Bridging Policy and Practice in EMI: Peer Learning as a Classroom Interaction Strategy

English-Medium Instruction (EMI) lecture courses and programs have become common inhigher education across non-English-speaking countries. EMI programs are often implemented toadvance internationalization, improve English proficiency, and to increase access to global academiccommunities. However, many EMI classes remain lecture-centered with limited opportunities forstudent interaction, language practice, or collaborative content learning. This article argues that short,structured peer learning exchanges provide a practical, scalable way to address this gap withoutcompromising content coverage. Drawing on sociocultural and interactionist perspectives, as well asexperience in a Japanese university context, the article distinguishes peer learning from longer-termcollaborative learning models and explains why peer learning is more compatible with EMI lectures thatoften have time, pacing, and proficiency constraints. By integrating frequent, low-stakes, linguisticallyscaffolded interaction points into lectures, instructors can support comprehension, reduce affectivebarriers, and promote greater participation. A peer learning approach has the potential to make EMIlectures more interactive, inclusive, and aligned with the broader goals of EMI.