An exploratory study into the daily lived experiences and emotional responses of EFL teachers in secondary public schools in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

This study aims to understand the current daily lived experiences and emotional responses of EFL secondary-school teachers in Saudi Arabia. As little empirical research exists on EFL teachers’ emotional experiences, this study explores factors contributing to EFL teachers’ emotional responses and everyday experiences. In Saudi Arabia, teachers of English in particular face an extra burden of teaching a language that is rarely used outside the classrooms. Accordingly, EFL teachers are expected to ‘swallow’ their feelings in the workplace and only show positive emotions when faced with challenges. The study is an interpretive one, using semi-structured interviews as the primary data collection instrument. The design adopted here is an exploratory research design that implements elements of phenomenology to understand teachers’ daily lived experiences, challenges and accomplishments, which are central premises to the educational field and to improving English language teaching in Saudi Arabia. Eight EFL teachers teaching in secondary Saudi schools took part of the study. The research involved three phases of interviews. In the first phase, participants were asked to talk about their experiences using metaphors which helped them reflect on their teaching experiences. In the second phase, semi-structured interviews were conducted to understand teachers’ experiences in depth. Lastly, in the third phase, teachers were provided with images of the BLOB tree which allows them to reflect on their emotional responses and instructional practice. The findings show EFL teachers’ struggles were related to students, teachers and the school system. The findings also reveal that EFL teachers expressed negative emotional responses in regard to internal and external factors. Some EFL teachers also revealed experiencing a sense of achievement towards their student’s success. These findings are discussed in light of the existing literature and the Saudi context. Implications for policy makers and teachers are drawn based on the study's findings.