Saudi Arabian School Research Articles

An Analysis of the Inclusion of Mathematical Discourse Components in Arabic Mathematical Textbooks: The Case of Saudi Arabia.

This study analyzes the content of 12th-grade mathematics textbooks and workbooks, based on their inclusion of mathematical discourse components. The mathematics textbooks and workbooks were used in a Saudi Arabian school, where students are transitioning from secondary education to university. The results revealed that Saudi Arabian school textbooks and workbooks did not appropriately include discourse components or discourse skills to help facilitate mathematical learning among students. Furthermore, these textbooks did not exceed level two of the four levels of inclusion. As a result, the inclusion was insufficient in helping students meaningfully understand mathematical concepts, become active students, and develop successful community leadership. This implies that mathematics textbooks and workbooks should be revised to include mathematical discourse so that this inclusion is more student directed than teacher directed.

Medical Students Who Prepare for a Lecture Learn More Than Those Who Do Not: An Experimental Study

Purpose: Medical students tend to attend lectures unprepared before studying the literature for an examination. Would students not profit more from lectures if they study the literature first? Method: One hundred and two students from a Saudi-Arabian medical school were included in the study. Half of them received a four-page text to be studied before a 15-minutes lecture; the other half received the lecture first and then the text. Knowledge level was tested using a concept retrieval test at three points in time, before the experiment, after reading the text, and after attending the lecture. This enabled studying the effects of the various treatments separately. Results: The mean student-scores were as follows: After lecture-only: 54.7±23.5, after reading-only: 45.7±11.2, lecture-then-reading: 69.9±15.8 and reading-then-lecture: 78.2±17.4. The combination of lecture and reading in both groups was statistically significantly different from lecture-only. Reading-then-lecture was significantly better than lecture-then-reading. Conclusion: In contrast to existing practices of students in medical education, it is better to study first before attending a lecture. Keywords: Lectures; self-study; concept retrieval test. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/11-8-06 Publication date: March 31 st 2020

The Impact and Issues of E-Learning with Saudi Arabian Universities and Schools a Systematic Literature Evaluation

E-Learning plays a significant part in the educational field. Many Arab institutions follow the style of E-Learning under field education. Many papers have been showed to understand the role of E-Learning. This paper focuses on Saudi Arabian Schools and Universities regarding their development in E-Learning and the issues faced in the institutions while experiencing it. It is based on Systematic literature review of E-Learning research by collecting and reviewing the studies published from the year 2018 till 2010 to know the situation of E-Learning inside Saudi Arabian schools as well as Universities. This Paper identified around 45 studies which addressed E-Learning. It reflects that the E-Learning has shown a massive development in the past 2 years. The paper covered the research themes such as E-Learning, Students, Schools, Universities and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). It also states the situation in E-Learning under educational sectors of KSA and their issues faced among the people which can be focused and concluded as a part of future research.

Social Studies Teachers' Performance in the Context of the Knowledge Society at Saudi Arabian Schools

This study investigated social studies teachers’ teaching practices in the knowledge society framework at Saudi Arabian schools as viewed by educational supervisors and teachers using the descriptive analytical approach. The study used a questionnaire. The study’s sample consisted of 33 randomly selected educational supervisors and 62 social studies teachers. Only 95 questionnaires were complete and statistically analyzed Results revealed that the means of the social studies teachers’ performance were viewed as being above average. The study recommends training teachers on the modern educational experiences imposed by the knowledge society.

An initial exploration of the perceptions of preparedness to practise among Saudi Arabian trained hospital pharmacists.

Background:There is a dearth of literature on perceptions of preparedness to practise, which explores the extent to which educational institutions prepare their students to fulfil their professional role.Objective:The aim of this study was to explore perceptions of preparedness to practise among Saudi Arabian pharmacy graduates working in hospital.Method:Face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten hospital pharmacists based in four hospitals in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia who had qualified within the last five years from a Saudi Arabian School of Pharmacy. Interviews focused on expectations of hospital practise, perceptions of preparedness and challenges encountered, and reflections on how to better prepare students. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically by two independent researchers using the Framework Approach.Results::Five key themes were identified: expectations versus reality of practise; issues relating to university course; practice related training; adapting to the work environment; and proposed improvements to undergraduate education. Participants were generally disappointed to find practise was not as expected. University training was largely didactic, with skills such as critical thinking not being sufficiently developed. Where practice related training was provided, it was variable in length and content. Cultural issues, most notably working in a mixed sex environment, were also considered to impact preparedness. Suggested improvements included greater focus on skills development and structured training placements.Conclusions:Participants experiences in university, and experiential placements varied greatly and were perceived to impact greatly on preparedness to practise. Further multiple perspective exploration of perceptions of preparedness to practise is warranted.

Motivating students to learn at a Saudi Arabian school within the united kingdom Fatemah Abdullah Alhazmi

Saudi schools in the UK provide an opportunity for Saudi children to remain up to date with the Saudi curriculum whilst living abroad. However, at some of these schools there are problems with motivation. To understand the extent of students’ motivation to learn this study explores the practical methods employed by teachers at a Saudi Arabian school in the UK to motivate students, and measures the extent to which they are able to recognise motivation within the student body. The study includes findings based on a semi-structured interview of twelve teachers and twelve students and a supporting classroom observation. As predicted, results reveal that the majority of students in this school are not motivated to learn due to: mode of teaching, lack of interest, and difficulty with the curriculum. The teachers successfully identify motivated students based on regular attendance, completion of homework and active engagement in complex tasks.

The Exclusivism of Religion Teachers: Intolerance and Radicalism in Indonesian Public Schools

In the context of Indonesianism and Islamism, religion teachers serve as avant garde of tolerance, which is then manifested into their social contexts. The attitude of religious tolerance and inclusivity are must have for religion teachers; since these teachers have the closest connection to their students who are mostly young people. We have observed that the increasing radicalism in educational institutions has been associated with particular models of interpretation, understanding, teaching, schools of thoughts, denomination, and even sects within a particular religion. For instance, an international agency has reported the discovery of an "intolerance curriculum" in Saudi Arabian schools (Freedom House, 2006).In Indonesia, the growth of radicalism was due to scriptural, rigid, exclusive, and close-minded interpretation towards religious scripts. In 2008, PPIM (Center for the Study of Islam and Society) UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta released an important finding that "the majority of religion teachers in Indonesian public schools have exclusive and conservative view towards religion."DOI: 10.15408/sdi.v24i2.5707

Children, Gender and School Curricula in Saudi Arabia

The present study investigates the effect of gender representation in Saudi Arabian school curricula on children’s value systems and social character. In particular, the study examines gender distribution in first-grade school textbooks in Saudi Arabia where schooling, and education at large, is single-sex throughout. The data for the study is constituted by six textbooks prescribed for the first school semester at boys’ and girls’ schools. The study attempts a content analysis of the texts and illustrations in these textbooks in order to examine the representation, indeed construction, for the children of society and the stereotypical social roles of its members. Analysis reveals a gendered representation. Women suffer low visual and verbal visibility, and are almost completely denied occupations. Moreover, social activity is segregated by gender, with women appearing mostly in indoor activities and men in outdoor activities. The paper concludes by revisiting these findings against the backcloth of the idiosyncratic religious and cultural character of the Saudi society in which gender differences are normalized.

The construction of the universality of English within Saudi Arabian education contexts

ABSTRACTDiscourses of the universality of English and its role in individual mobility and social development abound in the literature; these discourses have contributed to the global spread of English and to the development of English Language Teaching as a profession. Despite the ubiquity of the discourses of the value and universality of English, there has been limited research on how these discourses unfold in local contexts, how these discourses are reproduced or appropriated, and how these are translated into teaching and learning artefacts (e.g. policies and textbooks) and practices by teachers and students. This paper explores the construction of the discourse of the universality and value of English within education policies, curricular documents, and textbooks used in Saudi Arabian schools, and how these discourses then play out within teacher/student interactions in a rural Bedouin-dominated classroom. Our aim is to contribute to the understanding of global English and its discourses taking a local, situated perspective.

Participation Motives of Saudi Arabian School Children towards Physical Activities and Sports: A Comparative Study

The objective of this study was to identify and compare the participation motives of school children towards engagement in physical activity. Two hundred and eighty students (Mage=17.65±0.95 years) were selected from two different types of schools, namely government school (N=134) and private school (N=146), Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The instrument used to collect the data was Motivation for Physical Activities Measure- Revised by (Ryan et al., 1997). Ranking order was applied to identify the ‘most important reasons' and ‘least important reasons' for participation, and t- test was applied to compare means between the groups. Government and private school children showed higher mean values on interest/enjoyment and competence. Significant difference was observed on interest/enjoyment and fitness factor among school children. No significant difference was observed on competence, appearance, and social factors. Government school children ranked three important reasons for participation in physical activities as ‘because I wanted to be physically fit', ‘because I wanted to look or maintain weight so I look better', and ‘because I wanted to maintain my physical well-being'. Whereas private school children ranked best three reasons for engagement as, ‘because I want to look or maintain weight so I look better', because I want to improve my appearance, because I wanted to be physically fit'. The least important reason for participation was social factors for both types of school children.

Corporal Punishment In Schools: Theoretical Discussion And Personal Experience

This paper ponders the lasting effects of corporal punishment on students. The paper first considers the benefits and faults of corporal punishment by comparing the experiences of two generations of students and teachers. Starting with the definition of corporal punishment as applied locally and globally, the paper analyzes the reasons for its use, and the rationale of those who defend its legitimacy. The paper concludes with a discussion of the impact of the decision to ban corporal punishment in Saudi Arabian schools on Saudi students and its consequences from the students’ perspective.

Beyond Geographical and Cultural Barriers: The Concept of a Virtual Gallery for Arts, Design & Architecture Schools in Saudi Arabia

The aim of this paper is to examine the advantages and disadvantages of a virtual gallery as a substitute for the Saudi Arabian schools of higher education in Arts, Design & Architecture which frequently organise exhibitions. Virtual galleries provide new opportunities for architects, designers, artists and experts of other disciplines to lay foundation for new social networks. These networks may establish interdisciplinary knowledge collaborations beyond global geographical barriers. Additionally, it will be an excellent opportunity for students at Saudi Arabian universities to lower the cultural barriers that separate male and female students. Virtual galleries can enrich students’ learning, enhance professional skills and also offer savings in term of practical costs (time, money and efforts) required to visit physical exhibitions.

Textbooks and Constructivist Pedagogy in Saudi Arabian School Classrooms

Constructivist theories of teaching and learning have continued to grow in popularity among educational policymakers, but it is far less certain whether constructivist teaching practices have found their way into most classrooms.Textbooks, arguably the most important non-personnel instructional resource in classrooms, heavily influence whatteachers teach and how, but how much textbooks support constructivist pedagogy in particular is unclear. Thepurpose of this study is to assess constructivist practices in classrooms by exploring the opinions of Saudi Arabianteachers about the degree to which their textbooks adopt and support principles of social constructivism and thedegree to which these principles vary by subject matter specialization. We gather information on 31 characteristicsof textbooks identified as “constructivist” from 231 intermediate grade teachers across multiple subject areas inRiyadh. Teachers’ responses to items framed on a Likert scale were frequency analyzed, and degrees of differenceassociated with teacher subject matter background were tested using one-way analysis of variance. Results indicatedthat (1) textbooks only minimally support constructivist pedagogical practices and (2) textbook emphases onconstructivist pedagogical practices do not vary significantly by subject matter area. Despite extensive policy supportto the contrary, Saudi Arabian textbooks foster at best only very modest levels of constructivist practices inclassrooms. This effect was consistent across different subject matter fields. Implications for educational policymakers and for future research are discussed.

The Prevalence of Fifth Cusp (Cusp of Carabelli) in the Upper Molars in Saudi Arabian School Students

La cuspide o tuberculo de Carabelli, fue descrita por primera vez por Carabelli en 1842. Si esta presente, se observa en la cara mesial de la cuspide mesio-palatina del segundo molar superior permanente o temporal, segundo y tercer molar permanentes. El nivel de expresion varia desde una simple fosa a una cuspide bien desarrollada. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar la prevalencia de este tuberculo en los alumnos de escuelas secundarias de Abha en el rango de edad entre 15-20 anos. 917 sujetos sin caries ni obturaciones (o extraccion) en los primeros (16/26) y segundos (17/27) molares maxilares permanentes fueron seleccionados entre 3408 alumnos examinados. El tuberculo se registro como presente o ausente en 16/26 y 17/27 de los molares, la mayoria de los estudiantes tenian erupcionados los premolares y no erupcionados los terceros molares. El tuberculo estuvo presente en el 41,7% de la poblacion estudiada, fuera de la cual se observo en el 82,2% sobre 16/26 bilateralmente. Hubo mayor predileccion por el primer molar permanente del lado derecho, un 39,4%, en comparacion al lado izquierdo, 35,8%. Solo el 3,1% de la poblacion tuvo el tuberculo sobre 17/27. Estos resultados contrastan con los estudios de prevalencia realizados en Riyadh con 57,6% y Jeddah con 58,7%. Sin embargo, coloca a la poblacion de Arabia Saudita en el grupo de moderada prevalencia del tuberculo de Carabelli.

Educational Assessment in Saudi Arabian Schools

This profile describes the methods of assessing pupils' learning which are currently in use in the Saudi system. It starts with some very general information on Saudi Arabia and then describes the main features of the Saudi educational system, with special reference to the structure of the curriculum, its design and its development process. It then explains the assessment itself and guidance and regulation from the Ministry of Education. It concludes with a few recommendations for the future.

Student's Assessment in English Language in Saudi Arabian Schools: Present Status and Suggested Improvements

Student's Assessment in English Language in Saudi Arabian Schools: Present Status and Suggested Improvements

College students' cognition of the Arab World map

It has been found that the Fishbein model is a good predictor of college students' behavior, but it was found that students' of the College of Education are influenced by attitude variables more than social norms in their intention to draw a clear map of the Arab World. This result illustrates that students are independent and have the will to learn. The results of the analysis point to an alarming conclusion: students are weak in geography background despite taking many geography classes at all levels of scholl. This leads to the conclusion that more attention should be paid toward teaching geography in the Saudi Arabian school system. Teaching geography should be accompanied by developing a cognition map of the Arab World.

Measurement of blood‐lead levels in school children of Jeddah Saudi Arabia and assessment of sub‐toxic levels of lead on some sensitive hematological parameters

Abstract Blood samples from 200 Saudi Arabian school boys, aged 6–8 years, were analyzed for their Pb concentrations by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry, Mean Blood‐Pb concentration was found to be 6.9 (±3.4) ug/dl. The blood samples were also examined for some hematological parameters : total counts of erythrocytes and leucocytes, hematocrit, mean corpuscular volume, hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, and basophilic stippling, using a Coulter Counter. All values obtained were within the ‘normal ranges’. However, the hematological effects of sub‐toxic levels of Pb in blood were assessed by considering the seven cases whose Blood‐Pb values were between 15 ‐ 25 ug/dl. The data indicate that sub‐toxic levels of Pb in blood may be related to early stages of microcytic anemia.