SACM - Australia
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://drepo.sdl.edu.sa/handle/20.500.14154/9648
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Item Restricted The implementation of inclusive education for EFL students with a disability at a Saudi Arabian university(The University of Sydney, 2023-12-23) Alsubaie, Alanoud Nasser; Evans, DavidIn Saudi Arabia, special education services have gained importance due to obligations associated with ratifying the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. While government policies support special education in schools, there's a lack of specific guidance for universities. Some universities offer special education services aiming for inclusive education, but students with disabilities often remain segregated. To address this gap, a mixed methods design was conducted at a Saudi Arabian university to explore challenges, attitudes, the role of assistive technology, and teachers' self-efficacy in implementing inclusive education. The study involved interviews with five EFL teachers and ten students with disabilities, revealing challenges related to administrative support, lack of training, peer attitudes, and unsuitable learning environments. Although participants were unfamiliar with the term 'assistive technology', they supported its use. Based on interview findings, a survey involving 35 teachers and 55 students was designed to gain further insights. The university aimed for inclusive education but leaned towards traditional special education practices, resulting in reservations about its practical implementation. Most participants had positive or neutral attitudes towards inclusive education, but administrative, cultural, academic, and social challenges remained barriers. The study suggests improving efforts towards inclusive education and language learning opportunities for students with disabilities, including the adoption of assistive technologies.83 0Item Restricted Emergency Remote Teaching during COVID-19: A Case Study of Male EFL Teachers’ and Students’ Perceptions from a Saudi English Language Institute(Western Sydney University, 2023) Aloufi, Abdulrahim; Zammit, Katina; Skillen, MareeCOVID-19 required English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers in higher education to shift from face-to-face delivery of content and interaction to online delivery for the learning of English. Effective online learning requires a systematic model for design and development to ensure the quality of the instruction which might be absent in emergency remote teaching (ERT) situations. ERT is a temporary shift of instructional delivery to an alternate delivery mode due to crisis circumstances which raises concerns about practices of online teaching during COVID-19. These concerns include lack of teacher’s expertise in designing online courses, the instructor’s role, pedagogical practices, level of students’ engagement and application to tasks. For EFL teachers in Saudi Arabia the shift to online delivery was a significant challenge as many believe the use of technology is an obstacle to their teaching of English, not a benefit. Teaching online demands a different approach to pedagogy beyond the didactic practices frequently employed in Saudi Arabian EFL classrooms. The aim of this study was to investigate EFL teachers’ and students’ perceptions of the teaching and learning undertaken in EFL classrooms at a higher education language Institute in Saudi Arabia during COVID-19. The study employed a mixed method–case study approach whereby both quantitative and qualitative data were collected in two main phases. Phase one involved online questionnaires undertaken by seventy-six (76) male teachers and 391 male students about the current practices of implementing and integrating technology to support Saudi male students learning English during COVID-19. Descriptive statistics was used to examine and analyse the numerical data from the questionnaires. In phase two, semi-structured interviews with seven teachers and three focus group interviews with thirteen students were also conducted to provide a more in-depth understanding of how teachers and students used technology during ERT and their perceptions of this usage to learn English. Thematic analysis was used to interpret qualitative data from the interviews and the focus groups. The findings provide an insight into the participants’ perceptions of teaching and learning during COVID-19 associated with ERT. In general, the study discovered that EFL teachers rarely used social media and other online language tools to teach English during COVID-19. Not all EFL teachers were successful in implementing ERT during COVID-19. Based on the SAMR model, their application of ERT can be viewed as being at the enhancement level with a combination of substitution (S) and augmentation (A). A few EFL teachers were able to advance to the transformation level and used various online tools to increase the interactive and engaging elements of the learning process. Few teachers, however, modified (M) or redefined (R) their teaching practices using technology. Teachers lacked technological knowledge (TK), technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK) and, for some, technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) which influenced how they designed learning. The study also showed that integrating technology to learn English during COVID-19 was a success for both EFL teachers and students. EFL teachers and students agreed that remote learning and teaching could boost students’ self-directed learning, language proficiency, and engagement. However, poor internet connection and the maintenance of the Blackboard learning management system (LMS) provided technical challenges that EFL teachers and students encountered during ERT. Overall, the findings of the thesis suggest developing the pedagogical approaches in Saudi Arabia, particularly in the field of EFL education, would benefit teachers and students, enhance remote teaching and learning, and support students’ learning. This thesis also offers a number of recommendations and implications for future research.36 0Item Restricted Understanding Motivation to Learn English : A comparison of Urban and Rural Students at Saudi Arabian University(Saudi Digital Library, 2023) Almansour, Sami; Duursma, ElisabethProficiency in English is an important component of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. While upholding Arabic language, the Saudi Arabia (SA) government is reforming the educational system to improve students’ achievements. Explicitly stated in the Vision is a clause dedicated to uplifting the educational standards to enable SA to compete with the world on an equal footing. Although there is no explicit plan to improve English instruction, there is increasing need to teach English for competitive innovation and for considering national reform initiatives in an increasingly global world. The Saudi government has spent billions of dollars offering incentives to international institutions to enter into partnerships with SA universities enabling them to offer joint programmes in undergraduate and postgraduate studies. Despite the aspirations of the government, Saudi students’ English language proficiency remains slower to develop. Some studies in other jurisdictions have attributed the lack of English proficiency to low motivation. This thesis addresses the problem of low motivation in the SA context. It reports on a mixed-methods investigation of motivational factors that affect language learning in urban and rural SA contexts; exploring the potential that rurality is related to motivation. To undertake the quantitative study, the researcher administered questionnaires to 233 university learners using a version of Gardner’s (2001) International Attitude/Motivation Test Battery (IAMTB) adapted by Makrami (2010) and translated into Arabic language. Quantitative data was analysed utilising multiple regression analyses and t-tests. To complement the dataset, semi-structured interviews were undertaken with six teachers and 16 students participated in one of five focus group discussions. The qualitative data was transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis to explore salient themes and issues emerging from students’ and teachers’ perspectives. The findings suggest that whilst there is a strong correlation between eagerness to learn English and instrumental motivation, urban students are more motivated compared to rural students. It seems urban students’ exposure to better job opportunities and limited occupations in rural SA requiring English were largely responsible for these differences. Building on these findings, this study developed novel insights into English as a Foreign Language (EFL); adding to the existing conceptual model. Like Gardner’s (1985, 2001, 2005) Motivation Theory, the model proposed in the current study has the same three main components: motivation, integrativeness, and attitudes toward the learning situation. However, the current model adapts Gardner’s (2001) model to include ‘parental encouragement’ within ‘other support’ thereby expanding its cultural sensitivity and relevance. Based on both the quantitative and qualitative data, students also perceived their peers and teachers to have a positive influence on their learning. While students thought peers were highly influential in their motivation, their intrinsic motivation appears to be facilitated by their teachers’ provision of psychological support, relevant teaching activities, and a friendly attitude. Overall, this thesis is significant because it provides essential information for educators, practitioners, and policy makers who influence EFL learning outcomes and provides in-depth and well-rounded understanding of the EFL motivational learning processes and teaching practices in the Saudi Arabian context; helping fill a gap in current knowledge about important contemporary developments in SA and how best to support them.23 0