Critical Thinking in EAP: Challenges and Opportunities in Bangladeshi Higher Education

This study critically examines the structural and pedagogical factors that shape critical thinking within Bangladeshi EAP and explores opportunities for strengthening critical engagement through Critical EAP pedagogy and translanguaging. Employing a critical literature review methodology, the study synthesises theoretical and empirical scholarship from international and Bangladeshi contexts to identify recurring themes, contradictions, and research gaps. The review is informed by Critical EAP, sociocultural learning theory, critical pedagogy, translanguaging theory, and Bourdieu's concept of linguistic capital. The findings indicate that the limited development of critical thinking is not primarily attributable to students' abilities but is shaped by interconnected institutional and pedagogical constraints, including the performative orientation of Outcome-Based Education, the marginalisation of EAP as a remedial language support service, hierarchical classroom cultures, the hidden curriculum, market-driven educational practices, and English-only language ideologies. Collectively, these factors encourage conformity, examination-oriented learning, and the reproduction of knowledge rather than analytical inquiry and independent reasoning. Conversely, the review demonstrates that dialogic pedagogy, authentic inquiry, explicit instruction in disciplinary reasoning, and strategic translanguaging practices can create more inclusive learning environments that enhance students' cognitive engagement and critical literacy. The study argues that strengthening critical thinking in Bangladeshi higher education requires systemic reforms extending beyond classroom practice to encompass curriculum design, assessment, institutional language policy, and teacher professional development. By integrating Critical EAP with multilingual pedagogical approaches, the review offers a theoretically informed framework for repositioning EAP as a central component of students' intellectual development and identifies priorities for future empirical research in multilingual higher education contexts.