Theme Choice and Thematic Progression of Discussion Section in Engineering English Lectures

In the fourth industrial revolution, globalization of higher education has been significant demands for higher education across national borders, both in the field of teaching and research. Some research has found that linguistic issues become a major problem for most Indonesian students who are studying at overseas universities. The students mostly faced problem in capturing lecture contents or lecture important points delivered by lecturers. This study then looked into the types and functions of theme choices and thematic progression deployed in Engineering English Lecture-Discussion in a university in the Netherlands, where English is used as the medium instruction. The Hallidayan notion of Theme (1994) and thematic progression (Eggins, 2004) were applied. By employing a content qualitative analysis approach, seven lecturers were selected and video-taped during formal teaching hours. A total of 394 clauses in the Engineering English Lecture discussion were identified and analyzed. The results showed that all clauses have an ideational point of departure or theme and also, the speaker may choose to express an interpersonal and a textual theme. The ideational theme and the combination of constant - zig-zag Theme pattern dominantly occupied the theme system chosen for the Engineering English Lecture-Discussion. In summary, theme choice and progression can be used to develop a text and to facilitate the understanding of the message. So, it will be useful for EFL students to achieve specifiable goals such a lecture content.