A Master of Arts thesis in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) by Taghreed Ib... more A Master of Arts thesis in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) by Taghreed Ibrahim Masri entitled, "Level of Proficiency in Arabic and English, and Identity of Emirati Students in UAE Public Schools," May 2012. Thesis advisor is Dr. Fatima Badry. Available are both hard and soft copies of the thesis.
International Journal on Minority and Group Rights
In higher education in the UAE, English is used as the medium of instruction, while academic Arab... more In higher education in the UAE, English is used as the medium of instruction, while academic Arabic is relegated to few electives that can be also taken in English. Policy makers perceive the transition from Arabic medium instruction (ami) schools to English medium instruction (emi) universities as normal and automatic. This study aims to explore how students see this transition, and whether they find it automatic and smooth, or embroiled in hardship and difficulties. It is based on a critical theoretical framework and is approached using exploratory critical methodology. Twenty semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty undergraduate Arab students in three English-medium universities. Results showed that students faced psychological, academic, social and cultural difficulties associated with the transition from Arabic schools to English-medium instruction universities.
Professional identity has recently made its way as a concept that has become a central theme in t... more Professional identity has recently made its way as a concept that has become a central theme in teachers’ professionalism. However, adjunct faculty professional identity and development have not been given enough interest in literature despite their increasing contribution in higher education. The purpose of this study was to assess adjuncts’ perceptions of their identity. It also aimed to examine what institutional professional development they receive and the effect of its presence or absence on their professional identity. Four semi-structured interviews were conducted with four adjunct faculty in the Department of Writing Studies at a university in the UAE. Results showed that adjunct faculty have dilemma making sense of their professional selves due to being perceived differently by their students, colleagues, administrators and themselves. Results also showed that adjuncts are vulnerable, insecure, and embarrassed to declare their identity to their students. In addition, findi...
International Journal of Bilingual & Multilingual Teachers of English
Because English is the medium of instruction in higher education in the UAE, many students coming... more Because English is the medium of instruction in higher education in the UAE, many students coming from public schools, where English is taught as a subject, find themselves at the periphery; excluded from access to the discourses of the academic culture, and rather blamed for lacking the skills and the proficiency to cope with the demands of writing courses. These freshmen are compelled to master academic writing, an endeavor they are poorly prepared for. They recognize that they would not go on to wear the undergraduate gown, no matter how brilliantly they had performed in all the subjects, unless they had a credit in English (Ngugi, as cited in Pennycook, 1995). Very few studies have examined the difficulties these students face in coping with writing demands. This study aims to analyze within a critical applied linguistics framework what these students go through as a result of contradictory language policies. It also aims to give these students the chance to voice their challenges and suffering. An exploratory methodology with an element of critical ethnography was employed. Qualitative data obtained through interviews and classroom observation showed that these students face huge difficulties with the writing courses due to their previous poor schooling. Consequently, they suffer from a sense of marginalization from the classroom discourse. Results also showed that the price these students paid was very high in relation to their GPA and academic success.
The overwhelming power that English enjoys has become a threat to many indigenous languages that ... more The overwhelming power that English enjoys has become a threat to many indigenous languages that are losing the battle against English dominance and hegemony. One facet for this threat is the use of English as a medium of instruction (EMI). The EMI policy has been a naturalized and taken-for-granted practice without questioning or problematizing. As a result, academic Arabic is almost absent from the academic scene in the UAE higher education. This study aims to problematize the use of English as medium of instruction at three universities in the United Arab Emirates. It also aims to critically explore the perceptions of Arab university students who were in Arabic schools, of their Arabic proficiency after studying at university. Based on critical theoretical framework and approached from interpretive and critical paradigms, the study used a mixed-methods approach of quantitative and qualitative data collection methods. 268 surveys and 20 semi-structured interviews showed that stude...
A Master of Arts thesis in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) by Taghreed Ib... more A Master of Arts thesis in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) by Taghreed Ibrahim Masri entitled, "Level of Proficiency in Arabic and English, and Identity of Emirati Students in UAE Public Schools," May 2012. Thesis advisor is Dr. Fatima Badry. Available are both hard and soft copies of the thesis.
International Journal on Minority and Group Rights
In higher education in the UAE, English is used as the medium of instruction, while academic Arab... more In higher education in the UAE, English is used as the medium of instruction, while academic Arabic is relegated to few electives that can be also taken in English. Policy makers perceive the transition from Arabic medium instruction (ami) schools to English medium instruction (emi) universities as normal and automatic. This study aims to explore how students see this transition, and whether they find it automatic and smooth, or embroiled in hardship and difficulties. It is based on a critical theoretical framework and is approached using exploratory critical methodology. Twenty semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty undergraduate Arab students in three English-medium universities. Results showed that students faced psychological, academic, social and cultural difficulties associated with the transition from Arabic schools to English-medium instruction universities.
Professional identity has recently made its way as a concept that has become a central theme in t... more Professional identity has recently made its way as a concept that has become a central theme in teachers’ professionalism. However, adjunct faculty professional identity and development have not been given enough interest in literature despite their increasing contribution in higher education. The purpose of this study was to assess adjuncts’ perceptions of their identity. It also aimed to examine what institutional professional development they receive and the effect of its presence or absence on their professional identity. Four semi-structured interviews were conducted with four adjunct faculty in the Department of Writing Studies at a university in the UAE. Results showed that adjunct faculty have dilemma making sense of their professional selves due to being perceived differently by their students, colleagues, administrators and themselves. Results also showed that adjuncts are vulnerable, insecure, and embarrassed to declare their identity to their students. In addition, findi...
International Journal of Bilingual & Multilingual Teachers of English
Because English is the medium of instruction in higher education in the UAE, many students coming... more Because English is the medium of instruction in higher education in the UAE, many students coming from public schools, where English is taught as a subject, find themselves at the periphery; excluded from access to the discourses of the academic culture, and rather blamed for lacking the skills and the proficiency to cope with the demands of writing courses. These freshmen are compelled to master academic writing, an endeavor they are poorly prepared for. They recognize that they would not go on to wear the undergraduate gown, no matter how brilliantly they had performed in all the subjects, unless they had a credit in English (Ngugi, as cited in Pennycook, 1995). Very few studies have examined the difficulties these students face in coping with writing demands. This study aims to analyze within a critical applied linguistics framework what these students go through as a result of contradictory language policies. It also aims to give these students the chance to voice their challenges and suffering. An exploratory methodology with an element of critical ethnography was employed. Qualitative data obtained through interviews and classroom observation showed that these students face huge difficulties with the writing courses due to their previous poor schooling. Consequently, they suffer from a sense of marginalization from the classroom discourse. Results also showed that the price these students paid was very high in relation to their GPA and academic success.
The overwhelming power that English enjoys has become a threat to many indigenous languages that ... more The overwhelming power that English enjoys has become a threat to many indigenous languages that are losing the battle against English dominance and hegemony. One facet for this threat is the use of English as a medium of instruction (EMI). The EMI policy has been a naturalized and taken-for-granted practice without questioning or problematizing. As a result, academic Arabic is almost absent from the academic scene in the UAE higher education. This study aims to problematize the use of English as medium of instruction at three universities in the United Arab Emirates. It also aims to critically explore the perceptions of Arab university students who were in Arabic schools, of their Arabic proficiency after studying at university. Based on critical theoretical framework and approached from interpretive and critical paradigms, the study used a mixed-methods approach of quantitative and qualitative data collection methods. 268 surveys and 20 semi-structured interviews showed that stude...
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