing on an array of ethnographic approaches, data collection methods and analytical techniques. An essential read for anyone interested in examining EMI critically.' David Block, Honorary Professor in Sociolinguistics, Universitat Pompeu Fabra