Evaluation of Students’ Remote Learning Experience of Learning Arabic as a Second Language During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Sultan Almelhes

doi:10.5539/ies.v14n10p40

Abstract

The emergence of the Covid-19 global pandemic was followed by restrictions on social contact and interaction. Online remote learning was implemented all levels of school and universities in Saudi Arabia. In tertiary education, where Arabic is taught as a second language (ASL) with extensive interaction between the teacher and students, remote learning has specific advantages and disadvantages. This study aimed to investigate the success of remote learning, its influence upon learners&rsquo; attitudes, and its potential difficulties in implementation. Quantitative research was conducted on a sample of 236 students who had combined experiences of offline and online study during 2020 in their second semester at the Arabic Language Institute for Non-Native Speakers&rsquo;. An online survey was administered consisting of three domains: students&rsquo; satisfaction with remote learning, obstacles faced, and students&rsquo; perceptions towards evaluation; students&rsquo; responses were measured using a Likert scale. The results demonstrated that there was hesitation about student satisfaction, as the result was moderate in general. Moreover, the study revealed difficulties included internet connection issues, the access and availability of remote learning, insufficiency in personal expression, and difficulties with technological devices. The results also showed that the students were dissatisfied regarding to the evaluation and assessment methods used in remote learning.

Highlights

The process of second language acquisition is understood here as the process by which a speaker who has another language as his or her first language learns Arabic: Arabic is either spoken in the community where the learner lives or is a foreign language in that community
All education sectors in Saudi Arabia have transferred to remote learning, including of a second language (ASL) institutions
The main rationale for this was that quantitative data concerning the online learning of the Arabic language using various forms of technologies would provide a clear view of student satisfaction and attitudes towards learning via remote education (Gharawi & Bidin, 2016)

Summary

Introduction

The process of second language acquisition is understood here as the process by which a speaker who has another language as his or her first language learns Arabic: Arabic is either spoken in the community where the learner lives or is a foreign language in that community. In 2020, teaching practice largely changed from face-to-face learning to remote learning due to the Covid-19 pandemic. There was a sudden restriction on face-to-face teacher–student interaction. The educational system has been forced to dramatically change and higher education has been severely affected. All education sectors in Saudi Arabia have transferred to remote learning, including of ASL institutions. According to the Saudi Arabia Communication and Information Technology Commission (CTIC), technology has grown rapidly in this country, in relation to e-learning This did not happen as a result of good preparation or a suitable infrastructure but came about as an emergency measure

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