Topic
The aspect of the education most important to the government in UAE is “How to teach English to children in UAE”. It is the prime focus of the government and various other agencies that look after the education system in the country. The importance is more because it affects other aspects of education such as school environment, better teaching facilities and global exposure.
Introduction and Rationale
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has progressed in terms of education ensuring a high literacy rate of 95% from past some years. It began with the formation of federation after which the government dedicated 25% of their treasury to education. Currently the literacy rate stands at 91%. The government is devoted to meet full literacy by 2010. Despite the efforts made by the government, the education provided in UAE lacks or undermines various aspects because of which it does not have a good education index.
The cultural differences in terms of language spoken, and class differences creates difference in learning. The people of UAE are not familiar with the language English which prevents their chances to compete in global arena as English is an accepted International language. Most of the education provided in the schools is based on cultural traditions which does help maintain the liveliness of culture but does discriminate against the other expatriates residing in the country. Since, there is a strong need to globalise; the education system should be set on global lines so that it is more comfortable for the people in UAE to mingle with the rest of the world and vice-a-versa. The linguistic differences prevent people from trading with the outside world directly as they need an intermediate party to speak for them. This kills their supremacy in the issue and also they are forced to share some part of profit with others.
The incapability of the locals in understanding the newer technologies has indeed forced the inflow of expatriates who were more aware of the changing scenarios. The discoveries of oil in the United Arab Emirates lead to the fast growth which required immense human capital but the locals were not much aware and capable of meeting the requirements. The reason for the above is that the newer technologies and higher education was not provided in the Arab countries. They were receiving the same traditional knowledge being forwarded to them by their elders. A different language i.e., Arabic did not have many publications to impart higher education. It was mainly in English, hence the ones who were aware of the English language could learn more but most of the folk were not educated. The current problem with UAE is its education, it has a high literacy rate but literacy does not build technology it’s the education does. Literacy is just learning to read and write so that you can communicate with your fellow men which could help at lower level but education is the art of gaining knowledge and specializing in a field which helps an individual eliminate his weaknesses and advance to a higher level. Since, it is important so education should be cast in primary level i.e., schools. This would greatly improve their English level too. (Aspects of Education on web)
Research Questions
The aim of the study is to understand the present condition of the education system in UAE, to find out the problems faced by the education system in the state focusing on the use of English by the locals.
The study also elaborates on the various efforts which the government has undertaken to improve the present scenario and the ones which should be taken into consideration, not yet implemented.
The study greatly explores the benefits of using English as a language for higher studies and inclusion of it in the contemporary school syllabus. It also illustrates the ways in which this could be made possible such as improving the teachers in the school could very well help enhance the level of education and thus the school environment could be counted upon.
The English language is related to several other aspects of education and helps in eradicating most of them such as are brain research, cultural differences, school environment, learning methodology, learning disabilities and society. The Brain Research focuses on exploring newer dimensions to the already existing platform. It does not intent to make one just literate i.e., gaining understanding to read and write but implicates education i.e., to enhance one’s abilities and utilisation of these to build a prospective future. It bestows the people with something more important and relevant than traditional learning. The culture diversity in UAE imposes great problems to the existing education system. The linguistic differences prevent people from trading with the outside world directly as they need an intermediate party to speak for them. This leads to the loss of their edge over the issue and also loses some amount of their money in the process. The expatriate are much more technologically driven. The technological advancement continued and in order to remain in touch with it and walk hand in hand with the rest of the world they had to attract manpower from outside because the uneducated folk would be of no help to them. The nation wanted to keep its heritage, its system of education which imparted education in Arabic but since English has been accepted language and they had to deal with their traders with it, they lacked in communicating with them which led to their fall in certain sectors which required development. The current problem with UAE is its education, it has a high literacy rate but literacy does not build technology it’s the education does.
Literature Review
Literature review is a survey or summarized from of the past research work or their results written in one place. It is of great importance to the researcher as it provides the past knowledge of the concept and work already done in the field. It prevents redundancy of the data i.e., repetition of the work and helps the researcher to know from where to initiate his research. The main aim of the review is to understand the past and thus eradicate the problems or gaps created over the years. The revaluation can be done either from references, newspapers, books etc. The literature review also brings into consideration the views of different people who have undertaken the study on the same topic.
The topic for the study is “how to teach English to children in UAE”. The use of English in the Arab countries is small because the grasping power of Arab people in the study of English is considered low. The reason is their negligence to it at primary level. The elementary schools in UAE are small in number which offers education in Arabic laying emphasis on English as a secondary language which is optional. However, the private schools in general have English as their medium of instruction. The literacy level is quite high in Arab countries because of the government policy of free education to its citizens but only 10% of the people have post graduate degree which implies after schooling, most of the locals drop out of education. Thus the level of education is quite low. However the government is trying to develop new sectors which could fulfil the requirement but the situation has remained the same. The children of the expatriate either send their wards to their home country or to a western country for education since the majority studies in Arabic, it does not provide the outsiders with the right environment to learn. According to several articles published in recent times, UAE has laid focus on its education sector because it is the basis for all knowledge of the country. A lot of funds have been allocated to the education sector with collaborations with several high profile institutions to provide quality education. The government has also made the charges null for its citizens from kindergarten to university level. The urge to mix English language into their culture has started with the spread of private institutions and increase in the number of teachers. The teachers are mainly expatriates as they find the job pretty lucrative and safe. The dearth of locals in applying for teaching services has crippled the government and they are forced to provide jobs to the outside people. UAE has become a centre in the field of teaching as their articles or posts can be readily read in the newspapers, on internet welcoming better teachers for the growing education sector. The linguistic difference between the locals and the expatriates is a reason for a slower growth in UAE globally. English can serve as a common language which could eradicate the difference between the two groups. The expatriates are very important for UAE in recent times as it lacks human capital, in some places the expatriates overshadow locals in number, thus the government policy in terms of imparting English education on secondary basis is not helping its people and causing discomfort to the expatriates. (UAE Education Centre)
The efforts already made by the government in the area include the formation of committees implementing newer learning methodologies, programs and initiatives. An enhanced version of mathematics with the consolidation of science has been introduced to meet the technological advances and awareness among the locals. The level of English needs to be improved by ensuring better teachers and infrastructure. Emiratisation would increase to 90% by 2020 as predicted which reflects the growing hold of the locals in the fields of business and education.
The basic education starts from the age of 4 yrs and continues till 18 covering the kindergarten, primary, preparatory, secondary and higher secondary phases of learning. American Distance Education Consortium (ADEC) was established so as to develop the English speaking in the Arab countries i.e., to include English as a prime language in their process of learning. They also help in providing distinct faculty to achieve the former. (Teaching or Education Sector in Dubai)
Overall the research has showed that the efforts have been made to uplift the level of education in the Arab countries but the lower grasping level of the local people has not helped. The efforts did not reflect greater change on the lower or elementary primary teaching which forms the roots for the whole knowledge driven tree. The suggestions for improvement were not stable and the cultural differences between the expatriates and the locals led to a gap in the education system. These differences and levels could be resolved with decisions as discussed later.
Methodology:
Methodology of any research is quite important in getting research done in a synchronized manner and ensuring that it achieves the objectives in the best possible way. The main aspects of methodology include taking a Sample, collecting related data, analyzing data and taking the ethics into consideration. All these postulates have been discussed in detail below:
Sample
Selecting an appropriate sample from the entire population instead of concentrating on the entire population not only reduces time but also reduces the elements which might lead to deviation from the objective. In this case the sample selected contains people related to education, people in the professional world not knowing English and thus facing the problem themselves. The sample also includes the dignitaries currently involved in the education system as they are the once who are aware of the problems in implementing the ideas in order to spread English as a language and are also aware of the steps taken by the government and also the rules and regulations of the government.
Data Collection
Collection of data plays an important role in understanding the current scenario and predicting the impact of current moves on the country as a whole. In this particular research the data to be collected included literacy rate, number of people knowing English and the steps taken by the government to spread English throughout the country. The data also included various rights of education given to the people of United Arab Emirates by the constitution of U.A.E.
Data Analysis
Analyzing the data collected from various sources has a great influence on the research performed as it not only gives a probe into the prevailing condition but also helps in finding the best possible solution in the current scenario. For example in this case seeing the literacy rate it was quite clear that most of the people know to read and write but the only problem faced is that the education is mostly in their native language instead of international language. Also considering the reforms of the government it was quite clear that the current emphasis of the government is on teaching English to its people. And on deep analysis it can be made out that the main problem is somewhere in the unawareness of people of the country towards the merits of knowing English.
Ethical Considerations
In this case the main ethical consideration is not to hurt the feelings of the people relating to their traditions as the people in U.A.E. seem to be very much attached to their tradition and culture. In this project if at any stage we try to show superiority of English over the traditional language of the people it might hurt the sentiments of the people. Hence it is important to tell the benefits of knowing English without comparing it to their traditional languages.
Findings
Figures in the recent past show that literacy has not been a problem for U.A.E. with an overall literacy rate of 91% but literacy does not mean education and when it comes to learning English the percentage drops further. Literacy is just the ability to read and write and due to high influence of traditional ways most people know to read and write only in their traditional language.
U.A.E. as a country has grown at a good pace since its establishment due to huge reserves of oil in the country. It is a major exporter of oil and oil products to various countries around the world which leads to huge inflow of foreign exchange in the country. The problem arises when the people of Dubai are not able to communicate directly with their clients due to their inability in speaking English fluently. In such cases they are forced to hire a mediator to convey their point of view to their clients. The problem has become even bigger with increasing globalization, liberalization and with U.A.E developing in other sectors also.
Initially when the country was dealing with oil only it was possible for the people to keep their points with the help of mediators but as development is taking place in other industries some of which are very strategic, involving a third person means another share in the profit and also the reliability of the person may be questionable as sometimes he may be used to convey confidential information to clients or the other party involved in the deal. Involving a third person in most cases also means less efficient explanation of future strategies and plans to the clients as during conversion from one language to another misinterpretation or personal bias of the mediator may affect the talk.
Considering the above mentioned postulates it is quite clear that good training in English is quite important for the people of U.A.E. in order to get better revenues, increase survivability and reduce susceptibility for people involved in various industries. After identifying these problems I have also identified various obstructions in teaching English to the people of U.A.E. The cultures and traditions have a strong hold on the people of Dubai even today and usually traditional languages like Arabic are used in the common conversation between the people in the country. Also many instances of traditional languages used in professional areas and even in education are still visible.
In the recent past it has been seen that the emphasis of the government on English as a language has greatly increased as it has realized the importance of using English in the professionals as it has become a globally accepted language for professionals and has taken many steps to spread the use of English in the country. One of the main hindrances in teaching English to the masses is the cultural differences and huge dependence on traditional cultures in the country.
After finding all these things it is most important to bring all these into the notice of the authorities so that more importance is laid on the removing these obstacles from the path. In this process first I would contact authorities of various universities through mediums like mail and letter informing them about the commonly faced problems in teaching English moreover I would ask them to make the students aware of the importance of English in today’s globalised world which would encourage them to learn English. I would also write to the education ministry of U.A.E. informing them about the problem and suggesting them to increase awareness of importance of English in order to get people encouraged about learning English.
Discussion
The findings are pretty significant for the development and adaptation of English as a prime language in UAE. The research aimed at evaluating the present education system prevailing in UAE. It also aimed at providing and exploring the benefits of accepting English as a language and finding newer ways to incorporate English to be used for communication purposes. The Literature Review provides with the current trends followed in the institutes of UAE and the pattern of education which emphasises more on the lines of traditional learning. A better way to make the education system more viable is to recruit more number of teachers who have better understanding of the English language. Educated support staffs helps in coordinating and uplifting the current regime followed. The empowerment of women is another key issue which could help impart education in English. The theory reflects the need for society to understand the implications of accepting English language which could push the linguistic barriers apart. The women affect the growth of children in family, educated women in a family does help in upbringing of children. This could affect the communications skills of people for good. The literature review suggests the various efforts made by the government but giving secondary importance to the English language has not reflected in any change. The growing population has become literate but has not been dwelled by education because of faulty policies of the government. An alternative proposed to collaborate with ADEC was more on the lines of development and correct measure to teach the new folk so as to enhance their capabilities in the areas of IT, marketing etc. There are private institutions which have adopted English as a medium of education and provide teachers chosen at global level but their numbers are few. The government needs to address the issue and follow the same policy keeping alive the traditional practices. In addition to the private schools, language schools could be opened which would lay focus only on improving the communication skills of Arabic people as far as English language is concerned. The British council has also allocated funds and are recruiting eminent teaching staff to provide quality education. There are people who work as translators and interpreters, such people could be handy in increasing the level of grasping of the children in Arab countries. (Teaching English in Dubai)
The reviews from other distinct people do focus on increasing the number of private schools which maps with the ideology of the study. The benefits of the language do decrease the linguistic difference among the people as the problems of the expatriates need to be catered because they in many regions have outnumbered the citizens. The former researchers seemed to be aware of the problems associated with the education system but could not provide viable answers to catch up with the newer trends. The study undertaken provides measures which focus on all sectors of society so that the education system (to promote English language) benefits every ounce in Arab.
Conclusion
With increasing globalization every country is affected by any other country around the world and for proper growth and development it is important for all these countries to interact among themselves and there has to be a common language in order to ensure exchange of dialogues between people of different countries and as English is the most common and accepted language around the world it is important for the people of a country to have a good knowledge of English in other words knowing English today increases the ease to perform good business for any personnel today. U.A.E. being affected by the Arabic culture is quite hardbound by its own cultural and lingual boundaries but with increasing globalization it becomes important for the people of Dubai to break at least the lingual boundaries and accept English as a professional language. This acceptance would lead them to easier communication with people or clients of other countries and also remove third party intervention when the communicating medium is English, which is normally the case in international meetings and discussions. In spreading English throughout the country the universities, schools and dignitaries must take note of the obstacles in spreading English and also aim at increasing awareness among the people and spread the merits of knowing English to the common people. As the people of United Arab Emirates are still following the traditional ways of gaining education the hold of traditional language will not weaken. In this research my aim is not to weaken the hold of traditional language but the main aim is to tighten the grips of English. This task would become easier by teaching English from the childhood this task can be done by including English as a subject in primary school. The task is not finished just by including English as a subject as students in the primary schools will hardly find interest in a new language if they are not motivated by their parents in their houses who might be using traditional languages like Arabic which is the common household language among the majority of population of U.A.E. A solution to this problem can be by making the parents aware of the importance and merits of knowing English. As a result of understanding these merits the parents may motivate their child to learn English. Lastly I would like to say that the importance of English with increasing globalization cannot be under estimated and the main weapon in teaching English is to the masses of U.A.E. is to make people aware of the many advantages they may get after knowing English.
Researchers Voice
While going through this research there were many phases that I had to go through firstly a sample of people had to be selected. This sample included some of the professionals who did not know English as they were the once who were facing the grievances of not knowing English while they communicated with international clients. Various people related with the current education system also had to be considered in order to understand the current education system of U.A.E and also know the problems they faced in spreading English as a language throughout the country. After understanding the problem it was important to put a deep thought to solve this problem. During the identification of problem I found that people were not ready to learn English because they did not know it’s importance until they themselves faced it and also due to the influence of local cultures and tradition which emphasized more on Arabic. After identifying these problems most of my solutions concentrated on making people aware of the positives of knowing English as understanding the benefits they are prone to learn it and are expected to motivate their future generations to learn English which is quite important for survival in today’s globalized world.