CHALLENGES FACED BY STUDENTS IN ENGLISH MEDIUM UNDERGRADUATE CLASSES: AN EXPERIENCE OF A YOUNG UNIVERSITY IN SRI LANKA

Abstract

This study looks into the challenges faced by the students in English Medium undergraduate classes of a Sri Lankan university where English is taught as a Second Language. Though theoretically EMI was introduced with a view to enhancing the English proficiency of the students, the desired outcome has been a question. Students at tertiary level EMI classes face many challenges to develop language proficiency while coping with their academic studies. A higher language proficiency, it is envisaged, would lead to a successful academic study in English medium, while the latter could also be a platform for language development. This study, which was conducted among a group of students who were already identified as weaker in their English proficiency, revealed that those students have several issues concerning their language proficiency, which in turn, hamper their learning of content subjects. The findings of this study was used to provide additional language support for the students.