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The rapid pace with which internet technology has entered our daily lives provides an opportunity for English language teachers to incorporate some such platforms in their teaching. This study investigates the attitudes of Saudi Arabian learners towards online communication in EFL. It takes place in a university preparatory program at Taibah University in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Questionnaires and interviews were used to gather data pertaining to the attitudes’ of Saudi Arabian learners to online communication in EFL. In order to achieve its aims, this study uses both quantitative and qualitative data to inform EFL practitioners of learners’ attitudes towards English, online communication in general and online communication for EFL purposes. / Educational Studies / M.A. (TESOL)

This study examines the ways visual culture influences a child's drawings. The child is my 9-year-old daughter Nada, who was born in Saudi Arabia and is a fourth-grade student temporarily living in the United States. The study uses qualitative methods of data collection and exploratory case study research design as a methodology. The data were analyzed in light of Althusser's theory of ideology, specifically the notion of interpellation, along with visual culture theories. In addition, gender performativity theory, specifically the work of Judith Butler, was used to consider gender issues when these concerns emerged from the study. Nada has been exposed to two diverse cultures, those of Saudi Arabia and the United States. Both cultures may impact Nada's interpretations of her visual surroundings in various ways. Therefore, recognizing and examining how she interacts with US visual culture might help to uncover how such interactions constitute the basis of her perceptions, identities, and critical thinking. Drawing is not only a means of self-expression but also an important function of communication, identity formation, and represents possible ways of being in the world that are related to culture, community, and society as a whole. The study begins with the premise that there is a gap in understanding between the importance of visual culture and its insufficient application in Saudi Arabian art education. The implications of this study may be informative for Saudi Arabian educators, individuals, or groups interested in visual culture education and children's drawings; potentially, the Saudi Arabian educational system may also use this study to enhance its appreciation of the impact of visual culture on the creation of art and knowledge.

The rapid pace with which internet technology has entered our daily lives provides an opportunity for English language teachers to incorporate some such platforms in their teaching. This study investigates the attitudes of Saudi Arabian learners towards online communication in EFL. It takes place in a university preparatory program at Taibah University in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Questionnaires and interviews were used to gather data pertaining to the attitudes’ of Saudi Arabian learners to online communication in EFL. In order to achieve its aims, this study uses both quantitative and qualitative data to inform EFL practitioners of learners’ attitudes towards English, online communication in general and online communication for EFL purposes. / Educational Studies / M.A. (TESOL)

Mathematics achievement has been of great concern to researchers involved in mathematics education. This concern has resulted in research seeking to determine for example, the factors that positively or negatively contribute to student performance in mathematics. Many of the reported studies in the literature have investigated the factors within the context of mathematics teaching and learning in general. Very few studies have investigated the factors contributing to student achievement in mathematics when learning takes place in a computer aided environment. With the pervasiveness of computers in education in general, studies in this direction become imperative. The present study fills this gap in the literature by examining the extent to which selected variables (mathematics attitude, mathematics aptitude, computer attitude, computer prior experience, computer ownership, proficiency in language of instruction, and learning style) contribute to students' achievements in pre-calculus algebra classes that are supplemented with a computer lab program. The participants in the study were 120 students sampled from the population of students enrolled in the second pre-calculus algebra course at the preparatory year program of King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals during the 2003/2004 academic session. The instruments used to measure the study constructs were the mathematics attitude scale (Aiken, 1979), the computer attitudes scale (Loyd & Gressard, 1984a), and the learning styles questionnaire (Honey & Mumford, 1992). New instruments to measure computer prior experience and computer ownership were developed for the present study. Hypotheses formulated for the study were tested using multiple regression and other statistical techniques. The results show that mathematics aptitudes and English language proficiency are the most significant contributors to students' mathematics achievement. No other variables show statistically significant effects on students' achievement. Together, the selected variables explain more than 41 percent of the total variance of students' achievement. Theoretical and policy-making implications of the results are outlined and discussed. / Mathematical Sciences / D. Phil. (Mathematics, Science and Technology Education)

Mathematics achievement has been of great concern to researchers involved in mathematics education. This concern has resulted in research seeking to determine for example, the factors that positively or negatively contribute to student performance in mathematics. Many of the reported studies in the literature have investigated the factors within the context of mathematics teaching and learning in general. Very few studies have investigated the factors contributing to student achievement in mathematics when learning takes place in a computer aided environment. With the pervasiveness of computers in education in general, studies in this direction become imperative. The present study fills this gap in the literature by examining the extent to which selected variables (mathematics attitude, mathematics aptitude, computer attitude, computer prior experience, computer ownership, proficiency in language of instruction, and learning style) contribute to students' achievements in pre-calculus algebra classes that are supplemented with a computer lab program. The participants in the study were 120 students sampled from the population of students enrolled in the second pre-calculus algebra course at the preparatory year program of King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals during the 2003/2004 academic session. The instruments used to measure the study constructs were the mathematics attitude scale (Aiken, 1979), the computer attitudes scale (Loyd & Gressard, 1984a), and the learning styles questionnaire (Honey & Mumford, 1992). New instruments to measure computer prior experience and computer ownership were developed for the present study. Hypotheses formulated for the study were tested using multiple regression and other statistical techniques. The results show that mathematics aptitudes and English language proficiency are the most significant contributors to students' mathematics achievement. No other variables show statistically significant effects on students' achievement. Together, the selected variables explain more than 41 percent of the total variance of students' achievement. Theoretical and policy-making implications of the results are outlined and discussed. / Mathematical Sciences / D. Phil. (Mathematics, Science and Technology Education)