Investigating the Impact of Learning ‘English’, ‘French’ and ‘Arabic’ on the Algerian Students’ Cultural Identities (clothing, gender status and language)

Abstract

The study of a foreign language entails the learning of a different language and culture. Accordingly, the experience of foreign language learning may influence the students’ cultural identities. The present work compared the impact of foreign language learning on the English and the French language students’ cultural identities with that of Arabic counterparts in terms of clothing, gender status, and language. It was hypothesized that the foreign language students’ cultural identities are influenced by foreign language. In order to examine this research concern, an online questionnaire duplicated in three different languages (English, French, and Arabic) was administered to 180 Master one students in three fields of study at Mohamed Saddik Ben Yahia University, Jijel. After analyzing and comparing the questionnaire results, it was found out that the students of English and French are almost equally affected by the target language being exposed to its culture. More specifically, the results revealed that, first, the foreign language students had different styles and views from their Arabic counterparts concerning clothes and fashion; second, the status of gender is perceived differently by the foreign language learners and those of the Arabic language; third, the foreign language students favour their language of specialty over their mother tongue more than the students of Arabic do. Hence, the overall findings of this study underscore the necessity for syllabus designers to consider the aspect of the students’cultural identities in language learning programs and for teachers to understand their learners’ identities in order to address the target culture accordingly