Staff and students' perceptions of English language policies and practices in 'international' universities: a UK case study

This article presents a small qualitative study which aimed to gain an understanding of how lecturers and international students perceive the English language policies and practices at their institutions. The findings show that most participants perceive current policies and practices as unfair. However, there were discrepancies in lecturers’ and students’ perceptions. While there was convergence in relation to admission policies, there was stark divergence in relation to expected language standards, assessment and student support. We also found a prevalence of monolingual, norm-oriented attitudes among lecturers. The findings highlight the need for a reconceptualisation of policies and practices in order to make universities truly international.