International Journal of Intercultural Relations
Volume 60, 2017, Pages 169-182

“Because even us, Arabs, now speak English”: Syrian refugee teachers’ investment in English as a foreign language (Article)

Karam F.J.* , Kibler A.K. , Yoder P.J.
  • a College of Education / MS0299, University of Nevada, Reno, 1664 North Virginia Street, Reno, NV 89557, United States
  • b Curry School of Education, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street South, PO Box 400260, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4260, United States
  • c Eastern Mennonite University, 1200 Park Road, Harrisonburg, VA 22802, United States

Abstract

Framed within Darvin and Norton's (2015) model of investment, this study examined a group of Syrian refugee teachers’ ideologies and challenges regarding teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) to Syrian refugee students with interrupted or no prior formal education in three non-formal education (NFE) centers in Lebanon. A qualitative approach using interview data alongside field observations and questionnaire responses was employed to gain a nuanced understanding of the teachers’ experiences. Findings from this study suggest that teachers acknowledged the importance of teaching English to their students and did so despite a host of curricular, linguistic, sociolinguistic, and sociocultural obstacles. We suggest that when teachers of refugee students in Education in Emergency (EIE) contexts are invested in teaching EFL, they can assume an agentive role in devising innovative solutions to problems. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd

Author Keywords

Investment Syrian refugees Lebanon English as a foreign language Non-formal education

Index Keywords

ideology model emergency human teacher Arab refugee questionnaire language interview teaching investment human experiment Lebanon
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85018407466&doi=10.1016%2fj.ijintrel.2017.04.006&partnerID=40&md5=023751f0e13d7ada4009297b3bbc978c
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijintrel.2017.04.006
ISSN: 01471767
Cited by: 4
Original Language: English