Exploring EFL after-school classes in Armenia as platforms for teaching citizenship education

Abstract

The current paper reports a quasi-experimental study which offers evidence and recommendations to English language programs to integrate citizenship education and community service into their curricula. The purpose of this research study was to observe the effects of citizenship education and community service on students’ sense of citizenship in EFL after-school classes in Armenia. It also aimed at investigating into the impacts of citizenship education and community service on students’ sense of belonging to the educational institution that constructs them as citizens. The study was conducted with two groups - 29 students - at the Experimental English Classes (EEC). The data was collected both quantitatively and qualitatively. For quantitative data collection, a pre-post survey questionnaire was administered, while observations and interviews were implemented for qualitative data collection. The study used the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and content analysis for looking into quantitative and qualitative data respectively. Based on empirical evidence, this study revealed that Armenian EFL after-school classes, while teaching English, may also serve as legitimate platforms to teach citizenship education and impact students’ sense of citizenship. It also revealed that incorporating community service in the citizenship curricula reinforces the process of constructing young citizens. Last but not least, this research study found that students develop a sense of belonging to the educational institution where they learn citizenship content and through which they serve their communities.