English language teaching reform in Sultanate of Oman: The case of theory and practice disparity

Abstract

Sultanate of Oman is one out of many developing countries around the world which have valued English as a very important international language and a tool for achieving multiple purposes. When His Majesty the Sultan came to power in 1970, the government accepted English as the only official foreign language and allocated huge budgets and resources for its implementation through education. However, almost three decades after this, it was found that students exiting the ELT system in Oman suffer from various inadequacies in their English language proficiency, which has had negative implications for Oman's national development. This has driven the government to attempt to revolutionize English language teaching (ELT) through pursuing a reform plan-Basic Education System (BES). This paper attempts to examine the attitudes of 141 freshmen, who have exited the BES and joined Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in September 2009, about their teachers and the curriculum. The results have shown that there have hardly been any significant changes in the BES reform project, as compared to the previously implemented system-General Education System (GES) mainly due to implementation shortcomings.

‘We are not as they think about us’: exploring Omani EFL learners’ ‘selves’ in digital social spaces

“…Thus, this study is geared towards exploring the link among these constructs through students' engagement in social technological applications, prompted by the rising prominence of Web 2.0 technology. This timely research study resonates with the current educational policy in Oman that immensely asserts the significance of learner autonomy along with technology in order to help Omani students to be well-equipped with key skills essential for successful professions, life-long learning, and well-informed citizenship in the 21st century (Al-Issa and Al-Bulushi, 2011). It also corresponds to the contemporary thinking in the field of second language motivation.…”

Characteristics of a Good EFL Teacher

“…Although the ministryproduced textbooks have been reported to be somewhat effective in helping learners develop their English-language competencies (Abdenacer, 2006;Al-Issa & Al-Bulushi, 2012;Al-Mahrooqi, Denman, & Al-Maamari, 2015), it could be argued that an unwavering adherence to these books alone may deny the teacher the opportunity to allow their learners to determine the course of the lesson in a more learner-centered approach while also preventing the teacher from identifying limitations in the textbooks that could be addressed through the use of supplementary materials.…”

EFL Teachers’ Awareness, Practices and Challenges of Teaching English Communicatively in Oman Post Basic Education Schools

“…World Data in Education (2010) has revealed a low level of performance in final English tests in Oman, along with grade-level repetitions at school. Although the framework calls for CLT (which focuses on meaning and language use), learning outcomes remain insufficient, leading to the English skills of graduates failing to achieve the expected outcomes (Al Mahrooqi, 2012;Al-Issa & Al-Bulushi, 2012;Al Hajri, 2010, Al-Lamki, 2009Al Salmi, 2005). This leads to the possibility that the high rates of failure, combined with the poor quality of the students' performance, reflect the instructional quality of post basic education schools, i.e., teachers' practice of CLT.…”