Diane Pecorari

Professor Diane Pecorari, currently Head of Department of English, City University of
Hong Kong, works within the area of English Applied Linguistics. Her research has investigated aspects of English for academic purposes and second-language writing, (including source use and plagiarism), and the widespread and growing phenomenon of English medium instruction. She has taught courses in linguistics, academic writing and professional communication. In addition, she has designed and taught professional skills development courses for university teacher who want to work pedagogically with questions such as how to work against plagiarism, how to promote students’ writing skills and how to teach effectively in the English-medium classroom. Her publications include: Receptive and Productive Academic Vocabulary: A Mixed‐Methods Corpus Investigation. Pecorari, D., Malmström, H. & Shaw, P., 19 Jul 2018, (Presented); Pecorari, D. & Shaw, P., 15 Jul 2018, Student Plagiarism in Higher Education: Reflections on Teaching Practice. Pecorari, D. & Shaw, P. (eds.). Routledge, p. 157-168 (Society for Research into Higher Education Series); Pecorari, D., 15 Jul 2018, Student Plagiarism in Higher Education: Reflections on Teaching Practice. Pecorari, D. & Shaw, P. (eds.). Routledge, p. 12-27 (Society for Research into Higher Education Series).

Triangulating Proficiency in English-medium Instruction

Featured Presentation

Proficiency in English is a central consideration in English-medium instruction (EMI). One one hand, a satisfactory level of proficiency is needed in order to insure that students have good preconditions for success in their studies. On the other hand, increased skills in English are among the intended outcomes which lead universities to implement EMI (though not, of course, the only one). Perhaps surprisingly, relatively little is known about the relationship between EMI and English proficiency. This talk will marshall the available evidence in order to answer three questions: 1) what level of English proficiency do students around the world have when they enter the university-level EMI classroom? 2) what level of English proficiency gives good preconditions for success in EMI? and 3) to what extent does EMI raise proficiency levels?