PREMISE training

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PREMISE Training : Meeting the Challenge of Teaching a Subject in English to an International Audience

The growing internationalization of higher education is leading more and more university instructors to teach their courses in English. However, teaching one’s discipline in a language that is not one’s native tongue involves much more than simply translating the course material.

How can you make your teaching accessible to an international audience ? How can you maintain interactivity and engagement among non-English-speaking students ? How can you adapt your course materials, assessment methods, and instructional communication ?

To address these challenges, the Institut Supérieur des Langues Vivantes (ISLV) at the University of Liège offers PREMISE (Pedagogical Resources for EMI Skills Enhancement), a training program specifically designed for non-native speakers and non-linguists who are required to teach in English.

 

Why take the PREMISE training course ?

The pedagogy of EMI (English as a Medium of Instruction) has its own unique characteristics. When a course is taught in English to students for whom it is not necessarily their native language, the instructor must adapt the way they explain, interact, assess, and support student learning.

The PREMISE training program will enable you to :

• design a course in English tailored to an international or multilingual audience ;
• plan and lead clear, structured, and interactive lessons ;
• develop your fluency in the professional use of academic English ;
• integrate digital tools and assessment practices suited to English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI ) ;
• build your confidence in speaking and interacting in English ;
• discover strategies that promote student engagement and success.

 

A concrete and immediately actionable program

The training program alternates between theoretical instruction, hands-on workshops, role-playing exercises, and peer discussions.

Topics covered :

Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Pedagogy

• fundamental principles of teaching English as a second or foreign language ;
• defining learning objectives ;
• alignment between objectives, instructional activities, and assessment ;
• promoting interactivity and student engagement ;
• thoughtful use of artificial intelligence in teaching.

 

Teaching Techniques for Non-Native English Speakers

• introducing new concepts ;
• Development of subject-specific vocabulary ;
• explaining graphs, diagrams, and data ;
• Effective structuring of academic discourse.

Oral communication and intelligibility

• improving pronunciation ;
• stress and speech rhythm ;
• intonation and emphasis on key messages ;
• addressing the most common phonological difficulties.

Interactivity and Assessment

• checking comprehension;
• handling student questions;
• designing interactive activities;
• feedback and assessment practices tailored to EMI.

Final Project

Each participant designs and presents a mini-lesson in English that incorporates the principles covered during the training, with detailed feedback from the trainers and peers.

 

Detailed program 

Personalized Support

In addition to group training, PREMISE offers an individual coaching program :

• observation of a class taught by the participant ;
• personalized analysis of teaching practices ;
• a debriefing session and concrete recommendations.

This approach enables participants to immediately apply what they’ve learned in their own professional settings.

 

Invest in the quality of your international education

PREMISE offers a unique opportunity to develop the pedagogical and language skills needed for effective teaching in English, while joining a community of teachers facing the same challenges.

Interested ?

Since the number of participants is limited to ensure high-quality support, we invite you to register now or contact the ISLV for further information.