Speakers
Description
As Vietnam moves from an EFL orientation toward wider use of ESL and English-medium instruction, English language teaching professionals have an important role to play beyond preparing students and lecturers for language readiness. This practice-oriented presentation examines how established expertise in ELT can contribute to English-medium instruction through pedagogy, curriculum support, classroom communication, and language-aware assessment. The session begins by clarifying English-medium instruction as the teaching and assessment of subject-specific content in English, while noting that definitions vary across contexts and institutions. It then considers the implications of recent national direction in Vietnam, where English is increasingly positioned as a working language in education rather than only a subject of study. Drawing on practical examples from language teaching, the presentation identifies transferable areas of ELT expertise, including but not limited to: communicative teaching approach techniques, collaborative learning, differentiation, and questioning techniques. Participants will be invited to reflect on how these practices can support subject teachers, students, and curriculum teams in English-medium environments. The presentation argues that English-medium instruction does not make English language teachers less relevant; instead, it makes their pedagogical knowledge more strategically important.
Biography
Jonathan Western is the Head of Program, New Initiatives in the School of English & University Pathways at RMIT University Vietnam. He holds an MA in Educational Technology and has more than 15 years’ experience in English language teaching, academic leadership, and program development. His current work focuses on leading new academic initiatives through responsive program design, cross-functional collaboration, and quality enhancement. He is particularly interested in the pedagogically sound application of educational technology and AI, professional learning ecosystems, team development, and EMI sector engagement.
May Barbree is the Academic Manager, Learning & Teaching in the School of English & University Pathways at RMIT University Vietnam. She holds a Masters of Education and is Cambridge DELTA qualified. With more than 15 years’ experience in English language teaching, teacher development, and academic management, she has worked across university and language education contexts in four countries. Her current work focuses on professional learning, teacher training strategy, and building sustainable models for practice-based scholarship. She is particularly interested in how teacher professional learning can support quality enhancement, institutional capability, and sector engagement in ELT and EMI contexts.
| Affiliate type | University |
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