Languages+ Internationalisation and the multilingual university
The growth in English Medium Instruction (EMI) outside the English speaking countries (Wächter & Maiworm 2014) as well as the increase in non-L1 speakers in English-dominant settings is one of the very conspicuous outcomes of higher education internationalisation efforts today. Lecturers and students teach and learn through a language other than their own first language, which has led university leaders and other key actors to believe that issues arising from this situation are a question of language capabilities only. It is not. With different language backgrounds come different ethnic, cultural and educational backgrounds that have wide implications for what happens in the learning space or classroom.
Based on the outcomes of the IntlUni Erasmus Academic Network (Lauridsen & Lillemose 2015) and other sources, this keynote will address the opportunities and challenges of multilingual and multicultural learning spaces and explore initiatives that may improve the quality of teaching and learning in such spaces.
Lauridsen, K.M. & Lillemose, M.K. (eds) (2015). Opportunities and challenges in the multilingual and multicultural learning space. Final document of the IntlUni Erasmus Academic Network project 2012-15. Aarhus: IntlUni. http://intluni.eu/uploads/media/The_opportunities_and_challenges_of_the_MMLS_Final_report_sept_2015.pdf
Wächter, B. & Maiworm, F. (eds). (2014). English-Taught Programmes in European Higher Education. The State of Play in 2014. Bonn: Lemmens.
View Lauridsen_slides
Listen to keynote here. Mac users please cut and paste link into Google Chrome.
The Multilingual University 