English as a language in Arab-speaking Countires

Contents

ABSTRACT

Contents

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background
1.2. Importance of the English Language assessment
1.3. Assessment and Testing
1.4. Significance of the Study
1.5. Research Questions

2. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. The English Language Teaching in Saudi Arabia
2.2. Teacher’s Thoughts and Role in Assessments
2.3. Assessment and Testing Of Language

3. METHODOLOGY

4. RESULTS & DISCUSSION

5. CONCLUSION
5.1. Implications
5.2. Recommendations

6. References

ABSTRACT

The use of English as a language within the Arab-speaking countries gained significant attraction at the turn of the millennium. In most of the schools and Universities, the official language has been Arabic while English has always been taught as a secondary language or a foreign language. This is mostly true in the gulf countries. Each year, the assessment of English language to various cohorts of students involves a complex social phenomenon that has a very deep impact on both the students and the stakeholders within the education sector. Although most of the students pass these assessment tests in their foundational years, they still fail to cope with the enormous amount of academic requirements within the departments in which they are admitted. This is because of their lower understanding levels of the English Language. The main aim of this chapter is to explore the role played by the education stakeholders, more so focusing on teachers and instructors, in the assessment of the English language in the Arab Gulf countries and the North Africa; specifically in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The chapter examines the beliefs and role of instructors and teachers towards the assessment of the English Language in Saudi Arabia’s learning institutions. The assessment is based on two primary research questions: 1. What roles do the teachers and tutors offering English language assessment play in the implementation of practices at the foundation? and 2. How do the teachers and instructors perceive English language assessment program?

The research methodology included the use of both primary data and secondary data. Based on the findings of the study in this chapter, there is a need for further research into the beliefs and practices of teachers in the assessment of specific language skills within the various contexts. The research in this area is found to be very limited.

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. Background

The use of English as a language within the Arab-speaking countries gained significant attraction at the turn of the millennium. In most of the schools and Universities, the official language has been Arabic while English has always been taught as a secondary language or a foreign language. This is mostly true in the gulf countries. The growing influence of English as the most spoken language across the globe has forced Arab-speaking countries to reevaluate the importance of the English language and assess its contribution to the economy. The English language has high relevance on most of the core fields of economic indication of these countries. There is high reliance of the economies on outside markets in terms of both imports and exports. This reliance has made universities make drastic changes to the way they place English as a medium of instruction. The growth of English as the language of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics has forced the governments of these nations, especially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), to establish a program that fosters the use of English Language as a major medium of instruction within colleges and universities. This program has been launched to promote English alongside Arabic and has aims such as to a) prepare students to face various academic requirements in the undergraduate majors and b) to organize students, mainly those admitted to colleges and universities in the country in various academic fields dealing with sciences to be instructed in English.

There are certain effects of adoption of these programs into the mainstream teaching programs within the universities and other institutions of higher learning. The uptake of the course among the students has risen to over 200 thousand students, both males, and females. Furthermore, the programs have absorbed more than 9000 qualified tutors into the faculties across the major university faculties within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The English programs have proven to be very important to those students who have joined the programs in lieu of getting a chance to further develop their interest in the fields that they have chosen at the universities. It also gives them a proper chance at excelling in their later careers upon graduation.

1.2. Importance of the English Language assessment

The assessment of English language to the various cohorts of students each year involves a complex and taking social phenomenon. This has a deep impact on both the students and the stakeholders within the education sector. The failure of these assessment exams might mean the end to pursuing the dream careers of students who cannot pursue higher education at the University.

The importance of assessment of English Language, therefore, acts as an active influencer in the type of higher education that the potential candidates will face. The assessment also stands as an integral part of the complex phenomenon that intertwines the higher education procedures within the KSA and other Arab speaking countries of the Middle East and North Africa.

The importance that the English Language assessment test has on the later performance of the students cannot be underscored and taken lightly by the stakeholders within the education department. These tests always place a huge burden on the students; who mostly feel that tests are like a form of punishment meted towards them. However, there is no doubt that the tests ensure that when they pass these tests, later they can gain access to the science departments of their choices (Newfields,2006). However, although most of the students pass these assessment tests in their foundational years, they still fail to cope with the enormous amount of academic requirements within the departments. This is because of their lower understanding levels of the English Language. These assessments have been adopted to validate and identify the skills, competence and the knowledge levels of the students vis-a-vis the goals set forth by the institutions offering these assessments.

1.3. Assessment and Testing

The two terms, “assessment” and “testing”, more or less are often used in place of the other when referring to the act of examining students or candidates for certain qualifications in terms of knowledge, skills or competence. However, for the purpose of this study, the two words will be denoting two separate meanings. “Assessment” usually involves a large number of different procedures conducted to the candidates or students and it also refers to the overall perception towards the monitoring of student’s achievement. Alternatively, it can be taken as the effect of a program upon the progress of learners or students. On the other hand, testing refers to certain forms of rigorous, specified tasks given to learners by the instructors which are samples taken from a broader field of what was imparted earlier.

1.4. Significance of the Study

This chapter’s main aim is to explore the role played by the education stakeholders, more so focusing on teachers and instructors, in the assessment of the English language in the Arab Gulf countries and the North Africa; more specifically in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The study aims to look further into the effect of teachers and instructors on the interpretation of the social and cultural tendencies during the assessment of English language. The study also assesses how the assessment incorporates the political, managerial, and educational as well as the institutional agendas into the whole structure. The shift in paradigm towards the model of the language of instruction in the universities, especially in inculcating the knowledge of the technical subjects in science, technology, engineering and mathematics to the students using the English Language, informs the basis of this study on language assessment in the countries stated earlier. It is imperative to note that the study looks into the cultural and institutional influence on the general attitudes and beliefs of the instructors and teachers towards assessment of the English Language, especially in the KSA. Most of the earlier studies of similar nature have often been based on the findings that were carried out in the western world, thus leaving out the other parts of the world with limited literature and the need for further research in the subject area.

In view of the above notations, therefore, this chapter looks into the role that teachers and instructors play in the assessment of students based on a certain context through focusing on two main critical areas; 1) the role of teachers or instructors in the committees that oversee the assessment, and 2) the role played by the other instructors or teachers who are not part of the assessment committee. Current literature on the voice and the teacher's knowledge on language assessment are very limited, and therefore, this chapter will hopefully shade some light in the area as it affects the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Arab-speaking countries of the Middle East and the North Africa.

1.5. Research Questions

The chapter will examine the beliefs and role of instructors and teachers towards the assessment of the English Language in Saudi Arabia’s learning institutions based on the following two main research questions:

1) What roles do the teachers and tutors who offer the English language assessment play in the implementation of the practices at the foundation stages in Saudi Arabia?
2) How do the teachers and instructors perceive the English language assessment program in the country?

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

This section highlights the historical overview of the education system in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia over the years as well as the status of the English language with the Kingdom. The history of the same has been taken as an instrument of instruction within the schools and universities across the country. In addition, the section briefly looks into the teachers and instructors thoughts towards their role in English language assessment. Finally, the section ends by delving into various pieces of literature available on assessment and testing of language, based on a very serious outlook from the authors and scholars whose work is reviewed.

2.1. The English Language Teaching in Saudi Arabia

The early 1930s marked the beginning of a nation that became a monarch in 1932 and was christened with the name “Saudi Arabia” after its founder, Abdulaziz Al Saud. The Kingdom is headed by the king or Sultan, who acts as the head of state and bestowed upon him is the entire jurisdiction that governs the country. Therefore, the control of all ministries, including that of education, directly falls under him. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is predominantly a Muslim state that follows the Sharia law. The Ministry of Education was established shortly after the formation of the country and one year later, the first formal public school was opened. Al-Maini (2002) asserts that English as a language was first introduced into the country in the early 1920s. This was the time when the region got to have formal education introduced even before the conception of the Kingdom. However, this claim is refuted by Al-Seghayer (2005) who argues that the exact dates or period of introduction of English as a language in the region is not clearly known since the country was never colonized by any of the European powers. Al seghayer (2005) further argues that the introduction of English into the region was because of the development of international links with trade partners across the world.

The decision by the government of Saudi Arabia to introduce English into its teaching program was necessitated by the need to overcome the numerous communication barriers that they faced with her major trading partners across the world. Additionally, it would also ease communication with its most numerous Muslim visitors who each year thronged the Kingdom for the holy pilgrimage to Mecca. Al Abed, Al Haq & Smadi (1996) reveal that the English language was already being taught when the MOE was established in the elementary schools to children between the ages 6 to 12. After the formation of the MOE, the education system was overhauled, and the English language got to be taught in intermediate schools and the secondary school levels as a compulsory subject. In 2004, the MOE reintroduced the teaching of English in elementary school again.

The importance that the people of Saudi Arabia, as well as their government place on English, is reflected in the fact that the language is considered an essential tool for the success of an individual as well as for the overall wellbeing of the nation. The Language has been adopted as the medium of instruction for the disciplines that relate to the sciences, technology, engineering, mathematics and the medical (STEMM) fields. Therefore, it means that for one to be successful in the STEMM fields in terms of skills and professional knowledge, it is very important to get at least the minimum proficiency levels that are graded for the English language. The desire for success in these fields has therefore necessitated the need to have the English proficiency tests. The assessment of the language has become very vital in the context of both students and the government.

2.2. Teacher’s Thoughts and Role in Assessments

The number of teachers employed to teach English across the Arab speaking countries of the Middle East and the North Africa is many, and in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the number is a staggering figure of more than 100 thousand teachers. The English teachers who are based in both the public and private schools in the country are categorized into three categories. First, there are the local Saudi teachers who have at least a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature or Linguistics in the minority. This category makes about 10% of the total English teacher’s population. A second lot of teachers are those who come from the countries where English is the First language or their mother tongue. Most of these teachers come from countries like the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, and Australia. The third group of teachers comes from the rest of the countries where English is spoken as the Official language or the second language apart from their first spoken languages. Examples of the countries where most of these teachers come from include; India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Egypt, Jordan, South Africa, Kenya, and Tunisia, among others.

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