A multi-layered comparative analysis of English-medium instruction in the Netherlands


 The rise of English in Dutch higher education has been accompanied by a language ideological debate that affects
 students’ and lecturers’ lives at the micro level, policy and planning at the meso (institutional) level and is related to the
 macro perspective (national political agenda). This study explores how language ideologies and attitudes play a role in this
 debate by comparing lecturers’ perceptions of the use of English in higher education to general language ideologies reflected in
 the Dutch printed press. A thematic analysis was conducted, including a three-dimensional investigation incorporating a vertical
 approach (macro, meso, micro) combined with a horizontal approach focusing on ideological themes present at the vertical level.
 Our data consist of 151 news items and 20 interviews with lecturers in higher education. Results show that monolingual language
 ideologies are the norm in both the perceptions of teaching staff and the Dutch media. Lecturers were generally more positive
 towards the exclusive use of English than the printed media. The study suggests that the Dutch/English dichotomy and accompanying
 persistence of a monolingual language ideology contrast with the reality of the Netherlands as a multilingual community.
 Implications for language policy and practice within EMI are presented.