Minglin Li

The Australian doctorate curriculum: responding to the needs of Asian candidates

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a case for appraisal of the current curriculum provisions for international students. In this paper, the authors summarise the key challenges of Asian international research graduate students pursuing doctorate studies in Australian universities to become researchers for the global communities. The intention is to advocate further research on current higher degree research curriculum with a view to enriching the developmental experiences of international research graduate students in preparation for global practice. Design/methodology/approach – This is an analytical paper that adopts a conceptual and rhetorical approach. Findings – The authors review a growing body of research on higher degree research studies and establish a need for appraisal of current curriculum provisions. Originality/value – This is the first paper to concentrate on an emerging need to appraise current higher degree research curriculum provisions to enhance the development internati...

Trans-Cultural, Trans-Language Practices: Potentialities for Rethinking Doctoral Education Pedagogies

Over the last decade, there has been a rapid increase in doctoral enrolments of Asian international students in Australian universities. While policies have been developed to meet the needs of these students, there seems to be some confusion around the terms internationalisation, globalisation, bi-cultural, inter-cultural, multi-cultural, and trans-cultural within these policies. In this paper, we define these terms and advocate for a policy position which orients to a futurist definition of culture. We then review the work of Michael Singh and his research team at Western Sydney University who have responded to this rapid increase in Asian international student doctoral enrolments in Australian universities by developing pedagogic principles around notions of trans-language and trans-cultural practices. In the final section of the paper, we then draw on our own experiences of doctoral supervision in Australian universities to reflect on our positioning within the pedagogic principles around trans-language and trans-cultural practices.

Power relations in the enactment of English language education policy for Chinese schools

ABSTRACT The scale of English language education in China is astounding, but recent research has shown that the latest national English education policy for Chinese schools has not been implemented successfully due to various reasons. One reason given for the lack of success is the impracticability of the top-down policy itself excluding teachers’ involvement and neglecting the contextual constraints. Building on the theoretical framework of multi-levelled actors in language planning and language policy, and drawing on some key concepts in relation to power in Critical Language Policy research, this paper explores how a national English language curriculum that emphasizes the international standards and norms in curriculum design has been enacted, ineffectively, by the key stakeholders through analysing the specific roles of three groups of key stakeholders involved in the English as a foreign language curriculum policy implementation.

Perceptions of Becoming a Legitimate EFL Teacher

With the growing popularity of the English language worldwide, demand for English teachers continues to increase, especially in some Asian countries where English is used as a foreign language (EFL) and has been made a compulsory subject in primary schools (see e.g., Hashimoto, 2011, in Japan; Li, 2007, in China; Nguyen, 2011 in Vietnam). To accommodate this demand, a large number of non-native English-speaking (NNES) teacher-trainees enrol in language teacher training programs in native English-speaking (NES) countries to immerse themselves in English language and cultural environments.

Accounting for Classroom Curriculum

Literature in the recent decade shows that test-driven teaching in Chinese schools, among other reasons, has led to unsuccessful implementation of the national English as a Foreign Language (EFL) curriculum (see, e.g., Li & Baldauf, 2011; Zhang & Liu, 2014). EFL teachers in studies of Li (2010) and Li and Baldauf (2011) agreed that the curriculum itself was well designed on the theoretical side and was in line with the international trends in its standards and norms. However, teachers regarded it as a document for reading but not for implementation.