Hopkyns, S;
(2022)
Cultural and linguistic struggles and solidarities of Emirati learners in online classes during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Policy Futures in Education
, 20
(4)
pp. 451-468.
10.1177/14782103211024815.
Preview |
Text
hopkyns-2021-cultural-and-linguistic-struggles-and-solidarities-of-emirati-learners-in-online-classes-during-the-covid.pdf - Published Version Download (661kB) | Preview |
Abstract
The ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented shifts in higher education worldwide, with some nations more adversely affected than others. Since the onset of the crisis, almost all education abruptly moved to ‘emergency remote teaching and learning’. While the United Arab Emirates has been praised for its swift and effective responses, unique cultural and linguistic dynamics in this region present additional challenges for teaching and learning. This article presents empirical data from a qualitative phenomenological case study investigating female Emirati university students’ (n = 69) perspectives on the use of video cameras and microphones in online classes. Students’ reflective writing and researcher observations in autumn 2020 revealed discomfort using video cameras and microphones due to a range of cultural and linguistic factors. Such factors include Islamic beliefs relating to modesty, home as a gendered space, noise considerations, concerns about privacy, struggles with language in their English-medium instruction university and fear of judgement from peers. Data are interpreted thematically using intersectionality together with Goffman’s theories of everyday interaction, stigma and relative deprivation, through which complexities of learner identities are explored. Practical suggestions are made on ways to adapt online learning to better suit the cultural and sociolinguistic realities of periphery and Global South contexts. It is argued that greater efforts need to be made toward inclusion of marginalized learners during the COVID-19 period.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Cultural and linguistic struggles and solidarities of Emirati learners in online classes during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1177/14782103211024815 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1177/14782103211024815 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author(s) 2021. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage). |
| Keywords: | COVID-19, emergency remote teaching and learning, intersectionality, identity, inclusion |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Culture, Communication and Media |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10208124 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
