article

Culturally Responsive EFL Pedagogy in Saudi Arabia: Effects of Integrating Islamic Content and National Identity on Language learning Outcomes

  1. 1. Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics, Department of English Language and Literature, College of Languages and Humanities, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia.
  2. 2. Associate Professor of Islamic History, Department of History and Heritage, College of Languages and Humanities, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia.
Issue: Vol. 8 No. 3 (2026)
Pages: 179-204
Published: 2026-07-31
DOI: 10.53286/ARTS
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Abstract

This paper has explored the impact of culturally integrated EFL teaching on language learning outcomes (achievement, retention, and motivation) in a Saudi Preparatory Year Program. At Qassim University, a concurrent mixed methods quasi experimental design was used in which there were experimental (n = 260) and control (n = 260) groups of male and female students. A total of 300 students who submitted completed motivation questionnaires were subjected to motivational analyses, and eight instructors provided their perceptions. Measures were a standardized English achievement test, a motivation scale ( =.942), and an instructor perception survey, which was descriptively interpreted due to the small sample of instructors. Thematic analysis was used to analyze qualitative data that included structured written reflections given by the eight instructors involved in the intervention at the end of the intervention to identify common patterns in regard to the implementation and perceived effectiveness of the culturally responsive instruction. Findings showed that there were significantly higher achievement gains in the experimental group (d = 1.146, p < .001) and better delayed retention which was statistically significant after adjusting baseline differences. There were no significant differences in motivation (d = 0.051, p = .660). Instructor assessments were descriptive indicators of positive attitudes to the intervention (M = 46.00/55). Thematic analysis produced four themes that are interconnected: cultural resonance as cognitive scaffold, identity affirming instruction and engagement, culturally based materials that promote language production, and perceived pedagogical viability. Integration of mixed methods demonstrated the overlap of achievement results and qualitative data, and elucidated the null impact of motivation. The research paper contributes to a composite cognitive identity model that proposes that the combination of schema activation and identity alignment leads to language success and delayed retention in culturally responsive EFL teaching. The results indicate that culturally responsive EFL teaching has the potential to increase language performance and retardation at late stages without causing significant changes in global motivational orientations.

Keywords

culturally responsive pedagogy Saudi national identity EFL achievement language retention learner motivation

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