Success in higher education relates in part to competence in the medium of instruction. But the academic literacy literature provides compelling evidence that competence in the medium of instruction is insufficient to ensure success. Crucially, students need to take on the literacy practices of the discipline or field. This study offers a thematic…

This qualitative study examines Chinese returnee scholars' language practices in teaching and research and their identity construction during their early career years. Using interviews and drawing upon poststructuralist identity theory, it examines the adaptations of twelve Chinese bilingual returnee scholars to new academic communities in English…

Since its inception in the early 1960s, English for specific purposes (ESP) has been characterised as a materials-driven and a teacher-led movement. Distinctively separated from general English teaching, ESP teachers often function as designers and implementers in curriculum development. Attaining a certain degree of disciplinary expertise is the…

Listening to academic lectures in a second language (L2) can be a daunting task, as the listener faces various challenges related to processing the speech stream, prioritizing the importance of information, and deciding when, where and how to take notes. A host of factors can contribute to student comfort in and ability to take "good"…

Studies on feedback given to second language (L2) learners have focused primarily on learners' response to feedback on language. This study explores how L2 learners in one university EAP class respond to teacher written feedback on all aspects of writing and the factors that may affect their response. Using data from student initial and revised…

Accurate description of language use is central to English for academic purposes (EAP) practice. Thanks to the development of corpus tools, it has been possible to undertake systematic studies of language in academic contexts. This line of research aims to provide detailed and accurate characterization of academic communication and to ultimately…

This systematic review aims to document, analyze and synthesize the latest research related to reflective teaching and professional development in pre-service English teachers. The reasoning behind this review is to substantiate that acquiring a reflective teaching practice can be the best alternative for novice teachers to open their minds,…

OpenCourseWare (OCW) and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have gained increasing popularity and importance because they greatly expand students' access to university lectures. Although the main component of OCW and MOOC platforms is lectures, their differences may potentially affect the difficulty of academic listening comprehension. This study…

This study, the first of the kind in the field of English for specific purposes, examined direct and indirect relationships among English language proficiency, English public speaking (EPS) motivation, motivational intensity, self-efficacy, and EPS achievement. The sample consisted of 189 non-English-major students. The final structural equation…

This paper examines the role of metacognitive awareness in academic writing in a mixed-method study. In addition to validating an instrument assessing metacognitive knowledge and strategies in the context of academic writing, the study uncovered how Chinese multilingual students' metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive strategies, and metacognitive…

For some time, academics have reported the increasing complexity and demands of work (Clegg, S. 2008. "Academic Identities Under Threat?" "British Educational Research Journal" 34 (3): 329-345. https://doi.org/10.1080/01411920701532269), including the difficulty of gaining permanence (Taylor, A. 2018. "Scientists Don't…

A considerable body of work now exists on the role that identity plays in understanding teachers and teaching. Developing and sustaining teacher identities in higher education can, however, be challenging given the subordinate positioning of teaching in some educational contexts. Despite the growth of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) programmes…

This study explored words in materials science research articles using New Academic Word List (NAWL) and New General Service List (NGSL) created by Browne at al. (2013) as reference lists. The objectives of this research were to explore the frequency and coverage of the NAWL and the NGSL in materials science research articles and identify…

English-medium instruction (EMI) has been increasingly used in higher education institutions worldwide, and therefore the collaboration between English for academic purposes (EAP) teachers and subject teachers is highly needed for the successful alignment of the EAP and subject content courses in EMI contexts. This article explores the views and…

Many countries in the world have regarded the cultivation of learner autonomy as one of the important goals of language teaching. During the past fifty years, researchers and scholars have explored the connotations of learner autonomy, and carried out some empirical researches in different contexts. There are more and more researches on learner…