A case for blended learning in EAP programs at Hong Kong universities

In this presentation I provide a rationale for a more effective use of digital technologies in university EAP programs. I first introduce the concept of “fragmented academic literacies” which arguably result from Hong Kong’s highly competitive, unequal and rigid primary and secondary education and the medium of instruction paradox. I then discuss how these fragmented literacies may be reproduced and perpetuated among Hong Kong university students by their past school experiences as well as by university curricula and traditional classroom-based teaching and learning practices at university.
Based on those insights, I outline how the use of digital technologies at various stages of the learning process could become a catalyst for pedagogical disruption and innovation by individualizing learning, enhancing cooperation among student-peers and leading to a more meaningful and productive use of face-to-face contact time between students and teachers. This will be illustrated with examples of digital learning materials and blended learning activities from various EAP contexts.