The Effect of Developing an Educational Environment Based on Interactive Digital Platforms on Developing Linguistic Communication Skills among Intermediate-Level Learners of Arabic as a Non-Native Language in the United Arab Emirates, in Light of the Requirements of Future Education (A Field Study at Sharjah International Private School – Emirate of Sharjah)

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the effect of developing an educational environment based on interactive digital platforms on developing linguistic communication skills among intermediate-level learners of Arabic as a non-native language in the United Arab Emirates, in light of the requirements of future education. The researcher adopted a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design, beginning with a quasi-experimental quantitative phase involving two equivalent groups—a treatment group and a control group—with 20 students in each group, using pre- and post-testing. This phase was followed by a qualitative phase aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of the quantitative findings.

The study was conducted in an authentic educational setting at Sharjah International Private School. Data were collected using a 28-item Linguistic Communication Skills Test, a 12-item Observation Checklist of Communicative Language Performance, and a semi-structured interview protocol administered to a purposive subsample of the treatment group to explore students’ level of satisfaction. The validity of the two instruments was established through expert review, while their reliability was confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of 0.88 and 0.91, respectively.

Given the purposive and non-random nature of the sample, the non-parametric Mann–Whitney U test was used as an alternative to the independent-samples t-test. The results revealed statistically significant differences at the α ≤ 0.05 level in favor of the treatment group in both the cognitive and performance domains, with a very large effect size. Thematic analysis of the interview data further revealed a high level of satisfaction, associated with reduced language anxiety, authentic and realistic tasks, and immediate feedback.

The study recommended integrating digital linguistic communication standards into Arabic language curricula for non-native speakers and developing sustainable professional training programs for teachers in alignment with the requirements of future education