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Language policy in higher education in the United Arab Emirates: proficiency, choices and the future of Arabic

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Abstract

This article explores the linguistic tension resulting from the English-medium instruction policy at a state university in the UAE. The article is informed by a critical theoretical approach that views language policy from the vantage point of both Arabic and English. It argues that, contrary to the stated national and institutional goals, the current language policy and its implementation are depleting the linguistic capital of the nation. Data drawn from multiple sources show that English-medium instruction is incompatible with the students’ low levels of proficiency in English; that the implementation of the institution’s bilingual policy is geared towards the development of English only; and that a monolingual conceptualisation underpins institutional practices, thus contributing to Arabic language loss in the education domain. The article proposes that higher education in the country be linguistically diversified in order to achieve the goals of higher education and to protect the linguistic rights of local citizens.

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Notes

  1. Since the beginning of this article in 2017, the foundation year has been abolished at all public universities, and EMI has been adopted in public schools for all subjects except for Arabic, Islamic and social studies.

  2. NAPO is one of the offices of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, which processes applications from national secondary school graduates in order to be admitted to one of the three public universities, namely the United Arab Emirates University, Higher Colleges of Technology and Zayed University.

  3. The Emirati School Model is a new educational reform initiative. Launched in 2017, it aims to create a unified education system across the UAE to meet the objectives of the UAE Vision 2021 and the UAE Centennial Strategy 2071. In addition to teaching science and maths in English, this model is said to implement best international standards, adopt a modern unified curriculum and focus on enhancing students’ knowledge, skills and personalities.

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  1. Department of Arabic Language Studies, Zayed University, P. O. Box 19282, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

    Afaf Al-Bataineh

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Al-Bataineh, A. Language policy in higher education in the United Arab Emirates: proficiency, choices and the future of Arabic. Lang Policy 20, 215–236 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10993-020-09548-y

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