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ECH Program on Oral Communication- EMI

This program is aimed at educators who wish to hone their skills in oral communication in English-Medium Instruction (EMI) contexts.

It develops professors into clear and confident communicators in English, capable of teaching complex concepts using the structure, clarity, and engagement of the American teaching approach.

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ORAL COMMUNICATION
English-Medium Instruction (EMI) Context

Clarity. Confidence. Teaching Excellence.

Saint Joseph University of Beirut (USJ)

OBJECTIVE

To empower faculty across disciplines to improve oral fluency, communicate clearly and confidently in English, and teach more effectively in an English-Medium Instruction (EMI) context.

CORE EMI PRINCIPLES
Foundation of effective teaching in English.

Focus

    • Communicating content clearly in English
    • Supporting understanding in multilingual classrooms
    • Creating structured and engaging learning experiences

Core Elements

    1. Clarity over complexity
    2. Structured delivery
    3. Scaffolding for understanding
    4. Comprehension checking
    5. Strategic use of language
    6. Student engagement
    7. Psychological safety

In Practice

    • Use simple, direct language instead of complex or translated sentences
    • Organize explanations using clear structure (e.g., Why - How - What)
    • Break down complex ideas step by step
    • Check understanding regularly through targeted questions
    • Rephrase, repeat, and emphasize key concepts
    • Encourage participation and interaction
    • Create a safe environment where students feel comfortable speaking

Outcome

    • Clearer and more effective communication in English
    • Improved student understanding and participation
    • More structured, engaging, and supportive teaching
 
 
 

Session Details

 

🟡 SESSION 4 — ADVANCED LANGUAGE ACCURACY & CLEAR TEACHING LANGUAGE

Reduce linguistic interference. Increase instructional clarity.

Focus

  • Reducing language patterns that weaken instructional clarity
  • Improving spoken precision and real-time accuracy in EMI teaching
  • Strengthening natural, listener-friendly teaching language

Core Elements

  • Advanced false friends and academic interference patterns
  • High-frequency French-influenced grammar and sentence structure errors
  • Correction and reformulation drills using authentic teaching situations
  • Advanced sentence simplification and restructuring exercises
  • Real-time correction and controlled speaking activities
  • Reinforcement of grammar and false-friend structures introduced in Session 2

Language Integration

  • Clear spoken structures (if / then / because / first / next)
  • Cause-and-effect language
  • Comparison and clarification language
  • Replacing complex translated sentences with clear English
  • Reformulating overloaded or translated explanations into natural teaching language

EMI Principles in Action

  • Clarity over complexity
  • Strategic use of language
  • Structured delivery

Outcome

  • Personal linguistic interference correction checklist
  • More accurate and natural spoken English
  • Improved real-time grammatical control and instructional clarity
 

🟡 SESSION 4 DETAILS— ADVANCED LANGUAGE ACCURACY & CLEAR TEACHING LANGUAGE

Reduce linguistic interference. Increase instructional clarity.

A. Main Objective

By the end of this session, you will be able to communicate more accurately, naturally, and strategically in English by identifying linguistic interference, improving real-time language control, and reformulating explanations more effectively for multilingual EMI classrooms.

The goal is not perfect English.

The goal is to reduce cognitive overload and make explanations easier for students to process, follow, and understand in real time.

This session focuses on instructional language management:

  • Monitoring language while teaching,
  • Identifying communication breakdowns,
  • Repairing explanations strategically during EMI instruction.

B. Agenda

1. Advance Organizer — Bridging Old and New Knowledge (15 min)

1.1. Quickly reviewing Last Session Content

1.2. Homework Review — Stress & Intelligibility Recording

1.3. Riddle-Based Communication Warm-Up

1.4. Exploring This Session Content

(+ Core EMI Principles)

2. Oral Practice — Advanced Language Accuracy & Clear Teaching Language (78+ min)

2.1. Weekly Speaking Reflection

2.2. TED Talk Reflection — WHY → HOW → WHAT

2.3. Aristotle & Communication in EMI Teaching

2.4. Advanced False Friends & Academic Interference Patterns

2.5. Grammar, Structure & Error Analysis in EMI Teaching

2.6. Transition Language & Logical Flow in Teaching

2.7. Reformulation & Real-Time Teaching Language Repair Activities

3. EMI Principles in Action (3 min)

4. Recap (2 min)

HW + TED Talk (2 min)

Extra: Closing Reflection — Emotionally Intelligent EMI Communication (3–4 min)

🎵 Song Reflection
🎥 Final TED Talk Reflection

C. Core (Session Content & Activities)

1. Advance Organizer — Bridging Old and New Knowledge (15 min)

1.1. Reviewing Last Session (3 min)

Work with a partner.

👉 Briefly discuss:

  • What improved in your pronunciation last session?
  • Which stress patterns are becoming easier?
  • Which words still feel difficult to pronounce naturally?
  • How does stress affect listener understanding?

👉 Key points:

  • clearer stress improves comprehension
  • pacing supports understanding
  • pronunciation affects confidence
  • intelligibility matters more than accent

1.2. Homework Review — Stress & Intelligibility Recording (6 min)

Work with a partner.

👉 Listen to your partner’s recording from last session.

Focus on:

  • stress patterns
  • pacing
  • pronunciation clarity
  • listener comprehension
  • remaining French interference

Step 1 — Listening (2 min)

Listen carefully to the recording.

Step 2 — Reflection (2 min)

Discuss briefly:

  • Which stress patterns improved?
  • Which words remained unclear?
  • Did pacing help understanding?
  • Was the message easier to follow?

Step 3 — Feedback (2 min)

Your partner gives:

  • 1 pronunciation strength
  • 1 pronunciation improvement

👉 Focus on intelligibility and listener processing.

1.3. Riddle-Based Communication Warm-Up (4 min)

Work with a partner.

Solve short communication-based riddles together.

👉 Focus on:

  • precision
  • clarity
  • logical sequencing
  • listener-friendly explanations

Discussion:

  • Which explanations were easiest to follow?
  • Which explanations created confusion?
  • What made communication clearer?

👉 Key idea:
Effective EMI communication requires strategic language management.

1.4. Exploring This Session (1 min)

In this session, you will learn how to:

  • reduce linguistic interference patterns
  • improve spoken precision and instructional clarity
  • identify and repair communication breakdowns
  • improve grammar and sentence structure in real teaching situations
  • reformulate explanations more naturally and effectively
  • use clearer transition and sequencing language during instruction

👉 Key shift:
From being understood clearly → to communicating more clearly, naturally, and strategically during real EMI teaching.

(+ Core EMI Principles — 1 min)

  • Clarity over complexity
  • Structured delivery
  • Scaffolding for understanding
  • Comprehension checking
  • Strategic use of language
  • Student engagement
  • Psychological safety

We will apply:

  • Clarity over complexity
  • Structured delivery
  • Strategic use of language

👉 Focus on communication that students can process easily and follow in real time.

2. Oral Practice — Advanced Language Accuracy & Clear Teaching Language (78+ min)

2.1. Weekly Speaking Reflection (8 min MAX)

Step 1 — Quick Individual Reflection (1 min)

Think about your week:

  • Did you explain or teach something in English?
  • Did you struggle to organize an explanation naturally?
  • Did you mentally translate from French?
  • Did you notice any communication breakdown?

👉 Focus on ONE situation.

Step 2 — Pair Sharing (3 min)

Each person shares:

  • one teaching situation
  • one communication difficulty
  • one sentence or explanation that felt unnatural

Step 3 — Whole-Class Snapshot (3 min)

Each pair shares ONLY ONE point:

  • one difficult explanation
    OR
  • one grammar/structure problem
    OR
  • one strategy that improved clarity

Step 4 — Quick Coaching (1 min)

As a class, identify:

  • one common interference pattern
  • one useful reformulation strategy
  • one way to improve listener comprehension

👉 Focus on instructional clarity.

2.2. TED Talk Reflection — WHY → HOW → WHAT (8 min)

TED Talk:

Simon Sinek — How Great Leaders Inspire Action

Work with a partner.

💡 Key Communication Structure

Level Function
WHY purpose / belief
HOW process / approach
WHAT content / action

Discussion

  • Why is WHY more engaging than WHAT?
  • How does structure improve listener understanding?
  • How can this model improve EMI teaching explanations?
  • How does the speaker reduce cognitive overload?
  • How does pacing support comprehension?

👉 Key idea:
Strong EMI teaching is not only about information.
It is about meaningful and strategically structured communication.

2.3. Aristotle & Communication in EMI Teaching (5–6 min)

Ethos — Credibility

How does a teacher build trust and confidence?

Pathos — Engagement

How does communication affect learner motivation and psychological safety?

Logos — Clarity & Logic

How does structure improve comprehension?

Reflection

Discuss:

  • Which element is strongest in your own teaching?
  • Which element needs improvement?
  • How do clarity and structure affect student understanding?

👉 Strong EMI communication combines:
credibility, human connection, and logical clarity.

2.4. Advanced False Friends & Academic Interference Patterns (18–20 min)

👉 Focus

Certain French-influenced vocabulary patterns reduce clarity and create confusion in EMI teaching.

The goal is not sophisticated vocabulary.
The goal is listener-friendly communication.

Activities include:

  • advanced false friends
  • academic interference patterns
  • dentistry & higher education examples
  • real-time correction activities
  • teaching-language reformulation drills

👉 Focus on comprehension, not perfection.

2.5. Grammar, Structure & Error Analysis in EMI Teaching (18–20 min)

👉 Focus

Certain grammar and sentence structure patterns increase cognitive load and reduce instructional clarity.

Examples include:

  • overloaded sentence structures
  • tense inconsistency
  • article misuse
  • translated French structures
  • unclear sequencing
  • excessive complexity

Activities include:

  • correction drills
  • sentence restructuring
  • tense review
  • controlled speaking activities
  • authentic teaching-language repair tasks

👉 Focus on strategic clarity and real-time language control.

2.6. Transition Language & Logical Flow in Teaching (8–10 min)

👉 Focus

Transitions help multilingual learners:

  • follow explanations,
  • process information,
  • and understand logical relationships more easily.

Examples:

  • first / next / finally
  • because / therefore / as a result
  • however / in contrast
  • for example / in other words
  • the key point is…
  • let’s break this down…

Mini-Activity

Transform disconnected explanations into:

  • clearer,
  • more structured,
  • more listener-friendly teaching sequences.

👉 Focus on logical progression and listener processing.

2.7. Reformulation & Real-Time Teaching Language Repair Activities (10–12 min)

👉 Goal

Learn to:

  • monitor explanations while speaking,
  • identify confusion,
  • and repair communication dynamically in real time.

Examples:

❌ overloaded explanation
✅ simplified and strategically restructured explanation

Activities include:

  • reformulation drills
  • clarification tasks
  • spontaneous repair activities
  • listener-feedback activities
  • controlled EMI teaching simulations

👉 Focus on communication management during instruction.

3. EMI Principles in Action (3 min)

3.1. Clarity over Complexity (1 min)

Clearer language reduces cognitive overload and improves understanding immediately.

Focus on:

  • manageable sentences
  • logical sequencing
  • strategic simplification
  • listener processing

3.2. Strategic Use of Language (2 min)

Use communication-support phrases:

  • “Let me clarify that.”
  • “In other words…”
  • “Let’s simplify this.”
  • “The key idea is…”
  • “Let’s examine this step by step.”

4. Recap (2 min)

✔ Clear teaching language improves comprehension
✔ Overloaded explanations increase cognitive load
✔ Strategic reformulation improves EMI communication
✔ Logical transitions improve listener processing
✔ Effective EMI teaching requires real-time language management

HW & TED Talk (2 min)

2-Minute Strategic Teaching Recording

Choose ONE:

  • explain a concept
  • explain a procedure
  • simplify a difficult explanation from your course

Requirements:

  • use transition language
  • reduce sentence overload
  • reformulate at least once
  • clarify one difficult idea
  • use structured sequencing

TED Talk Reflection

Watch the selected TED Talk.

Reflect briefly:

  • How does the speaker structure ideas?
  • How does the speaker guide listener attention?
  • Which communication techniques improve clarity most?
  • How can you apply these techniques in EMI teaching?

Extra: Closing Reflection — Emotionally Intelligent EMI Communication (3–4 min)

🎵 Song Reflection

Brief Reflection:

  • How can communication influence student confidence?
  • How can clarity reduce anxiety in multilingual classrooms?
  • Why is emotional intelligence important in EMI teaching?

👉 Great EMI teaching is not only about transmitting information.

It is also about:

  • clarity,
  • structure,
  • encouragement,
  • listener awareness,
  • and helping learners process meaning successfully.
 

POLLEVERYWHERE:
ECH- Oral Communication Course 1: MID-COURSE REFLECTION

Click HERE

 

This reflection is designed to:

  • increase self-awareness,
  • identify recurring communication patterns,
  • connect theory to real EMI teaching,
  • and help guide the rest of the course strategically.

The questions below are intentionally connected to:

  • the actual course content,
  • the 10 EMI communication challenges,
  • and real teaching situations in higher education.

 

 

The 10 Biggest Challenges in EMI Oral Communication

 

Why Awareness of These Challenges Matters

Many communication problems in EMI teaching are difficult to improve because instructors are often unaware that they are happening.

Teachers may not realize that:

  • explanations are becoming too long,
  • important ideas are getting buried,
  • pronunciation is reducing intelligibility,
  • students are cognitively overloaded,
  • or French-influenced language patterns are creating confusion in English.

 

As a result, these habits may continue automatically during teaching, even among highly knowledgeable and experienced professors.

 

Awareness matters because instructors cannot improve communication habits they do not notice.

 

Recognizing these challenges helps teachers:

  • communicate more clearly,
  • organize explanations more effectively,
  • reduce misunderstanding,
  • improve listener comprehension,
  • and create more accessible multilingual learning environments.

 

The goal is not perfection or native-like English.

The goal is clearer, more effective communication that helps students understand, follow, and engage more successfully in EMI classrooms.

 

The 10 Biggest Challenges in EMI Oral Communication

(For Highly Educated French-Educated Instructors)

 

  1. Limited Self-Awareness During Communication
  2. Mental Translation During Speaking
  3. Overloaded Sentence Structure
  4. False Friends & Misleading Academic Vocabulary
  5. Monotonous Rhythm, Stress, & Intonation
  6. Weak Information Hierarchy
  7. Weak Transition & Signposting Language
  8. Excessive Abstractness & Limited Scaffolding
  9. Insufficient Real-Time Reformulation & Listener Awareness
  10. Reduced Teaching Presence & Fear of Imperfection

 

 

 

  1. Limited Self-Awareness During Communication

“Not noticing the communication habits that reduce clarity.”

Many instructors are initially unaware of:

  • hesitation,
  • unclear phrasing,
  • sentence breakdown,
  • ineffective pacing,
  • or listener confusion.

As a result, communication problems may continue unconsciously during teaching.

Reflection

  • Do I notice my own communication habits while teaching?
  • Am I aware of how students experience my explanations?
  • Which communication patterns do I notice more clearly now?

Goal

Move from:
unconscious communication → to reflective communication.

 

  1. Mental Translation During Speaking

“Thinking in French while speaking in English.”

This often creates:

  • hesitation,
  • unnatural phrasing,
  • delayed fluency,
  • fragmented explanations,
  • and increased cognitive load.

The speaker may know exactly what they want to say intellectually, but the message becomes slower and less natural during delivery.

Reflection

  • Do I mentally translate while speaking?
  • Which situations trigger translation most strongly?
  • When do I speak most naturally in English?

Goal

Move from:
translation → to direct communication.

 

  1. Overloaded Sentence Structure

“Too much information in one sentence.”

Many explanations become:

  • too dense,
  • too long,
  • cognitively exhausting,
  • and difficult to follow in real time.

Important ideas may become buried inside complex sentence structures.

Reflection

  • Do my explanations become too long?
  • Do students need to “search” for the main point?
  • Could I simplify my sentence structure?

Goal

Move from:
complexity → to clarity.

 

  1. False Friends & Misleading Academic Vocabulary

“Using French-influenced vocabulary that creates confusion in English.”

Examples:

  • actually
  • eventually
  • sensible
  • assist
  • comprehensive
  • experience

These may sound correct to French speakers but often communicate unintended meanings in English.

This can reduce:

  • clarity,
  • credibility,
  • precision,
  • and listener comprehension.

Reflection

  • Which false friends do I use unconsciously?
  • Which English words do I confuse most often?
  • Do I sometimes translate academic vocabulary directly from French?

Goal

Move from:
translated vocabulary → to natural academic English.

 

  1. Monotonous Rhythm, Stress, & Intonation

“Correct English that is difficult to process.”

Even accurate English may become unclear when:

  • stress is weak,
  • pacing is too fast,
  • rhythm is flat,
  • or emphasis is missing.

Listeners may struggle to identify:

  • key ideas,
  • important contrasts,
  • or logical progression.

Reflection

  • Do I stress key words clearly?
  • Do I pause intentionally?
  • Does my pacing support understanding?

Goal

Move from:
flat delivery → to intelligible communication.

 

  1. Weak Information Hierarchy

“Everything sounds equally important.”

Many instructors:

  • delay the main point,
  • overload explanations with detail,
  • and fail to prioritize key information clearly.

Students may therefore struggle to identify:

  • the main idea,
  • the learning objective,
  • or what they should remember most.

Reflection

  • Do I state the main idea early enough?
  • Do students know what is most important?
  • Do I emphasize key information clearly?

Goal

Move from:
information overload → to guided understanding.

 

  1. Weak Transition & Signposting Language

“Ideas are connected in my mind, but not clearly for listeners.”

Without transitions, students may struggle to follow:

  • sequencing,
  • comparisons,
  • cause-and-effect relationships,
  • and explanation flow.

Even strong content may become difficult to process if communication lacks structure.

Reflection

  • Do I guide students clearly through explanations?
  • Do I use transitions consistently?
  • Which transition phrases feel natural to me?

Goal

Move from:
unclear progression → to structured communication.

 

  1. Excessive Abstractness & Limited Scaffolding

“Too conceptual, not concrete enough.”

Students understand more easily when teachers:

  • simplify ideas,
  • provide examples,
  • scaffold explanations,
  • and reduce cognitive overload progressively.

Highly conceptual explanations without sufficient support may reduce comprehension and engagement.

Reflection

  • Do I explain ideas concretely enough?
  • Do I use examples regularly?
  • Could students visualize what I mean more easily?

Goal

Move from:
abstract explanation → to accessible teaching.

 

  1. Insufficient Real-Time Reformulation & Listener Awareness

“Continuing to explain without adapting to student understanding.”

 

Strong EMI instructors:

  • monitor comprehension,
  • notice confusion,
  • reformulate dynamically,
  • and adjust explanations in real time.

Many instructors continue speaking even when learners appear confused or cognitively overloaded.

Reflection

  • Do I notice confusion quickly?
  • Do I reformulate naturally when students struggle?
  • How aware am I of listener processing during explanations?

Goal

Move from:
one-way delivery → to responsive communication.

 

  1. Reduced Teaching Presence & Fear of Imperfection

“Losing confidence, warmth, or spontaneity when teaching in English.”

Some instructors become:

  • overly cautious,
  • emotionally distant,
  • excessively formal,
  • or less interactive in English.

This may reduce:

  • engagement,
  • participation,
  • confidence,
  • and psychological safety in the classroom.

Reflection

  • Does my personality change when I switch to English?
  • Do I sound less confident in English?
  • How comfortable am I interacting spontaneously in English?

Goal

Move from:
performance anxiety → to confident human communication.

The Most Important Principle of This Course

Your job is not simply to speak English well.

Your job is to make thinking easier for learners.

That is the heart of effective EMI communication.

 

Continuous Reflection Tracker

Throughout the course, reflect regularly on the following questions:

 

Reflection

Area

Current

Strength

Needs

More Work

Fluency

    

Pronunciation & Intelligibility

    

Sentence Structure

    

Transition Language

    

Real-Time Reformulation

    

Listener Awareness

    

Confidence

    

Clarity of Explanations

    

Classroom Presence

    

Psychological Safety

    

 

Closing Thought

Effective EMI communication is not about sounding native.

It is about:

  • clarity,
  • structure,
  • responsiveness,
  • intelligibility,
  • human connection,
  • and helping learners think more easily.

“Teaching begins with believing in every learner’s potential.”
— Nada Salem Abisamra

 

 
Nada Salem Abisamra- Teaching Begins...
 
 
 

Session Handout

 
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Program FAQs

The course is highly interactive, practice-based, and performance-driven.

Each session combines:

  • Short, focused input
  • Guided speaking practice
  • Real teaching simulations (micro-teaching)
  • Immediate feedback from the instructor and peers

Participants will:

  • Record and analyze their own speaking
  • Apply communication strategies to real teaching scenarios
  • Engage in live activities using tools such as Poll Everywhere and Mentimeter

The course follows a progressive structure, allowing participants to build fluency, clarity, and confidence step by step.

The sessions will take place at USJ (on campus), online, or hybrid.

The Main Objective of the Course:

To transform how instructors teach in English by developing their ability to deliver clear, structured, and effective instruction in multilingual classrooms—moving beyond language fluency to achieve real student understanding and engagement in an English-Medium Instruction (EMI) context.

The course is taught by Nada M. Salem, President/CEO of AFEE and IFWE. 

Nada M. Salem is a passionate educator with extensive experience in leading academic institutions in the United States and abroad. Over more than twenty years, she has taught school students, college students, student teachers, teachers, and leaders. She co-created and co- taught a methods course for teachers at The George Washington University Graduate School of Education. Nada is the Co-Editor in Chief of “Teaching World Languages: A Practical Guide- Arabic Edition” (The National Capital Language Resource Center, Washington, DC).

Mrs. Salem holds a teaching diploma, two master's degrees, one in translation and another in education, and has successfully completed most courses (40 credits) towards a doctorate (Ed.D.) in Curriculum and Instruction & Educational Technology Leadership at The George Washington University Graduate School of Education. Additionally, she holds an Executive Certificate in Public Leadership from Harvard University. Mrs. Salem formerly served as Administrative Director and Assessment of Learning Coordinator for AACSB Accreditation at the GWU School of Business’s Master of Science in Finance Program. In September 2019, Mrs. Salem was selected as a WOMAN LEADER by the University of Maryland‘s Kahlil Gibran Chair for Values and Peace. She is a member of the Marquis WHO'S WHO® list of Prominent Business Professionals, and she was featured among Marquis Who's Who's Top Executives in Education and Leadership.

Mrs. Salem is the Founding President/CEO of the American Foundation for Educational Excellence (AFEE), an organization whose mission is to help, on a worldwide basis, influencers, leaders, HR professionals, and managers of educational institutions, profit and non-profit organizations and corporations, to pursue excellence by improving leadership skills, managerial competencies and educational programs, namely through face-to-face and online trainings. AFEE is an Approved Provider for both HRCI & SHRM.

Mrs. Salem is also the Founding President/CEO of AFEE’s subsidiaries, the Center for Excellence in Languages: Teaching, Editing, Translating, and Interpreting, and the International Foundation for Women's Empowerment (IFWE) which seeks to empower all women and help them thrive on the personal and professional levels, regardless of nationality and religion.

 
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