The cultural challenges that female teachers face upon their transition to teaching in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia -

Abstract

Culture differs among communities. It differs by its values, customs, traditions, and beliefs. Schools have their own organizational cultures as well, influenced by the community culture (Dimmockand Walker, 2000; Schein, 2010). Accordingly, research indicates that all teachers teaching in a new culture experienced all the cultural shock phases and face challenges adjusting to the new working environment. Studies found that language and coping with cultural issues, such as: lifestyle, curriculum, evaluating their certificate, taboos, and customs were major challenges for teachers to deal with in the new host culture (Chang, 2011; Cho, 2010; Fee, 2011; Garson, 2005; He, 2002; Lowe, Hwang, and Moore, 2011). Moreover, the cultural mismatch between the teachers and the students negatively impacts students’ academic performance (Ogbu, 1987; as cited in Phuntsog, 1999). This highlights the importance of understanding the nature of the challenges teachers face in a new cultural context and exploring its impact on the teachers’ and the students’ performances. The phenomenon of having teachers from different cultures is predominant in the Arab countries especially in the gulf region (Scotsman, 2011). Accordingly, this study is conducted in Saudi Arabia as one of the countries whose educational system has been characterized in the last decades by the presence of a large number of non-national teachers (Scotsman, 2011). Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study is to explore those teachers’ perspectives on the challenges they encounter while teaching in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Riyadh, and to examine their views on the impact this is having on their work performance. This study is a multiple case study that used the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis as its main methodological approach. The results indicate that there are societal and cultural challenges that the teachers face upon their transition from their home country to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; all of which affected their work e