Causes of Paradigm Shift from EFL to ESL in Higher Education in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The use of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Saudi Arabia does not appear to continue in the coming years on account of its strong commitment towards the 2030 vision that aims to reformulate and restructure the foundations of the social and economic fabric of the Saudi society. The Arabic language holds its significance in the society due to being a religious language. The current review has analyzed the paradigm shifts from EFL to ESL in higher education in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and predicted the future of English in Saudi Arabia. The major challenge that policymakers may encounter would be how to localize education of English language to meet the Saudi norms and standards of learning while at the same time modernize and internationalize the higher education through western theoretical knowledge and the English language. Suggestions regarding these aspects may direct individuals involved in language planning in Saudi Arabia.

Does Gender Matter? Motivation and Learning EFL:

“…Both female (M = 4.06) and male (M = 3.79) respondents scored quite high. This result may well reflect the political and social transformation that KSA is going through vis-à-vis achieving Vision 2030 by ensuring strong English language acquisition by all citizens (Alzhrani & Alkubaidi 2020). High school students may be starting to appreciate the role that citizens' English proficiency will play in Saudi's economic prosperity.…”

“…The issue of gender and motivation is a longstanding research interest in the context of foreign language learning and a recent research thrust in KSA due to aspirations to achieve Vision 2030 (Alzhrani and Alkubaidi 2020). Research on this issue is underdeveloped in the gendered Saudi context with this study adding to Alrabai's (2015Alrabai's ( , 2016Alrabai's ( , 2018 recent scholarship.…”

“…With the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's decision (KSA 2016) to transit the country from an oil to a knowledge-based economy, it is imperative that labour market participants are fluent in the English language, so that KSA can be competitive in the global market (Alzhrani and Alkubaidi 2020). "English language is the language of international communication.…”

“…… At present, Saudi Arabia's Education Policy says that all students in the Kingdom are to be taught at least one foreign language" (Alharbi 2019: 1). English is mandatory from grade four onward including secondary school (Alzhrani and Alkubaidi 2020). Indeed, there is now a concerted effort in KSA to teach English as a Foreign Language (EFL) (Al-Awaid 2018;Alharbi 2019;Alzhrani and Alkubaidi 2020), which pertains to someone learning English in a non-English speaking environment (Dunsmore 2019).…”

“…English is mandatory from grade four onward including secondary school (Alzhrani and Alkubaidi 2020). Indeed, there is now a concerted effort in KSA to teach English as a Foreign Language (EFL) (Al-Awaid 2018;Alharbi 2019;Alzhrani and Alkubaidi 2020), which pertains to someone learning English in a non-English speaking environment (Dunsmore 2019). Aldosari (2014) noted that, even beyond KSA, motivation is consistently reported as a significant factor that crucially affects the language learning process particularly foreign language acquisition.…”