Perceptions of the Englishization of higher education in Taiwan: implementation and implications

ABSTRACT

This research investigates the process of Englishization in Taiwan’s higher education in the global context. Using semi-structured interviews, it explores perceptions regarding the implementation and implications of Englishization at the tertiary level. The results indicate that while the process of Englishization in Taiwanese higher education is policy-driven and market-oriented, the degree and effect of Englishization is diversified and restricted due to institutional stratification, disciplinary divergence, and linguistic constraints. The effect of Englishization on Taiwan’s higher education can be identified in the following aspects: the dominance of English in academic practices, specialization of English-medium services in the administration, specialization of English-medium courses and programs for international students, the emphasis of English-medium performance in academic and administrative recruitment. The implementation of Englishization in Taiwanese higher education institutions (HEIs) can be regarded as pragmatic and strategic responses to the globalization of higher education, the dominance of English in global academia, and the resources and constraints in the local context. The interviewees’ responses not only indicate the perceived value of English as well as the scarcity of English in Taiwan, but also the constraints on language choice and the divergence of institutional and disciplinary approaches to Englishization at the tertiary level in Taiwan.

KEYWORDS:

• Englishization
• higher education
• Englishization of higher education
• internationalization of higher education
• Taiwan

Acknowledgements

I thank my research assistants and all the interviewees for their support of this research. I also thank two anonymous reviewers for extremely helpful feedback on an earlier draft of this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Han-Yi Lin has a PhD in English Language and Linguistics from the University of Sheffield, UK and is currently Assistant Professor in the Department of English, National Taipei University of Technology, Taiwan. Her research interests include the dispersal of English in Asian contexts and broader issues in Global Englishes.

ORCID

Han-Yi Lin http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7946-7356

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan (MOST 104-2410-H-027-009).