Construction and Empirical Study of an Evaluation System for the Quality of English-Medium Instruction for International Students in China

Abstract

In this study, we constructed and empirically tested a system for evaluating the quality of English-Medium Instruction (EMI) for international students. The questionnaire measured international students' perceptions of eight teaching-quality factors and the resulting teaching effectiveness. Structural equation modeling (SEM) confirmed the factor structure and demonstrated acceptable model fit. Regression analysis using latent factor scores showed that teachers' positive attitude, rich content, diverse methods, and strong ability, as well as students' proactive learning attitude, solid professional foundation, and high effort level, all positively predicted teaching effectiveness. Contrary to expectations, cultural background differences were associated with slightly better outcomes – Hypothesis H8 was rejected – possibly because English often serves as a lingua franca in EMI settings. These findings fill a research gap by jointly considering teacher and student factors in evaluating EMI quality and offer an integrative framework for future quality assurance in international education.