Akira Kuwamura
Aichi Prefectural University
I have been engaging in the fields of language education and international higher education as a practitioner, researcher, and administrator at the tertiary and other levels for the past few decades. Currently, I am associate professor of international education and exchange at my university. My areas of interest include English-medium instruction (EMI), internationalization of higher education, L2 teaching and learning, and sociolinguistics.
Sessions
International Teaching Assistant Education and EMI
International teaching assistants (ITAs) are unique to North American higher education and have enriched educational experiences on university campuses despite linguistic, pedagogical, and cultural challenges they may face in the target culture. This paper introduces ITA education in US universities and describes its development, common issues raised and corresponding training areas such as pragmatic competence necessary for ITAs to deliver academic content in English effectively. It discusses implications for English as a medium of instruction (EMI) in Japan and beyond.