Abstract
While the Emirati government continues to make great strides in encouraging female Emirati citizens to become public school teachers and educational leaders, the change process has been slow. According to the most recent data, there is a severe shortage of female Emirati postgraduates, especially in the education field, limiting qualified female Emirati leadership. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) government calls for more female leaders in all fields, including education. Despite the UAE’s attempts to encourage women to obtain a secular graduate-level education and become educational leaders, the response has been minimal. Lack of female educational leadership both inside and outside of school walls may cause more stress on the country’s education system because students may not receive adequate knowledge regarding Emirati culture and values in school. Participants felt that foreign teachers and educational leaders are unable to model or provide sufficient cultural awareness education to the students. This qualitative study was comprised of interviews with 13 female Emirati teachers who desire to obtain a postgraduate degree in education but have yet to complete the task. The study examined the female Emirati teachers’ perceptions of the factors that inhibit them from obtaining a postgraduate degree in education in Abu Dhabi. The findings show that understandings of culture and religious obligations play a major role in the Emirati women’s decision to go to graduate school and ultimately become leaders in the country. This finding is of major importance to Emirati social and education policy contexts for continued encouragement of Emirati women to get postgraduate degrees and become leaders in the UAE.
Highlights
The impact of culture and religion on the perceptions of female Emirati teachers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in regard to pursuing graduate education and working as educational leaders is a key topic that needs attention
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) government calls for more female leaders in all fields, including education
Between 1977 and 1988, the only option for Emirati students to attend college in the UAE was at the UAE University
Summary
The impact of culture and religion on the perceptions of female Emirati teachers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in regard to pursuing graduate education and working as educational leaders is a key topic that needs attention. One of the educational priorities addressed the need for female Emiratis to attend secular schools and obtain secular degrees, shifting from their traditional norms of solely receiving informal religious education (Ashour & Fatima, 2016; Kirk, 2006; United Arab Emirates Government, 2020a). Between 1977 and 1988, the only option for Emirati students to attend college in the UAE was at the UAE University. By 2013, Emirati students were able to choose from 71 different institutions in the UAE (UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research [MOEHS], 2015). The number of universities in the UAE increased rapidly, the first doctoral program did not become available until 2009 at the UAE University. Of the 296 doctoral students that existed at the time, only 23 were enrolled in the doctor of education programs. While the numbers have increased, there still remains a need to increase the number of female Emirati postgraduates in the UAE (MOEHS, 2015)
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