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TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR THE
INTEGRATION OF CONTENT AND LANGUAGE IN HIGHER
EDUCATION
Edited by Mª Noelia Ruiz-Madrid & Inmaculada Fortanet-Gómez
Routledge, 2024
DOI: https://doi.10.26754/ojs_misc/mj.202511136
FLOR DE LIS GONZÁLEZ-MUJICO
Universidade da Coruña
flor.gonzalez.mujico@udc.es
<https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9027-3798>
The rise of content subjects taught in English as an additional language is one of
the most significant linguistic phenomena in contemporary higher education
(Macaro et al. 2018). The implementation and teaching of integrated content and
language in higher education (ICLHE) or English as a medium of instruction
(EMI) entails myriad interrelated factors that pivot on student-centred learning,
from learners’ language and subject-matter needs to the design of context- and
language-specific materials. For this reason, training lecturers to teach learners in
an additional language in higher education remains a challenge for the profession.
Specifically, there is a need to focus on language and pedagogy in a much more
integrated manner in these teacher-training programmes (Dimova et al. 2023;
Lasagabaster 2022).
María Noelia Ruiz-Madrid and Inmaculada Fortanet-Gómez’s book addresses
this contemporary challenge and need by compiling innovative work by different
researchers in Europe (Austria, Finland, Italy and Spain) on how universities,
researchers and practitioners are engaging with the issue and developing ICLHE
teacher training from a linguistic and pedagogical perspective. These contributions
shed new light on a range of issues that play a fundamental role when designing
effective ICLHE professional development. Every chapter furnishes novel data,
reflections and implications that serve to inform future ICLHE teacher-training
programmes. The main objective of the volume is to elucidate the key factors that
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afford a learner-centred, interactive approach to the design of effective ICLHE
teacher-training proposals. Chapters included in the volume, along with teaching
resources and/or research instruments used in the studies presented in the
chapters, will be of interest to academics, researchers and advanced students of
education and teacher-training research and practice.
The edited volume comprises nine chapters that report on the qualitative aspects
of ICLHE professional development. The interchangeable use of EMI and EME
(English-medium education) is supported by the authors throughout the book.
To begin with, Ruiz-Madrid and Fortanet-Gómez provide a brief overview of the
relevance of teacher training in ICLHE (Chapter 1). They outline how the volume
offers a comprehensive view on teacher training from a fine-grained perspective
based on three fundamental features. The first relates to language, considered the
most important aspect in ICLHE teachers’ pedagogical development. The second
concerns the spoken academic discourse of experienced ICLHE lecturers to
specific language-awareness training. The third examines the fundamental role of
identity and the stance of lecturers in effective teacher-development programmes.
The chapter ends with the caveat that more research is still needed, namely, to
identify how specific discourse and pedagogy can be combined to raise language
awareness among ICLHE professionals.
In Chapter 2, Elena Borsetto explores longitudinally the language needs and
difficulties of teachers and administrative staff at the Ca’ Foscari University of
Venice. Her findings expand upon the dichotomy between northern and southern
European countries concerning language proficiency, especially when teaching
and/or interacting with international students and teachers. Her observations
identify significant differences between the linguistic needs of administrative
staff and teachers. Borsetto’s final reflections underscore the pivotal role of
pronunciation and enunciation, forms and function of language, context-specific
vocabulary and register in ICLHE teacher training.
In Chapter 3, Miia Konttinen investigates curriculum and its implementation in
EME. From the outset, the chapter argues for a backward design that starts from
the desired learning outcomes, connecting EME to the student’s learning rather
than the teacher’s language skills. To understand how EME teachers actually
teach and why they have resorted to particular teaching methods, the chapter
offers insights from experienced EME teachers in Finnish master’s programmes.
The study’s findings accentuate the negative impact of individualism, teacher-
centredness and content-driven objectives. In response, the chapter proposes that
EME teacher training combine the use of backward design (i.e. teachers’
reflections on their teaching philosophy and practice with backward design) and
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the notion of community of practice (Wenger 1998, i.e. dialogue to question and
enhance each other’s understanding of EME and to share best practices in teacher
training).
In Chapter 4, Teresa Morell, Marian Aleson-Carbonell and Pilar Escabias-Lloret
provide evidence of the benefits of the longitudinal design and implementation of
the Prof-teaching EMI professional development programme at the University of
Alicante, Spain. The chapter begins by underscoring the lack of consensus among
universities on the content and structure of EMI teacher training in response to
pedagogical and linguistic needs. The demands expressed in surveys administered
in previous EMI workshops and university-wide polls on attitudes towards EMI
and teacher training are used as a springboard to develop the study’s three-
module comprehensive teacher-training programme. The data collected sheds
light on how Prof-teaching course participants feel about learning new
methodologies, applying innovative tools and developing speaking skills. Final
evaluations highlight the robustness of combining a digital, linguistic and
pedagogical approach in EMI teacher training. The benefits of putting into
practice what participants have learned, discipline-specific peer observation and
EMI lecturer accreditation are also brought to the fore.
In Chapter 5, Lynn Mastellotto and Renata Zanin outline how the Free University
of Bolzano has responded to the need for improved language competences
through teacher training for multilingual schools in South Tyrol. The chapter
provides a detailed picture of a linguistic landscape that does not support
multilingualism despite the co-existence of various official languages. The study
presents a customised instrument (i.e. Language Input Observation Scheme –
LIOS I) to measure the quality of teachers’ language input and interactions in
second-language instruction in English and German. Preliminary results are
presented on the ability of LIOS I to raise awareness in teaching practice through
language, self-reflection, peer observation and feedback strategies.
In Chapter 6, Ada Bier examines the construct of the language-teaching
methodology interface (LTMI). The study delves into the inherent link between
language and teaching methodology in an Italian higher education EMI
context. Assuming the LTMI can be characterised by the co-existence of a
practical (observable) and a cognitive (hidden) element, the chapter includes an
in-depth analysis of observed lectures and interviews to examine the interplay
between the use of pragmatic strategies and deviations from standard at the
morphosyntax level in EMI lecturing. Findings report on the blurred boundaries
between language and teaching methodology. Positive and negative EMI
outcomes are linked to the presence or absence of three key aspects: pedagogical
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knowledge; language proficiency; and/or awareness of language and subject-
specific literacy.
In Chapter 7, Alexandra Vraciu and Hortènsia Curell reinforce the relevance of
research-informed EMI teacher-training programmes dealing with discipline-
specific language awareness. The study explores discourse characteristics and
strategies in native versus non-native EMI lecturer input that foster students’
comprehension and output production at a Catalan university in Spain. Findings
are categorised based on whether the discourse and strategies identified support
comprehensible input or output. Redundancy, explicitness, orality,
comprehension checks and pre-emptive focus on form are examined from the
viewpoint of comprehensible input, while promotion and reaction are analysed
in terms of output. While key findings emphasise the nuanced nature of
lecturing, the study finds widespread reticence in terms of participation and
interaction. In their final reflections, the authors recommend that teacher-
training programmes be tailored to increase content lecturers’ L2 awareness in
the planning and implementation of EMI.
In Chapter 8, Francesca Costa and Olivia Mair examine the effects of raising
teachers’ awareness during training offered on the multimodal affordances of
EMI lecture discourse in Italy. A panoramic view of English-taught programmes
in Italian universities is provided to stress the need for lecturers to engage in
professional development that benefits comprehensibility. The chapter extends
beyond the boundaries of English and tackles the dearth of multimodal discourse
analysis in EMI teacher training. The study analyses a professional development
course for lecturers in a Northern Italian university from a multimodal and
pronunciation lens. Findings underline the determining effects of phonological
inaccuracy, accentedness and multimodal competence in meaning-making
practices. The chapter illustrates how multimodal features (i.e. gestures, gaze,
posture, facial expression, paralanguage, slide content) and pronunciation play a
key role in EMI knowledge construction.
Lastly, in Chapter 9, Marta Aguilar-Pérez and Sarah Khan compare the
metadiscourse of a lecturer teaching in their L1 (i.e. Catalan) and EMI starting
with a brief review of the many definitions and taxonomies of metadiscourse.
After which, the chapter focusses on metadiscourse as an effective way to analyse
how L1 and EMI lecturers engage with the subject matter and their audience, in
addition to how effective use of metadiscourse can benefit EMI students. Findings
from a mixed-methods exploratory study yield distinct differences regarding
speech rate, metadiscourse and audience interaction based on language of
instruction and the complexity of the lecture. An elaborate discussion is offered
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on whether the complexity of the lecture’s content or the language of instruction
has more influence over the use of metadiscourse. The chapter ends with some
recommendations on the need for further examination with larger corpora that
extends to the impact of discipline, expertise, methodological approach and
student performance.
Indeed, the book addresses timely issues in ICLHE teacher training, such as
integrating content and language in a more student-centred manner, applying
effective multimodal, metadiscursive and multilingual strategies, as well as
supporting academic staff and lecturers in internationalised university settings,
with a specific emphasis on case studies that inform future ICLHE teacher-
training research and practice. A particularly welcome feature is the empirical
design and successful implementation of innovative instruments and interventions
such as the LTMI and the Prof-teaching EMI teacher-training programme,
which can be further tested and applied to a broad range of ICLHE contexts.
Additionally, the implications for the future design of teacher-training
programmes are drawn on a chapter-by-chapter basis, with clearly detailed
recommendations. That said, the organisation of chapters in the volume could
have been divided into sections to more clearly convey the three main themes the
volume appears to tackle. In other words, the role of language in ICLHE teacher-
training programmes and the relevance of research-based curricula (chapters 2, 5,
6 and 7); the design and implementation of ICLHE professional development
programmes in specific contexts (chapters 3 and 4); and the characteristics of
teachers’ lecturing discourse (chapters 8 and 9). Ultimately, the ensemble of
chapters provides a set of pragmatic responses to real challenges faced by ICLHE
teacher-training professionals in a range of teaching contexts in Europe from a
grassroots perspective. Although our understanding of how discourse and
pedagogy can be integrated effectively to raise language awareness among ICLHE
professionals requires further analyses, the findings presented in the volume
provide fertile future lines of research that should be explored.
Works Cited
DIMOVA, Slobodanka, KLING, Joyce and MARGI
ć
, Branka Drlja
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a (eds.). 2023. EMI Classroom
Communication: A Corpus-based Approach. Taylor & Francis.
LASAGABASTER, David. 2022. Teacher Preparedness for English-medium Instruction. Journal of
English-Medium Instruction 1(1): 48-64. <https://doi.org/10.1075/jemi.21011.las>.
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MACARO, Ernesto, Samantha, CURLE, Jack, PUN, Jiangshan, AN and Julie DEARDEN. 2018. A
Systematic Review of English Medium Instruction in Higher Education. Language Teaching
51(1): 36-76. <https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444817000350>.
wENGER, Etienne. 1998. Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity. Cambridge
U . P.
Received: 17/10/2024
Accepted: 06/03/2025
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
