Challenges of English as a Medium Instruction in Primary Schools in Halabjeh

Since 2015 in Kurdistan Region Government, English is used as Medium for Instruction to teach Science to elementary schools. This program is implemented in Halabjeh province, too. But so far no research has been done to show what Challenges teachers, students and their parents encounter in practice. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the lived experiences of teachers, students and teachers in Halabjeh city in the field of science education with English language as a Medium for Instruction. This study was conducted with qualitative approach and phenomenological method. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and three-stage open, axial and selective coding was used for analysis. The findings of this study show that teachers, students and their parents are not satisfied with the results of this project. Teachers do not have the necessary skills (specialization in science, teaching with English language) to teach science and math courses, students are unable to communicate, understand text and do homework and are not psychologically interested and motivated to continue their education. Parents are unhappy with their children's upbringing and worry about their low spirits. Finally, the conceptual model outlines the reasons for the challenges of science education in English. Keywords: bilingual education, elementary school, Halabjeh city, science education, English as a Medium Instruction (EMI) Since 2015 in Kurdistan Region Government, English is used as Medium for Instruction to teach Science to elementary schools. This program is implemented in Halabjeh province, too. But so far no research has been done to show what Challenges teachers, students and their parents encounter in practice. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the lived experiences of teachers, students and teachers in Halabjeh city in the field of science education with English language as a Medium for Instruction. This study was conducted with qualitative approach and phenomenological method. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and three-stage open, axial and selective coding was used for analysis. The findings of this study show that teachers, students and their parents are not satisfied with the results of this project. Teachers do not have the necessary skills (specialization in science, teaching with English language) to teach science and math courses, students are unable to communicate, understand text and do homework and are not psychologically interested and motivated to continue their education. Parents are unhappy with their children's upbringing and worry about their low spirits. Finally, the conceptual model outlines the reasons for the challenges of science education in English. Keywords: bilingual education, elementary school, Halabjeh city, science education, English as a Medium Instruction (EMI) Since 2015 in Kurdistan Region Government, English is used as Medium for Instruction to teach Science to elementary schools. This program is implemented in Halabjeh province, too. But so far no research has been done to show what Challenges teachers, students and their parents encounter in practice. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the lived experiences of teachers, students and teachers in Halabjeh city in the field of science education with English language as a Medium for Instruction. This study was conducted with qualitative approach and phenomenological method. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and three-stage open, axial and selective coding was used for analysis. The findings of this study show that teachers, students and their parents are not satisfied with the results of this project. Teachers do not have the necessary skills (specialization in science, teaching with English language) to teach science and math courses, students are unable to communicate, understand text and do homework and are not psychologically interested and motivated to continue their education. Parents are unhappy with their children's upbringing and worry about their low spirits. Finally, the conceptual model outlines the reasons for the challenges of science education in English. Keywords: bilingual education, elementary school, Halabjeh city, science education, English as a Medium Instruction (EMI) Since 2015 in Kurdistan Region Government, English is used as Medium for Instruction to teach Science to elementary schools. This program is implemented in Halabjeh province, too. But so far no research has been done to show what Challenges teachers, students and their parents encounter in practice. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the lived experiences of teachers, students and teachers in Halabjeh city in the field of science education with English language as a Medium for Instruction. This study was conducted with qualitative approach and phenomenological method. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and three-stage open, axial and selective coding was used for analysis. The findings of this study show that teachers, students and their parents are not satisfied with the results of this project. Teachers do not have the necessary skills (specialization in science, teaching with English language) to teach science and math courses, students are unable to communicate, understand text and do homework and are not psychologically interested and motivated to continue their education. Parents are unhappy with their children's upbringing and worry about their low spirits. Finally, the conceptual model outlines the reasons for the challenges of science education in English. Keywords: bilingual education, elementary school, Halabjeh city, science education, English as a Medium Instruction (EMI) Since 2015 in Kurdistan Region Government, English is used as Medium for Instruction to teach Science to elementary schools. This program is implemented in Halabjeh province, too. But so far no research has been done to show what Challenges teachers, students and their parents encounter in practice. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the lived experiences of teachers, students and teachers in Halabjeh city in the field of science education with English language as a Medium for Instruction. This study was conducted with qualitative approach and phenomenological method. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and three-stage open, axial and selective coding was used for analysis. The findings of this study show that teachers, students and their parents are not satisfied with the results of this project. Teachers do not have the necessary skills (specialization in science, teaching with English language) to teach science and math courses, students are unable to communicate, understand text and do homework and are not psychologically interested and motivated to continue their education. Parents are unhappy with their children's upbringing and worry about their low spirits. Finally, the conceptual model outlines the reasons for the challenges of science education in English. Keywords: bilingual education, elementary school, Halabjeh city, science education, English as a Medium Instruction (EMI)