Enhancing Pedagogical Innovations: Insights from a SoTL Professional Development Program at a Sino-UK Transnational EMI University
摘要
The rapid expansion of English-Medium Instruction (EMI) in transnational higher education has intensified challenges for faculty, including pedagogical adaptation, linguistic barriers, and the tension between research and teaching priorities. This chapter examines a Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) professional development program at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU), a Sino-UK transnational EMI institution. Designed around a co-creation model that positions faculty and educational developers as equal partners, the program integrates action research, personalized consultation, and digital learning support to bridge disciplinary expertise and pedagogical innovation. Using a modified duoethnographic approach, four participants (an educational developer, two subject lecturers, and an EAP teacher) reflect on their engagement with the program, exploring motivations, impacts on teaching and publication, and systemic tensions. Findings reveal diverse motivations (improving student engagement, addressing publication pressures, and aligning with performance evaluation), tangible pedagogical improvements (e.g., student co-created rubrics, enhanced forum participation), and critical challenges (institutional recognition gaps, disciplinary differences in SoTL uptake, and data collection difficulties). This chapter contributes context-sensitive insights into designing sustainable SoTL programs in transnational EMI settings, emphasizing the need for institutional policy support, interdisciplinary collaboration, and culturally responsive pedagogical inquiry.