The current study examined the most common types of academic writing errors and the causes of such errors made by 44 tertiary EFL Arab-Israeli students. A methodological triangulation was employed in this research. Results and analyses of errors in the written samples revealed that students made a substantial number of errors in both rating scales. In the generic writing performance scale (the qualitative method), 75% of students’ written samples rated poor, and the error frequency rating scale (the quantitative method) showed that the students made 2965 errors, which is a notably large number in proportion to the essay length. The researchers have also inferred that the principal reason for such errors is the triglossic nature of Arabic in Israel. The novelty of this research is that such triglossic nature of Arab-Israelis’ language has not yet been investigated in the field. To this end, the results drawn will be utilised in future research as a platform for exploring effective teaching approaches that may enhance EFL students’ writing performance.

The purpose of this study is to examine Israeli-Arab pre-service teachers’ motivations for choosing English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching as their future profession. Data were gathered using the adapted Factors Influencing Teaching Choice (FIT-Choice) scale. Study participants (a cohort of N = 100) responded to a questionnaire of 38 motivational factors that had influenced them to choose English teaching as a future profession when entering education colleges. In addition, 20 of the participants took part in semi-structured interviews. Results revealed that the reasons Arab students become English teachers are based on a combination of intrinsic, extrinsic, and altruistic motivations. As all study participants were women, our results provide an initial indication of what draws Arab-Israeli women to the profession.

There is a paucity of empirical research documenting the errors made by Arab learners, specifically those enrolled in higher education, when acquiring spoken English. The current study examined the most common types of verbal errors made by 20 Arab tertiary students of English in Israel. Data were collected based on in-class oral presentations made by first-year students and observations of English lessons taught by third-year students. The most frequent errors were classified into three main categories: (a) grammar and syntax, (b) pronunciation, and (c) vocabulary choice.  Errors were documented by the researchers, who also served as course instructors/mentors. A significant number of errors (1050) were documented in the delivery of the presentations and lessons. Analysis of the results suggest that the documented errors are largely attributable to L1 interference (interlingual causes), although some derive from challenges inherent to English itself (intralingual). The importance of this study is that it clarifies the difficulties Israeli Arab learners face while speaking English as a foreign language, which can cast light on potential remedies. 

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