The attitudes of teachers and students towards using Arabic in EFL classrooms in public schools-A case study

Bu çalışma, son zamanlarda dikkatleri üzerine toplayan bir konu olarak Suudi öğretmenlerin ve öğrencilerin kolaşlaştırıcı bir araç olarak Arapçayı, İngilizce sınıflarında kullanmaya yönelik tutumlarını incemiştir. Bu çalışma, durum çalışması yöntemiyle, orta seviye bir kız okulunda okuyan Suudi öğrencilerin ve bu okulda çalışan öğretmenlerin ilgili konuda tutumlarını incelemeyi amaçlamıştır. Konuyu açığa kavuşturmak amacıyla, 30 öğrencinin bulunduğu orta seviyede bir sınıf ve okulda çalışan üç öğretmen üzerinde yoğunlaşılmıştır. Veri toplamak amacıyla, üç araç kullanılmıştır: anketler, görüşmeler, ve sınıfın dört defa gözlemlenmesi. Sonuçlar göstermektedir ki hem öğretmenlerin hem de öğrencilerin Arapça kullanmaya yönelik genelde olumlu tutumları bulunmaktadır. Katılımcılar belirli durumlarda ve yine belirli sebeplerle Arapçayı kullanmayı tercih etmektedirler. Öğretmen ve öğrenci tutumları katılımcılar arasında benzerlikler gösterse de tutum farklılıklarının olduğu çeşitli konular da bulunmaktadır. Çalışmada, sonraki çalışmalara ve sorunlara yönelik çözüm önerileri de tartışılmıştır.

This paper examined the attitudes of Saudi teachers and students towards employing Arabic as a facilitating tool in English classes, a topic which has gained wide attention recently. The present study was a case study which investigated teachers' and students' attitudes towards this issue in a Saudi intermediate school for females. To reach a clear understanding of this issue, the study focused on one intermediate classroom which had 30 students and three teachers of English in the entire school. Three research tools were used for gathering data: questionnaires, interviews and four observations of one classroom. The results revealed that the attitudes of the teachers and the students about using Arabic were generally positive. The participants preferred using Arabic in certain situations and for specific reasons. Although the attitudes of the teachers and the students received agreements, there were other points on which they disagreed. Recommendations for future studies and solutions were discussed.

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