Emirati students encounter Western teachers tensions and identity resistance. Issue 2 (1st December 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Diallo, Ibrahima
• Is Part Of: Learning and teaching in higher education: Gulf perspectives. Volume 11:Issue 2(2014)
• Page Start: 46
• Page End: 59
• Publication Date: 2014-12-01
• Subjects: College teaching; Learning and scholarship; United Arab Emirates; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 378.125
• DOI: 10.18538/lthe.v11.n2.158
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2077-5504

Abstract

Abstract : This paper discusses tensions and identity resistance in a cross-cultural educational context in the United Arab Emirates. It focuses on how Emirati students, living and socialised in a conservative Arabic-Islamic society and shaped by Islamic values and epistemologies, construct their cultural identities while learning English with their Western-trained teachers, who are influenced by liberal ideologies and secular epistemologies. To understand the complex engagement between Emirati students and their Western-trained teachers this article uses both phenomenography and reflection on critical incidents to explore, investigate and interpret Emirati students' intercultural experience with their Western-trained teachers and to highlight the tensions and identity resistance that arise from this educational encounter.