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Colorado State University

Publication Date

Fall 2017

Program Name

Jordan: Geopolitics, International Relations, and the Future of the Middle East

Abstract

This study explores the questions of how culturally inclusive curriculum effects the cultural behaviors of secondary students in Amman, Jordan, and how culturally inclusive curriculum effects the attitudes that these students have towards the English language itself. The researcher hypothesized that culturally inclusive curriculum mitigated the dilution of students cultural identities, and effected the students attitudes towards the English language. This study is significant, as English is taught at every school in Jordan, and Jordan has a long history of occupation by an English-speaking country. The researcher conducted the study using the data collection tools of semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and open-ended surveys, and selected participants from a public school in Madaba, a UNICEF funded education center in East Amman, and a private school in West Amman. At these three schools, the researcher interviewed a total of four teachers and three administrators, observed six English classes, and surveyed twenty-five students ranging from the ages of 13-20, in the tenth and eleventh grades. The researcher found that the three main relationships effected by English acquisition included technology, social media, and other media and these relationships did not change according to the presence of culturally inclusive curriculum. Furthermore, perceptions of the English language were not affected by the presence of culturally inclusive curriculum. This study impacts the ways that curriculum should be developed in Amman, and the findings suggest that less emphasis should be placed on developing culturally inclusive curriculum, with more emphasis on teaching English within the context of a global academic presence.

Disciplines

Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education | Curriculum and Instruction | Education | International and Area Studies | Near and Middle Eastern Studies

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