METSMaC English as medium of instruction in the new global linguistic order: Global characteristics, local consequences

The English language is continuing to establish itself as a global lingua franca in a period of unprecedented globalisation. In the period 1995–2005 educational systems worldwide have shown interest in the adoption of English as a medium of instruction. Teaching through a second language has been successful in certain educational environments. A methodological approach, ‘Content and Language Integrated Learning’, emerged in Europe in 1995. The period 2000– 2006 has seen swift adoption of this educational approach across Europe, at all levels of education. This paper argues that failure to achieve satisfactory educational outcomes when teaching through English are commonplace in certain countries. This failure is compounded by stakeholders seeing barriers to learning in terms of language, as opposed to learning needs, cognition and methodologies. By integrating language and subject teaching, various forms of educational success can be achieved where classrooms comprise learners with diverse levels of linguistic