The world has started to undergo all kinds of influences connected to the process of globalisation many decades ago. The boundaries between counties get vague, communication and interactions become more active, travelling is a usual part of modern humans’ lives.
The tragic events, which happened on the eleventh of September in 2001, have made a huge impact on the whole world, touched many people and affected the economical, social, political and cultural environment. Arabic culture has experienced many changes connected to those tragic events.
The world dominated by the English language and American business has made the Arabic traditions and language adjust and adapt to the newly occurring relationships. The scientists have explored various processes that started in the field of Arabic education and especially language studies.
The goals of the research were to reveal the changes that happened in the educational system of Arabic countries after the events of 9/11 (Dahbi, 2004).
Main question explored during the researches was about the relationship between the new western model of education and the traditional Islamic model (Rabasa, Vaxman, Larson and Macum, 2004).
Another aim of these researches was to find out the popularity and frequency of use of English language among Arabic population compared to the use of native languages.
Based on the research papers I have reviewed for my work, I have decided to propose a research of the popularity of English language as a subject in Arabic schools nowadays.
I would like to explore how the events of 9/11 impacted the number of schools studying English as a necessary discipline, how the number of students learning English changed, what it used to be before 2001 and what it is now.
Some Arabic countries are very ambitious and prosperous; they have started to experience the process and consequences of globalisation long ago.
From the research work by Elyas it is known that the educational system in Arabic countries was modernised in order to provide the countries’ interaction with the rest of the world (2002).
The goals of my research are to find out how the changes in educational system in Arabic countries influenced the methodology of teaching English and the popularity of English language as a subject. Subsidiary questions might include:
- How did the number of students willing to study English as a foreign language change after 2001?
- How did the style of teaching English change?
- What kinds of topics appeared in English language textbooks?
- How did the number of schools suggesting English as a necessary discipline?
- How did the modernisation of educational system influence the way English language is being taught in Arabic schools?
- Is there a difference between the changes that happened in more advanced Arabic countries and the ones in poor Arabic countries?
The method that is going to be used during the research is deductive or “top-down” method, as we already have a theory based on the researches conducted by Warschauer, El Said and Zohry providing the knowledge about the types of knowledge the young specialists and internet users have to possess in order to be successful as workers (2002).
The research is going to explore the types of knowledge people receive in schools as a base of their future development as potential employees. Besides, to provide qualitative approach inductive method is going to be used in order to allow the research produce new theories and hypotheses.
The data needed for the research could be collected from reviewing the textbooks and teaching programs popular in Arabic countries, topics for discussion they suggest, interviews with Arabic teachers and students, statistical information.
The forms of data that will be collected during the research are going to be narrative and numeric. Holistic and statistical analyses are going to be applied.
The research is designed to have a closer look at the events happening in the Arabic educational systems, as they are both the moving force and the result of social changes and cultural development.
These changes are meaningful because Arabic countries are a big part of the modern world; changes happening in Arabic mentality come directly from the changes in up-bringing and education, these metamorphoses could significantly influence the environment in the whole world.
This is why the research is important – it provides better understanding of the processes happening in Arabic culture, it offers a fresh look to the new model of Arabic social culture, introduces the world to the knowledge that would not occur to many people without the research works of this kind.
In the modern world multiple aspects of Arabic culture and society attract a lot of public attention. Various factors and processes are being researched.
To my mind, the educational system is one of the bases that form the contemporary collective image of all Arabic cultures. In the world that is so interested in all the changes happening there, the research in the sphere of education is going to be interesting and useful.
Reference List
Elyas, T. (2002). The Attitude and the Impact of the American English as a Global Language within the Saudi Education System. Novitas-ROYAL, 2 (1), 28-48.
Dahbi, M. English and Arabic After 9/11. (2004). The Modern Language Journal, 88 (4), 628-631
Rabasa, A. Vaxman, M., Larson E. V., Marcum, C. Y. (2004). The Muslim World after 9/11. Santa Monica, CA: Rand Corporation.
Warschauer, M., El Said, G. R., Zohry, A. G. (2006). Language Choice Online: Globalisation and Identity in Egypt. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 7 (4).