Purpose: This study investigated the effects of an intercultural communication (IC) course on Emirati university students' intercultural sensitivity (IS). Design/methodology/approach: The participants were 89 Emirati students. The course required student involvement in a variety of tasks and activities, both inside and outside the classroom. The…

Purpose: Students of mixed-ability learning together in one class is a challenge for all educators, especially in English as foreign language (EFL) contexts. Timed reading activity (TRA) is an activity that can help educators address the learning needs of students in such a context. The present study investigated the effectiveness of the TRA in…

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the learning strategies adopted by Saudi university students and explore the differences in the use of learning strategies due to gender and academic achievement. Design/methodology/approach: The study utilized a cross-sectional descriptive analytic approach and adopted the brief "ACRA-C" learning…

Purpose: Grit is a novel, rather an important psychological variable that has been associated with performance in the English as a second or foreign language (ESL/EFL) context. However, there is a dearth of research on the relationship of grit and pronunciation performance among EFL learners. Consequently, the current study sought to establish the…

Purpose: In the present study, the authors examined whether academic performance [grade point average (GPA)] can be predicted by self-reported frequency of memorization and recitation, verbatim memory performance, and self-efficacy in a sample of college students from Saudi Arabia. Design/methodology/approach: Students' verse memory, word memory,…

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the impact of social networks on learning requests by Arab undergraduate EFL students. Design/methodology/approach: Furthermore, both types of requests (i.e. direct and indirect) have been compared under the same condition. A total of 40 Saudi EFL learners participated in this study. Their scores in the…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is twofold--to determine if implementing a global citizenship education curriculum can aid the development of Emirati students' social responsibility competence and to experiment with different instructional strategies that aim to yield improvement in the social responsibility of students.…

Purpose: This study aims to explore the use of technology-based strategies by Yemeni undergraduate students to develop their English as a foreign language skills in informal learning settings. Design/methodology/approach: A mixed methods research design was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from 110 undergraduate students enrolled…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore employers' views on the current English communication skills of higher education institutions (HEIs) graduates in Oman and to identify the workplace communication challenges encountered by graduates of these institutions. Design/methodology/approach: The study used a mixed-methods approach. In the…

Purpose: Despite the increasing number of transnational universities around the world, little attention has been paid to students who attend foreign universities in their own countries and their adjustment to the new learning environment. This study aims to examine some of the adaptations freshmen students have to undergo while studying at an…