Saudi Cultural Missions Theses & Dissertations
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://drepo.sdl.edu.sa/handle/20.500.14154/10
Browse
3 results
Search Results
Item Restricted Theory and Practice: Exploring an Evidence-Based Framework for Call and Language Teacher Education(Washington State University, 2024) Asiri, Ali; Egbert, JoyThis comprehensive overview synthesizes findings from two studies that explored English language education and teacher preparation through evidence-based approaches. The first study addresses the challenge of effectively integrating up-to-date technology into language classrooms, mainly focusing on computer-assisted language learning (CALL) professional development (PD) for English language teachers in Saudi Arabia. This theory-to-practice paper reviews existing literature on teacher PD and CALL PD, culminating in the proposal of a CALL PD framework tailored to the Saudi context. This framework incorporates elements identified as effective in improving current and future CALL PD initiatives. The second study explores the integration of educational escape rooms (EERs) as a novel strategy within teacher preparation programs. While EERs have proven effective in supporting learners across various disciplines, the study addresses the gap in research regarding their application in teacher preparation. The investigation incorporates four evidence-based theoretical elements (content authenticity, active learning, modeling effective instruction, and providing ongoing experiences) into the design of EERs for 45 pre-service teachers. The results highlight key themes in participant interactions during escape room experiences, shedding light on teamwork dynamics and communication. Moreover, participants reported enhanced learning experiences, emphasizing elements such as authenticity, active learning, 21st-century skills, modeling, challenge, and technology use. The findings suggest that designing learning experiences based on these elements can significantly benefit pre-service teachers, offering meaningful insights for teaching and future research directions.11 0Item Restricted Novice Arabic language Teachers’ Perceptions of their Preparation Programmes and their First Years of Practising Teaching in Saudi Arabia(Open Research Exeter, 2024-03-04) Maash, Wesal; Troudi, SalahThis study explores Arabic language teachers’ perceptions concerning their preparation programmes and their first years of teaching experience in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The study is informed by the interpretive paradigm due to its exploratory nature. A mixed-method sequential design was utilised to collect the data. Quantitative and qualitative approaches were applied consecutively, with more emphasis on the qualitative strand. The study utilised reflective essays and one-to-one semi-structured interviews in the qualitative stage, in addition to an online questionnaire in the quantitative stage. Thematic analysis was conducted for qualitative data and descriptive statistics for the quantitative data. The analysis of both sets of data culminated in the emergence of two main themes: teachers’ perceptions of their preparation programmes and of their novice teaching experiences. The findings highlighted the issue of the admission system, the focus on the theoretical aspect, the neglect of the practical aspect, and the lack of focus on pedagogical content knowledge within these programmes. The findings also highlighted the challenges teachers encountered during the first years of the teaching profession and linked these challenges to their knowledge and preparation. The study concluded by proposing recommendations for the educational authorities and policymakers in Saudi teachers' education programmes.46 0Item Restricted Investigating The Effect Of Motivational Design On Saudi University Students’ Motivation And L2 Writing Performance: An Experimental Mixed Methods Design Using Keller’S Arcs Model(ProQuest, 2023) Alzahrani, Raed; Crookes, GrahamAccording to Boo et al. (2015), between 2005 and 2014, the majority of L2 motivation studies focused on general learner motivation, neglecting research on motivating learners in classroom contexts. Similarly, Sudina (2021) stated that most research on motivation focused on students’ individual motivation, even though what teachers do to motivate students in the classroom is also of major interest. Although some attempts have been made to propose motivational strategies for teachers (Dörnyei, 2001), traditional motivation research in SLA rarely considered the influence of classroom materials and instructional practices as the interface between motivation and learning. To this end, the present study brought Keller’s (2010) Attention, Relevance, Confidence, Satisfaction (ARCS) model from educational psychology to applied linguistics, as recommended by Crookes and Schmidt (1991) and Lamb (2019), to address how materials and associated teacher instructional practices can be motivating based on a motivational theory of instruction. It investigated the effect of teachers’ implementation of an ARCS-based motivational strategies intervention on the motivation and L2 writing development of EFL learners. The study employed an experimental mixed-methods approach, randomly assigning 82 Saudi adult EFL students to an experimental group (N = 50) or a control group (N = 32). Two teachers of the experimental group received an instructional guide for implementing 17 ARCSbased motivational strategies, while the one teacher of the control group followed conventional methods. Data collection occurred over a 7-week period, involving four pre-posttest motivation surveys and writing tests, audio recordings, observations, exit interviews, and reflection journals collected from teachers and students. The findings obtained from the quantitative analysis showed that the ARCS-based intervention had a small to medium effect on students’ instruction-related motivation, while no significant changes were found on other aspects of motivation such as intrinsic motivation, motivational self-evaluation, and course interest. It also showed that the intervention had a medium-sized effect on students’ overall L2 writing development, specifically on aspects of content and communicative achievement. Nevertheless, no significant changes were discerned in aspects related to organization, language, and fluency, despite more pronounced changes over time in the treatment group compared to the control group. The qualitative analysis of students’ interviews showed that the ARCS-based intervention had noticeable effects on students’ motivation and engagement in the classroom. The qualitative results also added some context and deeper insights into how students perceived the intervention, how it affected their motivation, which motivational strategies the students noticed being used consistently by the teacher, and what specific strategies they felt helped improve their writing. Additionally, interviews with teachers who implemented the intervention shed light on teachers’ motivational practices, revealing their personal growth as educators and their intent to continue implementing these strategies in their teaching while recommending them to other teachers. The study concludes with pedagogical recommendations for teachers to utilize various motivational strategies in their instruction and some recommendations for researchers to help understand more about this line of research.15 0