Date of Conferral

2020

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Education

Advisor

Dennis E. Beck

Abstract

Many Lebanese teachers struggle to make the Arabic language enjoyable for their students to learn, therefore many Lebanese children use either French or English in their daily lives. Students' dislike of Arabic affects the way they relate to their society, which causes problems of belonging and identity—an important issue in Lebanese society. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how technology can motivate teachers' creativity in their teaching practices and explore student perceptions of learning the Arabic language with the support of technology. Rogers's diffusion of innovation theory and Dörnyei's L2 motivational self-system were used to understand how technology plays a role in the motivation of both teachers and the students as well as how the innovative teaching practices are diffused throughout the school system. Twenty-one students, 9 teachers, 2 coordinators, 1 principal, and 1 acting director participated in this exploratory case study. Classroom observations and interviews were the main data collection tools in addition to follow-up interviews. Open coding was used to create categories and themes, which were later narrowed via axial coding. Analysis of observations was done by the International Society for Technology in Education Classroom Observation Tool and field notes. Findings showed that teachers use technology creatively if they were given appropriate training. Further, students enjoyed the lessons more when technology was used, which led to positive learning outcomes. These results may increase the awareness of school administration, staff, and faculty on the best practices to enjoy teaching and learning Arabic.

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