The term English for Academic Purposes (EAP) is commonly understood to mean programs in which students study academic courses at overseas universities through the medium of English. However, students of a Second Language (L2) who have reached the IELTS or TOEFL threshold for participating in academic study overseas may still struggle to fend for themselves when they go abroad. This poster reveals some of the reasons behind the problems faced while offering a possible solution.
Research interviews carried out with Japanese students in the UK revealed that their problems of adjustment were compounded by factors beyond the classroom. Questions focused on the preparation students had undertaken in Japan and to what extent the British courses aligned with their expectations. Findings unveiled a number of areas where better use of technological resources could have assisted. In particular, they point to the need to embrace advances in video chat (e.g. FaceTime) and video conferencing (e.g. Zoom) for the home institution to keep regular track of student progress. Results indicate that more can be done to replace ‘loose’ asynchronous email exchanges checking on student well-being with a more hands-on and dynamic system of synchronous video chats.