Lecturer language: EMI students' experiences on first- and second-cycle degrees

Abstract

Previous research has long focussed on EMI lecturers' English usage as an aspect which might affect lecture comprehension. Fewer studies have directly questioned EMI students about how their lecturers' language competence affects their experiences in the classroom, and while many studies have focused on postgraduate students, less has been said about undergraduates. We aim to provide further insight into students' views of EMI lecturer discourse by comparing the experiences of undergraduate and postgraduate students, both local and international, at an Italian university. Data for this study were collected from an online semi-structured survey of 128 students. Findings indicated that it is students' past experience of English-taught courses as well as their familiarity with non-native English accented speech that influences students' opinion of EMI lecturers' language performance and their assessment of intelligibility in the classroom. The findings will serve to highlight difficulties and critical points for further development and pedagogical application.