Rahma Al-Mahrooqi

Can Thinking Be Taught? Linking Critical Thinking and Writing in an EFL Context.

While thinking critically is often perceived to be the primary purpose of reading, the question of whether it can actually be taught in classrooms has been extensively debated. This paper bases itself on a qualitative case study of university students completing a degree in English Language and Literature. It explores the way in which critical thinking can be taught in EFL contexts. The paper suggests that critical thinking is best defined as a series of skills which can be continuously worked upon by students for whom constant revision and application of these skills is a significant way of internalizing what has often been seen to be just an attitude or bent of mind. This skill is further enhanced when students get an opportunity to write on the areas which have been discussed in the class, particularly if they are of some relevance to the students’ own contexts. Based on the open question format of Norris and Ennis (1989) and subsequent evaluation using the rubrics of McLaughlin and Moore (2012) which take into account the critical reading component in writing, this paper investigates the extent to which critical thinking could be enhanced through in-class social practices such as discussions and subsequent writing. The study concludes that continuous practice, both oral and written, provide opportunities for students to develop their critical thinking abilities as they become more successful in incorporating nuanced and critical ideas into their academic writings. This has implications for students’ academic and personal achievements because, clearly, an inability to read critically will result in an inability to write insightfully. Various strategies are then suggested to facilitate learners’ use of critical thinking skills so that they may successfully incorporate them into their writing, both in an academic context and as a life-long skill.

Characteristics of a Good EFL Teacher: Omani EFL Teacher and Student Perspectives

Researchers have long been interested in the characteristics associated with “good” teaching. However, most relevant studies have been conducted in Western contexts. As cultural background has a strong influence on the way good teaching is perceived, it was considered important to explore this issue in the Arab Gulf. The current study sought to compare Omani school students’ and teachers’ perceptions of the characteristics of good English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers in the Omani context. To achieve this, 171 Omani students and 233 English teachers responded to a seven-category, 68-item questionnaire utilizing a 4-point Likert-type response key. Descriptive statistics and t tests were used to determine perceptions of good teacher characteristics and differences between students’ and teachers’ responses. Results indicate that Omani students and teachers generally agree about the importance of all characteristic categories, with those related to English language proficiency and treating students equally being of special importance. Participants also agreed that knowledge of Western culture/s and the use of technology were relatively unimportant. Implications of these findings for EFL teaching in Oman are discussed.

Omani Parents’ Involvement in Their Children’s English Education:

High levels of parental/guardian involvement in their children’s education are often associated with a number of educational, social, and even psychological benefits. These include higher rates of school attendance, greater communication with the school or education provider, better social adjustment, and higher levels of academic achievement including in the development of literacy skills. However, despite this, research from the Arab world on the relationship between parental involvement and children’s development of English language literacy skills has tended to report mixed results, with this also being the case in the Sultanate of Oman. To explore this issue within the Omani context, the current study examined the potential benefits, challenges, and practices of Omani parents as these relate to their children’s English language studies. A two-section Likert-type response scale questionnaire was administered to 391 parents of students in the country’s public school system. The first questionnaire section related to participants’ attitudes about parental involvement in their children’s English studies while the second explored the frequency with which parents engaged in activities related to their children’s English classes. Results indicate that Omani parents are generally aware of the importance of their involvement in their children’s development and believe that they should be involved in a number of home- and school-based activities. However, despite this, their actual level of involvement in their children’s English language studies was somewhat limited.

Emotional Intelligence in Language Instruction in Oman: The Missing Link?

The field of English Language Teaching (ELT) has long sought to identify traits of good language learners, in an effort to teach these traits to less successful language learners (Rubin, 1975). Emotional Intelligence has recently come to the forefront of research on language learning and teaching, and is now increasingly recognized as an important predictor of success in academic achievement in general, and success in learning a language (Goleman, 1995; Rastegar and Karami, 2013; Sucaromana, 2012). Recent years have seen a proliferation of research linking Emotional Intelligence to success in the English as a Second Language (ESL) and English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms. Hence researchers have recommended explicit Emotional Intelligence instruction in language classrooms. With the importance of English in today’s globalized world, and the greater need to communicate in English, fostering a student’s communicative ability is important, particularly in an EFL context like Oman. The Government of Oman has invested heavily in English language instruction, but unfortunately, the investment has not paid off. While there exists a substantial volume of research identifying possible reasons for students’ inadequate grasp of English even after years of language instruction both at the school and university levels, research linking emotional skills and language learning success in Oman is lacking. This article investigates whether a lack of Emotional Intelligence skills could be one of the reasons for the failure of students to achieve competence in English. Results from questionnaires of multiple choice and open-ended questions distributed to 60 university students at a large public university in the Sultanate of Oman show that a lack of Emotional Intelligence impacts a student’s ability to learn. The authors conclude that directly focusing on Emotional Intelligence skills in Omani university classrooms could result in improving students’ overall achievement both at university in general, and in English specifically.

Methodologies for Effective Writing Instruction in EFL and ESL Classrooms.

• Applied Linguistics • Challenges in Education • Cross-Cultural Communication • Educators’ Training and Skills • Grammar and Vocabulary • Non-Native English Speakers • Student Perceptions • Teaching Practice and Development • Technology and Education Educators continue to strive for advanced teaching methods to bridge the gap between native and non-native English speaking students. Lessons on written forms of communication continue to be a challenge recognized by educators who wish to improve student comprehension and overall ability to write clearly and expressively.

English Discourse of Tourism: An Example of Oman

Acknowledging the importance of English as the language of tourism discourse, this paper explores its current standing in the landscape of tourism in Oman. It also investigates its features and functions aimed at promoting the country as a wonderful tourist destination to people around the globe and framing tourism as a customer-oriented industry that meets tourists` interests and needs. To convey these messages the authors examine English tourism discourse in Oman from linguistic, pragmatic and socio-cultural perspectives.

English Language Proficiency and Communicative Competence in Oman: Implications for Employability and Sustainable Development

Within the Sultanate of Oman, English, as the country’s only official foreign language, is in great demand by the job market. The language is taught in the majority of government schools from the first grade and is the dominant medium of instruction at the tertiary level. However, despite the huge amount of human and financial resources the government channels into supporting English language instruction, this investment has apparently failed to deliver the expected gains with both secondary- and tertiary-level graduates often reported as being weak in the language and as having communication skills that are inadequate for the workforce. This lack of English proficiency and communicative competence is commonly cited as one of the major causes of the high levels of unemployment among Omani graduates. This paper examines a number of issues related to the ways in which English language proficiency and communicative competence are developed in Omani schools and universities, with a focus on the challenges that exist within the government education system. The implications of these challenges for graduate employability and sustainable development are explored, before recommendations for bridging the gap between graduates’ English language skills and the demands of the workforce in Oman are discussed.

Student Evaluation of Their English Language Teachers in Omani Basic Education Schools

This research addresses the qualities of English language teachers in Omani schools from the perspective of school students. Using a self-report questionnaire designed to measure teacher’s various knowledge bases (i.e. content and pedagogical knowledge about teaching and learning, classroom management, teacher knowledge about both themselves and their students), the study specifically investigated the perceptions of 171 grade 9–12 school students of the qualities of their current English language teachers. The findings suggest that (1) the students perceived their teachers positively in all investigated qualities, (2) the students perceived teachers to be stronger in the affective domain (e.g. enthusiasm for teaching and fairness between students) than in the academic or cognitive domains (e.g. content and pedagogy) and (3) despite the absence of a gender effect, a significant academic achievement effect was detected. The final results suggest that teachers in grades 9 and 10 were perceived to possess more positive qualities by their students compared to teachers in grades 11 and 12. The study concludes by highlighting the importance of context in the education of English language teachers.

Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Alternative Assessment in the English Language Foundation Program of an Omani University

Recent reforms to education systems around the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region have resulted in the increased use of alternative forms of assessment across a number of subjects, including EFL/ESL. This is certainly the case in Oman, where alternative assessment assumes an important role in both the country’s Basic Education schools and in English language foundation programs at the tertiary level. However, despite their growing importance, as of yet very few studies have examined how these forms of assessment are implemented and the challenges associated with them in an Omani context. For these reasons, the current exploratory study examined attitudes toward, and practices of, alternative assessment in an English language foundation program in Oman’s Sultan Qaboos University (SQU). In order to do this, 10 English language instructors on SQU’s Language Centre (now the Centre for Preparatory Studies) foundation program were administered a questionnaire featuring 13 open-ended questions. Results indicate that participants hold mostly positive attitudes toward alternative assessment though express a number of concerns related to cheating/copying, time requirements, and subjective marking practices. Implications of these findings for alternative assessment within the Omani and MENA context are discussed.

An Exploration of the English-Language Reading Habits of Omani University Students

Despite the many advantages that developing reading skills can offer, countries in the Arab world, including Oman, are often characterized as not having well-developed reading cultures. This exploratory research aimed to gain a clearer picture of the reading habits of tertiary-level students in a public university in Oman. Ninety-five participants were administered a 5-item open-ended questionnaire eliciting information about various aspects of their English reading habits. Results indicate that around half of participants read sometimes and most claimed reading to be one of their hobbies. In addition, a majority of participants claimed to be aware of reading strategies that could enhance their reading skills, and also believed that it was important to develop their core language skills and vocabulary ranges, even though the influence of teachers in this was considered minimal. Implications of these findings for reading instruction in Oman and the Arab world are discussed.