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A Bahraini perspective of American education: A case study
Abstract
This case study described certain characteristics of the American overseas school experience as perceived by Bahraini graduates of Bahrain School. Bahrain School, located on the island of Bahrain in the Arabian Gulf, is a kindergarten through grade twelve school, operated by the United States Department of Defense Dependents Schools System (DoDDS). The school population is nearly 900 students, about thirty percent of whom are Bahraini nationals. These Bahraini students spend seven hours a day in an American school environment that is culturally very different from the environment they experience in their out-of-school lives. How do Bahrain student describe this experience? Twelve students (six male students and six female students) from three consecutive graduating classes in the 1990s were interviewed. The interview consisted of open-ended questions posed by the interviewer. Interviews were tape recorded and transcribed. Responses were coded into five emergent themes. The first theme that emerged was the idea that American education teaches students to think. The second theme was the strength of the personal relationships established between students and teachers in American schools. The third theme was that graduating from Bahrain School set Bahraini students apart in a permanent way from their peers who graduated from local schools. The fourth theme was the excellent preparation for college provided by Bahrain School. The fifth theme that emerged was the respect for local culture demonstrated by the Bahrain School faculty. The themes were analyzed in terms of the Multiple Worlds Model developed by Phelan, Cao, and Davidson. Themes one, three, four and five were examples of "different worlds/boundary crossing managed." Theme two is an example of "worlds congruent." The American school experience was described by the interviewees as an experience that sometimes placed them in a world different from their own, but it was an experience that provided them with many of the tools they needed to be successful in their adult lives.
Subject Area
Secondary education|Bilingual education|Multicultural education
Recommended Citation
Cummings, Kathleen Ann, "A Bahraini perspective of American education: A case study" (1996). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9700079.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9700079