Abstract

The present article addresses British efforts at using English Language Teaching (ELT) to bolster its position among a broad range of Gulf residents, from sheikhs to students. During a time in which the British image in the Arab world was often discredited, policymakers believed that the English language was one commodity capable of overcoming prevailing negative attitudes. Through an analysis of British Council files for the Persian Gulf, this article examines the successes and failures which attended British efforts to use English language expertise to forge new contacts and to develop a new role in Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar. It shows that there was rising demand for ELT across the trio of states. In Qatar and, especially, Bahrain, this demand helped Britain to enhance its presence within the education sector and thus help to maintain a form of British involvement in the years following withdrawal. Kuwait proved a more difficult nut to crack; but even here, a revamped ELT effort from 1969 gave British observers encouragement that the English language was among the country’s trump cards in its effort to maintain favourable relations with its former client.

摘要

本文讨论了英国利用英语语言教学 (ELT) 来巩固其在从酋长到学生等广大海湾居民中的地位的努力。在英国在阿拉伯世界的形象经常受到质疑的时期，政策制定者相信英语是一种能够克服普遍的负面态度的商品。通过对英国文化协会在波斯湾的档案进行分析，本文探讨了英国利用英语专业知识在科威特、巴林和卡塔尔建立新的联系和发展新角色的努力的成功和失败。这表明这三个州对英语教学的需求不断增长。在卡塔尔，特别是巴林，这一需求帮助英国增强了其在教育领域的影响力，从而有助于在退出后的几年里保持英国的某种形式的参与。事实证明，科威特是一个更难破解的难题。但即便如此，1969 年改革后的 ELT 努力也让英国观察家感到鼓舞，因为英语是该国与前客户保持良好关系的王牌之一。