With the help of the Program on Bilingual Education for Students in College (“BEST Program”), outstanding EMI teaching staff, a variety of EMI courses, and an immersive English learning environment, the International College has drawn up a detailed plan for a bilingual campus and bilingual education from the perspectives of students and learning, teachers and teaching, and supportive measures. The achievements and highlights in Academic Year 2023 are as follows:

A. Improvement in Students’ English Proficiency Levels

1. EAP/ESP-based English Courses

• The general English courses for freshmen and sophomores will be divided into classes based on students’ English proficiency levels, adopting EAP and EGSP course designs. The teaching methods for general English courses will be adjusted to incorporate CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning). Additionally, the courses will integrate “intensive learning” and “extensive learning” modes, enabling students to overcome time and space constraints and utilize online self-learning resource platforms to enhance their English learning effectiveness. 
• To assist students in smoothly transitioning to EMI courses in their departments, the International College has jointly offered 11 EAP/ESP courses. Furthermore, to enhance students’ interest in learning professional English and to develop their professional English skills in the workplace, 14 ESP lectures were conducted in five areas: advertising, workplace, job seeking, technology, and hospitality. A total of 416 participants from ISU. 

2. Establishment of the English Writing Center

In Academic Year 2023, ISU established the English Writing Center to provide English writing guidance and consultation for all faculty members and students. The Center also organizes English writing workshops, offering sessions on short essay writing and introductory academic paper writing techniques for undergraduate students. For graduate students, the workshops focus on the structure of academic papers and literature search techniques. A total of 50 English writing workshops were held, with 387 participants from ISU attending. Additionally, in response to the trend of AI, workshops were conducted for faculty members on using ChatGPT to assist in EMI teaching. To achieve effective individualized guidance, a one-on-one English consultation group was formed by faculty members offering general English courses and the visiting specialist at ISU. The group provides English writing consultations to faculty members and students at scheduled times and locations on campus each week. A total of 106 participants from ISU have utilized these consultation services. 

3. EMI Course Innovation and Quality Assurance Mechanism

• Comprehensive EMI professional courses: EMI professional courses at basic, intermediate, and advanced levels are offered to freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior students, respectively so that they can keep improving their English proficiency levels while developing professional skills. In Academic Year 2023, a total of 460 EMI courses were offered at ISU, accounting for 11.36% of all courses. In the International College, the number of EMI courses for undergraduates is 132 (82.5%), which increases to 94.28% when excluding internship courses. The number of EMI courses in the International College exceeded the average of ISU. 

• In light of ISU’s policy for offering innovative courses, the two Colleges have established 11 interdisciplinary EMI micro-credit programs, including the Micro-credit Program in Cross-cultural Global Perspective, the EMI Micro-credit Program in X+AI Study, the EMI Micro-credit Program in International Trade and Electronic Commerce, the EMI Micro-credit Program in Electronic Marketing for Tourism. A total of 83 students enrolled in these programs in Academic Year 2023. 
• Assurance of Learning (AOL) and Assurance of Teaching (AOT) for EMI Courses. Regarding the AOL, a teaching survey has been specifically designed for EMI courses. According to the final teaching survey in Academic Year 2023, the average student satisfaction score for the International College was 15.97. The university-wide average score was 11.63. As for AOT, course instructors were requested to give reflections on students’ learning and propose improvement measures, if any. The reporting rate was 100% in the International College. Moreover, the quantitative and qualitative results of the AOL and the AOT were brought forward to relevant meetings by the departments under the two Colleges for an in-depth discussion and improvement strategies to enhance the effectiveness of teaching and learning. 

4. EMI Teaching Assistant Training

To equip EMI teaching assistants with the skills that benefit course instructors of EMI courses and help improve students’ English proficiency levels, ISU offers EMI teaching assistant training designed by the visiting specialist. Students with perfect attendance will receive a certificate. With this certificate, they will be granted higher wages if they apply to become EMI teaching assistants. In Academic Year 2023, a total of 12 EMI teaching assistant training sessions were conducted, with 117 participants from ISU. During the same academic year, 88 students served as EMI teaching assistants for 97 courses. 

5. Diverse English Learning Opportunities and On-campus English Proficiency Tests

• To help course instructors understand students’ progress and learning outcomes and to adjust teaching methods and materials, online English proficiency tests were implemented as pre- and post-assessments for general English courses for freshmen and sophomores. This approach offers students a testing method that is flexible and accessible, unaffected by location or time constraints.
• To understand students’ English learning outcomes and make improvement plans accordingly, 8 English proficiency tests were held on campus. Regulations concerning rewarding students who have taken English proficiency tests were made, in the hopes that more and more students could take English proficiency tests to improve their competitiveness. To actively promote the “BESTEP” (BEST Test of English Proficiency) developed by the LTTC of the Ministry of Education, ISU amended relevant internal regulations in Academic Year 2023. The BESTEP test has been incorporated into the graduation requirements, the Regulations for Rewarding Students of I-Shou University for Passing Foreign Language Proficiency Tests, and the criteria for exemption from general English courses, in order to increase students’ motivation to take the test. Among all the students taking English proficiency tests, the percentage of students reaching CEFR Level B1 increased from 49% in Academic Year 2022 to 51% in Academic Year 2023. Furthermore, the percentage of students achieving CEFR Level B2 or above also demonstrated notable growth, increasing from 4% in Academic Year 2022 to 6% in Academic Year 2023.

• The International College has developed 4 EMI Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and 1 Collaboration Online Integration Learning course (COIL). 
• The International College has established English learning partner groups. Participating students engage in discussions on various topics in English to achieve peer learning and enhance their English-speaking skills. The International College formed 4 English learning partner groups, with a total of 147 participants.

6. Diverse Immersive Activities

In Academic Year 2023, a wide variety of immersive English learning opportunities were offered to students, helping them keep developing English communication skills after normal school hours. Such activities include:

• Several university-wide activities were conducted to provide students with immersive English learning experiences beyond the classroom. For example, “English Corner” covered different topics every week to provide participating students with opportunities to practice and gain proficiency in English listening and speaking skills, and at the same time, to help them build up confidence in making presentations in English; and “LOHAS English Exchange Workshops”" mainly focused on life-oriented topics, e.g. English for daily life, tea tasting, qigong, and appreciation of wine, which helped participating students hone their English communication skills. When it comes to cross-cultural exchanges and events, to create a mini-global village on campus, ISU organized the ISU Cultural Festival, the FiGE (Foundations in Global Engagement) program, the selection of cultural ambassadors, trips for exploring local cultures, etc., to help both domestic and international students experience different cultures and expand their horizons. 

• The International College also organized its own engaging English learning activities. The International College incorporated professional courses into activities, such as the Dean’s List Awards Ceremony, an achievement exhibition, a faculty-student exchange forum, and Sports Bar, with an eye to creating a favorable English learning environment. Additionally, the English short film competition was jointly organized with the College of Medicine, opening up opportunities for faculty and student exchanges between the two Colleges.

B. Enhancement of Faculty Members’ EMI Skills

1. Professional EMI Training

• To launch faculty EMI training, ISU has invited a specialist from Canada, who offers both face-to-face and online EMI training courses. In addition, EMI conversation courses were initiated in Academic Year 2022 for faculty members to enhance their English communication skills. As of Academic Year 2023, a total of 186 faculty members took EMI training courses offered by ISU, 18 of whom were from the International College, reaching 60%. 

• To help upgrade faculty members’ EMI skills and to improve teaching quality and effectiveness, all colleges have formed faculty professional communities for EMI education. In addition, ISU organized 5 on-campus EMI workshops and offered one-on-one EMI consultations. To enhance faculty members’ EMI practice, peer observation was also arranged, inviting the visiting specialist to observe 6 faculty members of the International College and then make comments and suggestions. 
• Our faculty members have actively joined inter-university EMI faculty learning communities formed by the Southern Regional Resource Center for Bilingual Education since its establishment. So far, our faculty members have established 3 inter-university faculty learning communities, and 18 faculty members have participated in relevant activities. In Academic Year 2023, one of our faculty underwent EMI training at Arizona State University in the U.S.A. as organized by the Southern Regional Resource Center for Bilingual Education. Upon completion of the training, she shared her experiences and reflections at inter-university faculty learning communities and on-campus EMI workshops, with an attendance of 16 faculty members from ISU. In addition, ISU is part of the Southern Regional Resource Center for Bilingual Education, where universities and colleges in southern Taiwan regularly attend exchange meetings for exchange and collaboration. 

C. Comprehensive Supportive Measures

1. Information to Stakeholders and Friendly Communication

In addition to the information about the BEST Program on the website of the Bilingual Education and EMI Center, ISU periodically releases ISU news in English on a specific Facebook fan page and Instagram page. The International College has also created its own webpages dedicated to EMI education and the BEST Program. The International College also held teacher-student forums, respectively, to collect students’ feedback for future improvement. 

2. Sharing of Resources and Inter-institution Engagement

• To build an EMI resource-sharing platform with other universities and colleges in southern Taiwan, the International College signed a trilateral MOU with National Kaohsiung University of Hospitality and Tourism and Wenzao Ursuline University of Languages in Academic Year 2023 for improvements in EMI education and exchanges between students of the three institutions. Students of the three institutions actively participated in relevant activities with fruitful results obtained. 
• In addition to collaboration in the higher education sector, to assist partner high school teachers in developing their bilingual proficiency, ISU organized the High School Teacher Empowerment Workshop, introducing EMI skills, English pronunciation practice, and English communication skills. Leveraging ISU’s strong EMI teaching experience and expertise, teachers from partner high schools were guided to develop their skills in EMI education. A total of 92 higher school teachers took part in the Workshop. 

• Thanks to the Bilingual Digital Learning Program - Partner University Implementation Program, ISU organized an event where bilingual learning partners from ISU and junior high schools/elementary schools met one another. ISU students serve as tutors to junior high school students and elementary students in remote areas, providing them with language training, in the hope of fulfilling social responsibility and sharing bilingual resources. A total of 88 teachers and students participated in this event. 

3. Bilingual Education for Staff Members

To let everyone at ISU engage in creating a bilingual campus, English training courses at different levels are designed based on staff members’ official needs and English proficiency levels. In Academic Year 2023, practical, intermediate, and advanced English training courses were offered with an attendance of 66 staff members. Participating staff members were trained in English speaking, listening, and writing skills to improve their English language skills.