Objectives of the Program

With "optimizing the English learning environment and cultivating disciplinary core competencies" as its main goal of promoting bilingual education, National Taipei University of Technology (NTUT) continues to establish an English-friendly learning environment, provide a comprehensive EMI support system for faculty members and students, strengthen cooperation with international alliance institutions, and achieve consensus among faculty members and students. Since launching “the Program on Bilingual Education for Students in College” (BEST Program), NTUT has adopted suggestions from stakeholders to gain support from various faculty members and students. In the Academic Year 2022/23, a total of 4 school-level consensus meetings and 2 college-level consensus meetings were held, where attendees, including school-level and college-level officials, faculty members, and students, were invited to discuss relevant strategies and policies. It is expected to gradually increase the overall ratio of entry-level EMI courses, in which they serve as bridge courses to advanced EMI courses, with the hope of improving the competitiveness of the younger generation in the long run.

Improving Students’ English Proficiency by Using Scaffolding as the Preparation for EMI Courses 

NTUT has strived to improve students’ English proficiency by implementing various measures such as curriculum reform, learning resources, and different incentives. Freshmen are required to take the English placement test upon admission. In the Academic Year 2021/22, oral and written skills were integrated into both General English and English for Specific Purposes courses, and all intermediate and advanced English courses were taught in English. To strengthen students’ English-speaking skills, in the Academic Year 2022/23, General English for Freshmen was renamed English Communication and Application. On the other hand, Diversified English was replaced by English for Specific Purposes to complement disciplinary EMI courses. 6 English for Academic Purposes courses were offered in the Academic Year 2022/23, with 128 students enrolled, including 35 students from the College of Management. Students taking these courses are required to take the College Student English Proficiency Test (CSEPT) at the end of the semester.

Corresponding to the promotion of the BEST Program within NTUT, the Center for Academic and Professional Writing (CAPW) was established in June 2023, in which online and face-to-face consultation services with a focus on English for Academic Purposes (e.g., reports or journals) and English for Specific Purposes (e.g., English proficiency tests) are offered by various instructors and/or domestic and foreign students with CEFR C1 level or above. The consultation service consists of two stages, which aim to provide free writing resources such as Grammarly, ETS, Criterion, etc. and to give relevant writing suggestions in the first stage, while further consultation will be assigned based on the topic, style, content, and complexity of the writing, if necessary, in the later stage.

Information related to EMI and English learning resources is accessible on the official website and social media, such as LINE official and Facebook accounts jointly run by the College of Management and the Center for Bilingual Learning (CBL). Starting in Spring 2022, activities like English Producers are held to provide students with multi-themed speaking and writing practice, while intensive English speaking and writing courses are offered at the end of the semester. A total of 319 students participated in the Academic Year 2022/23, of which 182 were from the College of Management. Also, the SDG English Camp for Freshmen was held in September 2022. It aims to equip freshmen students with several soft skills, including critical thinking, problem solving, leadership and presentation skills, etc., and it serves as a bridge to EMI courses at the same time. A total of 38 students, of whom 11 were from the College of Management, joined the camp. In addition, NTUT works together with Fulbright Taiwan and holds a series of events, including Pro Workshop, American Corner, and English consultation services, to guide students to practice, discuss, and share their perspectives in English and to introduce American culture. On the other hand, the Language Exchange Program was introduced. Domestic and international students formed groups and conducted English conversation practice on different topics throughout the semester. Moreover, the Student Buddy Program is also held, and domestic students are recruited to assist international students with their life and study matters. Other events, including the Welcome Party, Study Abroad Fair, and Farewell Party, are also organized.

Online English learning resources such as the EasyTest learning platform are provided; 200 units of online interactive courses and mock test modules (TOEIC, TOEFL, GEPT, IELTS, and other question types) are included; NTUT also continues to enrich the learning materials. In addition, English consultation service is also available for faculty and students. In the Academic Year 2022/23, 61 faculty members and students used the service for academic writing and English for specific purposes (ESP) mainly. In addition, NTUT conducted the Taipei Tech English Speaking and Writing Test with 191 students taking the test, including 39 from the College of Management. In the Academic Year 2022/23, 20% of the EMI courses enrolled 36.52% of the sophomores and 73.33% of the first-year master's students, while 76.63% of the undergraduate students achieved the CEFR B1 level and 25.11% achieved the CEFR B2 level or above in the College of Management. The Fall 2022 Admission Guidelines clearly state that NTUT offers some compulsory and elective courses in English. At the same time, NTUT proposes to issue a certificate of completion for EMI courses and work with world-renowned institutions to provide dual degree programs.

‘Guidelines on Incentives for EMI Learning’ and ‘Guidelines on Incentives for English Proficiency Tests’ were established to encourage students to enroll in EMI courses and to improve their English proficiency. Students who achieved CEFR B2 or above (4 skills) and outstanding students taking EMI courses are eligible for applications. To improve students’ workplace competitiveness and international mobility, students will be awarded scholarships and bonus points, which serve for overseas exchange programs, dual degree programs, and study abroad. On the other hand, regarding several English proficiency tests, the subsidy for the application fee is provided for disadvantaged students. There were 6 and 80 successful applicants, respectively, in the Academic Year 2022/23.

Assuring the Quality of EMI Courses While Increasing the Number of Disciplinary EMI Courses

NTUT strives to promote EMI courses; 65 undergraduate EMI courses and 25 graduate EMI courses were offered in the Academic Year 2022/23, and the annual KPIs were fulfilled. Moreover, to foster teacher-student interaction and improve learning effectiveness in the EMI classroom, various innovative teaching methods, including flipped classroom, interactive response systems, game-based teaching, etc., are encouraged.

Assisting with different disciplinary EMI courses, EMI teaching assistants (TAs) are recruited for undergraduate programs. 23 EMI TAs were recruited in the Academic Year 2022/23, and they all have English communicative competence. Meanwhile, 2 orientation sessions and 8 TA training sessions were held, with a total attendance of 252 person-times recorded.

Apart from EMI teaching rewards, such incentives are also included under the Merit Pay Mechanism for Faculty Members. Since implementing the BEST Program in Academic Year 2021/22, the College of Management has hired 6 new faculty members who are equipped with EMI teaching competency. Two of the faculty members achieved CEFR B2 level or above and served as EMI mentors for the college. The College of Management is consistently looking for potential faculty members with EMI teaching competency.

On the other hand, to assure course quality, the disciplinary EMI courses offered within the College of Management are aligned with AACSB accreditation, in which core competency measurement indexes are formulated. Meanwhile, in order to have a deeper understanding of students’ needs and learning effectiveness, midterm and final student feedback on EMI learning is collected, and teaching evaluation is conducted at the end of the semester. Other measures include checking on EMI course recordings, classroom observations, etc. The data collected also serves as a reference for EMI course improvement. According to the results acquired from midterm and final student feedback in the Academic Year 2022/23, a positive relationship is shown between the application of diverse interactive pedagogy and student learning effectiveness. The College of Management will continue to keep track of EMI teaching quality by adopting an internal and external evaluation mechanism.

Two faculty members from the College of Management are invited to compile video materials for online EMI courses in addition to the other 3 faculty members in Spring 2022. The videos will then be available on various online platforms. It is expected to motivate students’ active learning by providing different online courses. On the other hand, 5 management-related EMI micro courses were jointly offered by the College of Management and various departments, such as the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Department of English. Courses include ‘Global Business Communication in English’, ‘Entrepreneurship Practices’, and ‘Smart Manufacturing and Management’, etc.

Cultivating EMI Teaching Experts and Sharing EMI Teaching Experiences

In order to improve EMI teaching competency, faculty are encouraged to take part in various teaching enhancement activities, including classroom observations, EMI workshops, faculty training, and teacher community. Beginning in the Academic Year 2022/23, NTUT works with Fulbright with the support of the EMI Program EMI Professional Supportive Group Program. A total of 13 EMI workshops were held in the Academic Year 2022/23, in which 243 participants were recorded, of whom 45 were from the College of Management.

In particular, 2 faculty members from the College of Management signed up for the 30-hour online EMI Certificate Program, which is jointly organized by NTUT and Pennsylvania State University in the Academic Year 2022/23. Meanwhile, 5 faculty members from the College of Management were nominated to participate in a 2-week overseas faculty training program at the University of California, San Diego. The training took place in January 2023, and the faculty trainees who participated in the program were invited to share their experiences in April 2023. A total of 85 participants took part in the ‘EMI Transformed: UCSD Experience 2023’ session, while 6 of them are from the College of Management. It is expected to continue working with various alliance institutions to establish an all-round EMI Teaching Certification System in the future by inviting international scholars, such as those from Fulbright and UCSD and scholars from other higher education institutions in Taiwan, and thus increasing EMI teaching capacity.

On the other hand, NTUT takes the initiative to launch the EMI Enhancement Program with the goal of increasing students’ learning effectiveness by introducing co-teaching and co-compiling teaching materials. Not only does the College of Management put effort into improving the EMI teaching competency of the existing faculty members, but the college also aims to improve the EMI teaching capacity. The college consistently recruits faculty members with certain EMI teaching competencies and English proficiency (CEFR B2 or above). In the Academic Year 2022/23, 4 faculty members (8 person-times) from the College of Management took part in the EMI Enhancement Program, including 4 groups of the EMI&ESP community, a group of the EMI2 community (i.e., 2 EMI teachers working with an EMI advisor), and a group of the EMI Specialists community. It aims to increase students’ learning effectiveness by introducing co-teaching and co-compiling teaching materials.

Educating International Research and Work Talents 

The College of Management has sought to establish an English-friendly learning environment. Apart from nominating and sending outstanding students to study dual degree programs, it also aims to attract a larger number of international students to NTUT, provide students with an international learning environment, and equip them with soft skills and competitiveness among talented peers in a globally competitive environment.