The Effectiveness of Professional Training Programs in Developing the Digital Skills of Arabic Language Teachers from the Perspective of Principals and Academic Supervisors

The researcher of the present study aimed to explore the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital skills of Arabic language teachers in the public schools in Zarqa. The sample consists from 108 female and male principals and academic supervisors. She used a questionnaire that consists from 41 items. This questionnaire sheds a light on 4 digital skills-related areas. It was found that the digital skill level of Arabic language teachers in the four areas jointly is moderate. It was found that there are differences between the respondents’ attitudes towards the effectiveness of the aforementioned program in developing (intermediate and advanced skills).


Statement of the Problem:
The researcher aimed to address this subject, because many Arabic language teachers in primary and secondary schools have poor digital skills. She aimed to address this subject because such skills are essential. For instance, in 2020, the Ministry of Education in Jordan decided to deliver distance education due to the Coronavirus crisis. Teachers -including Arabic language teachers-are obliged to face this crisis. The researcher aimed to address this subject because teachers -including Arabic language teachers-must have digital skills to handle challenges and do duties inside and outside classroom (Al-Nsairat, 2012) For enabling teachers to handle challenges effectively, various teacher professional training courses are implemented. Such programs contribute to improving the teachers' teaching methods and implementing the vision of the Jordanian Ministry of Education. The latter vision aims at activating the role of Arabic language during the digital age. Such programs contribute to achieving comprehensive sustainable development and developing teachers' capabilities and digital skills. They contribute to expanding teachers' knowledge. Thus, they contribute to having a future generation who have much knowledge and excellent skills (Al-Sayed, 2011) Due to having many rapid developments during the digital age, educators exert much effort to keep up with such developments. Such effort include: utilizing technologies in the learning environment. They including using technologies in setting long-term strategies. Increasing such use shall contribute to making reforms to the contemporary educational system (Al-Heelah, 2017).
According to Al-Anzi(2018) and Al-Sherari (2014), it is necessary to activate the use of modern technologies in education. It is necessary for principals and academic supervisors to monitor the way of using technologies in education. It's necessary to reduce the burden enforced on teachers for facilitating the use of modern technologies in education and the acquisition of digital skills by teachers. Administrator changes must be taken to facilitate such use and acquisition. Due to the significance of professional training courses, the researcher of the present study aimed to explore the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital skills of Arabic language teachers from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors in the public schools in Zarqa The Study's Questions The researcher aimed to answer those questions Q.1. What is the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital skills of Arabic language teachers from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors in the public schools in Zarqa? Q.2. Is there any statistically significant difference -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to job title, gender, experience or directorate?

The Study's Significance:
The present study is significant due to the following reasons: 1) Through the present study, the researcher recommends keeping up with the latest trends which aim at providing teachers with more attention and developing their digital skills. The development of teachers' digital skills shall enable teachers to keep up with the latest technological development. The latter skills can be developed through in-service teacher professional training programs.
2) The present study contributes to addressing some challenges that face Arabic language teachers.
3) The present study identifies some standards that must be met when setting plans for the teacher professional training programs. 4) The present study identifies the most important digital skills. That shall enable decision makers to design effective teacher professional training programs. 5) The present study enriches the Arab library and offers valuable results. It is considered the only study that identifies the relationship between the teacher professional training programs and teachers' digital skills of Arabic language teachers They are assessed through a questionnaire from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors. Arabic language teachers: They refer to the Arabic language teachers who work in public schools and hold BA degree in Arabic language. They must illustrate the content of Arabic language curricula. They engage in professional training programs to develop their skills-including their digital skills.

Literature Review
The professional training programs of Arabic language teachers have been receiving much attention by researchers in the Arab world in general and Jordan in particular. The same applies to the training needs of Arabic language teachers and the extent of employing ICTs by the latter teachers. In this regard, Al-Khashati (2019) aimed to explore the degree to which Arabic language teachers in Jordan possess the 21st century skills from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors. He sampled 85 female and male principals and 12 female and male academic supervisors. He used a thirty-seven item questionnaire. This questionnaire sheds a light on (instructional skills, life skills and digital skills). It was found that the degree to which Arabic language teachers in Jordan possess the 21st century skills is moderate. The mean of the digital skills is ranked last. The latter researcher recommends holding several training courses for Arabic language teachers to develop their digital skills. He recommends addressing such skills through the teacher guide. Sa'adeh (2019) aimed to identify the training needs of secondary school Arabic language teachers in Al-Jam'a district in Amman. The sample consists from 58 female and male teachers. A forty-item questionnaire was used.
It sheds a light on (planning, implementation, assessment and classroom management). The training needs of the targeted teachers is low. The mean of the assessment area is ranked first and the mean of implementation is ranked last. There is a significant difference between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to gender for the favor of males. There is a significant difference between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to experience for the favor of the ones with little experience.
Al-Rwaili (2019) aimed to explore the degree to which the female educators benefit from the training programs provided by the Educational Center for Professional Development. He aimed to assess that in terms of (the teachers' self-awareness, active learning strategies, differentiated instruction, behavioural control skills and dialogue skills). He aimed to explore the applicability of the knowledge delivered through such programs to the targeted environment. The population consists from 247 educators. A simple random sample was selected. It consists from 95 educators. A questionnaire was used. The first part of the questionnaire collects demographic data about respondents. The second part of the questionnaire consists from 19 items. It aims to identify the degree to which the female educators benefit from the training programs. The third part consists from 12 items. It aims to provide suggestions for developing teachers. It was found that the degree to which the female educators benefitted from the training programs is high. Several suggestions were provided for developing teachers. Al-Ardan (2017) aimed to explore the effectiveness of a training program in developing the IT skills of Arab language teachers in intermediate schools in Ha'el, KSA. The sample consists from 30 teachers. An observation checklist was used and an achievement test was administered. The validity and reliability of the instruments were measured. It was found that the concerned training program is very effective program in developing the IT skills of Arab language teachers in intermediate schools in Ha'el, KSA. The latter researcher recommends providing training courses for Arabic language teachers. Al-Ja'afrah (2017) aimed to explore the degree to which Arabic language female and male teachers in secondary schools in Zarqa utilize technologies in instruction. The sample consists from 119 female and male teachers. The researcher used a forty five item questionnaire that sheds a light on 4 items. It was found that the degree to which Arabic language female and male teachers in secondary schools in Zarqa utilize technologies in instruction is moderate in all the areas jointly and separately. The mean of the implementation area is ranked first, followed by the planning, assessment and communication areas respectively. There aren't significant differences between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to gender or experience. The latter researcher recommends holding training courses for Arab language teachers to develop their abilities to utilize technologies in instruction. Al-Faqeeh (2017)aimed to shed a light on the reality of the current professional development programs of public school Arabic language teachers in Saudi Arabia. He aimed to shed a light on the way of planning, implementing and assessing such programs. He aimed to develop a conceptual framework for the professional development of public school Arabic language teachers in Saudi Arabia. To meet the intended goals, the researcher analysed the content of several documents. He analysed the practices of teachers. He provided an effective conceptual framework for the professional development of public school Arabic language teachers in Saudi Arabia. He provided several recommendations for developing Arabic language professionally in accordance with the proposed framework.
Al-Azemi (2016) aimed to explore the reality of the training programs of the novice Arabic language teachers in Kuwait. He aimed to explore the relationship between such programs and professional development. He aimed to explore the respondents' attitudes in accordance with gender and school stage. The sample consists from 121 female and male novice Arabic language teachers in Kuwait who were recruited during (2015-2016). The latter researcher used two instruments. The first instrument consists from 44 items. It sheds a light on (the training needs, training methods, and cultural, academic and professional dimensions). The second instrument measures the extent of developing Arabic language novice teachers professionally. It consists from 29 items and sheds a light on 4 areas. It sheds a light on (the lesson planning, classroom management, instructional method and assessment). The validity and reliability of the instruments are measured. It was found that the effectiveness of the training programs of the novice Arabic language teachers in Kuwait is moderate. There isn't any significant difference between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to gender in all the areas jointly. However, there is such a difference in the professional dimension which is for the favor of females. There isn't any significant difference between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to school stage in all the areas jointly. However, there is such a difference in the academic dimension which is for the favor of primary school students. The extent of developing Arabic language novice teachers professionally is high. Kathem and Abed Al-Kareem (2015) aimed to explore the training needs of female and male Arabic language teachers from their perspective. They aimed to explore the respondents' attitudes in accordance with gender, experience and academic qualification. The sample consists from 198 teachers (i.e. 94 teachers are males and 94 teachers are females). Those teachers were selected randomly. The latter researchers used a questionnaire that aims at exploring the training needs of the sampled teachers. The final version of the questionnaire consists from 47 items. It sheds a light on several areas (i.e. lesson planning, lesson delivery, teaching methods, and assessment methods). It was found that the level of the training needs of the training needs of female and male Arabic language teachers is high. It was found that there isn't any significant difference between the respondents' training needs which can be attributed to gender or years of experience. It was found that there are significant differences between the respondents' training needs which can be attributed to academic qualification. Al-Khaldi (2012) aimed to explore the degree to which secondary school Arabic language teachers utilize technologies in instruction in accordance with total quality standards. He used a questionnaire and an observational checklist. Through using the questionnaire, data was collected from 300 female and male teachers. Through using an observational checklist, data was collected from 100 female and male checklist. The following results were concluded. For instance, the degree to which secondary school Arabic language teachers utilize technologies in instruction in accordance with total quality standards is moderate. The mean of the extent of using internet in instruction is ranked first followed by using audio devices and using computer respectively. Teachers rarely use animation in instruction. The extent of attention provided by teachers for improving the teaching-learning process is ranked first. Some of the aforementioned studies -i.e. Al-Azemi (2016), Al-Faqeeh (2017) and Al-Rwaili (2019)-aimed to shed a light on the reality of professional development and training programs. Some of the aforementioned studies -e.g. Sa'adah (2019) and Kathem and Abed Al-Kareem (2015)-aimed to shed a light on the training needs of Arabic language teachers. Some of the aforementioned studies -e.g. Al-Ja'afrah (2017) and Al-Khaldi (2012) -aimed to shed a light on the extent of utilizing technologies in instruction by Arabic language teachers. Al-Khaldi (2012) concluded that the extent of utilizing technologies in instruction by Arabic language teachers is moderate. He recommends holding training courses for Arabic language teachers about the utilization of technologies. Reviewing the aforementioned studies enabled the researcher of the present study to determine the study's measures, develop the instrument and construct the theoretical framework of this study. Contrary to the aforementioned studies, the present study sheds a light on the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital skills of Arabic language teachers from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors. Similar to the present study, Al-Khashati (2019) shed a light on the skills of Arabic language teachers in Jordan. For instance, he aimed to explore the degree to which Arabic language teachers in Jordan possess the 21st century skills from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors. He recommends holding training courses to develop their digital skills. As far as the researcher knows, the present study is the first study that aimed to identify the on the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital skills of Arabic language teachers from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors.

Methodology Population and Sample
The study's population is represented in all the principals and academic supervisors who were working during the first semester of the academic year (2020/2021) in the (First Zarqa Directorate of Education, Second Zarqa Directorate of Education and Russeifa Directorate of Education).
A random stratified sampling method was used to select a sample from the public schools in Zarqa. The sample consists from 108 female and male principals and academic supervisors.  (2), the means are within the range of (3.05-3.78). The overall mean is 3.44. Thus, the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital skills of Arabic language teachers is moderate from the perspective of principals and academic supervisors. That is because the Jordanian Ministry of Education started providing attention to the teacher professional training programs just few years ago. It's because the latter programs don't meet the required professional development standards much. It's because the latter ministry doesn't provide adequate attention to the professional training programs that aim at developing the digital skills of Arabic language skills. It's because the expertise of principals and academic supervisors aren't utilized as required in the latter programs. The means of two areas are high and the means of two areas are moderate. For instance, the means of the (upper intermediate skills) is 3.78 which is high. It indicates that teacher professional training programs provide much attention to the development of upper intermediate digital skills. The means of the (elementary skills) is 3.71 which is high and ranked second. The mean of (the advanced skills) is 3.07 which is moderate and ranked third. The mean of the (intermediate skills) is 3.05 which is moderate and ranked fourth. The means and standard deviations of the items of each area are presented below:  (3), the means are within the range of 4.09-3.04. The overall mean is 3.71. Thus, the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital elementary skills of Arabic language teachers is high. Statement (7) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in: creating an email account and activating it). The mean of the latter statement is 4.09 which is high and ranked first. It means that professional training programs provide much attention to the use of emails. Statement (9) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in: Using blogs and Wikis). The mean of the latter statement is 3.04 which is moderate and ranked last. It indicates that professional training programs don't provide much attention to blogs and wikis. However, such attention must be provided to implement the vision of the Jordanian Ministry of Education. The latter vision aims at shifting the learning environment from a conventional one into a digital one in all educational institutions.  (19) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in: Using info graphics to motivate students to learn). The mean of the latter statement is 3.78 which is high and ranked first. Such attention is provided to info graphics due to their significance in Arabic language education. For instance, info graphics play a significant role in increasing students' retention and understanding for information and raising their students' achievement. Statement (15) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in presenting and editing audio clips during lessons). The mean of the latter statement is 2.41 which is moderate and ranked eleventh. However, those programs must provide more attention to the teachers' skills in using editing audio clips. That's because audio clips play a significant role in improving the quality of education.  (5), the means are within the range of 3.04-4.09. The overall mean is 3.78. Thus, the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital upper intermediate skills of Arabic language teachers is high. Statement (26) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in: Creating various assessment methods, such as: e-exams). The mean of the latter statement is 4.09 which is high and ranked first. Such attention is provided to e-exams due to the significance of the assessment process. It is provided to e-exams for implementing the vision of the Jordanian Ministry of Education. The latter visions provides much attention to e-assessment, especially after shifting to distance education during the Coronavirus crisis. Statement (28) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in: Taking screenshot for exchanging the academic material ).The mean of the latter statement is 3.04 which is moderate and ranked eleventh. This means that more attention must be provided for improving the ability for enabling Arabic language teachers in exchanging the material with students effectively.  (6), the means are within the range of 2.43-3.80. The overall mean is 3.07. Thus, the effectiveness of professional training programs in developing the digital advanced skills of Arabic language teachers is moderate. Statement (36) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in: Designing various electronic activities for students). The mean of the latter statement is 3.80 which is high and ranked first. This indicates that those programs provide much attention to electronic activities. That is attributed to the significance of such activities. For instance, such activities play a significant role in improving students' academic achievement. Statement (39) states the following: (Those programs can develop the Arabic language teachers' abilities in: Designing interactive e-books and sharing them). The mean of the latter statement is 2.43 which is moderate and ranked ninth. That indicates that more awareness must be promoted about the role of Arabic language teachers in designing interactive e-books and sharing them. Designing interactive ebooks by those teachers shall enable them to exchange their ideas with experts and show creativity in teaching.

Results related to the second question:
Q.2. Is there any statistically significant difference -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to job title, gender, experience or directorate? To answer this question, means and standard deviation are calculated. T-test is conducted to explore whether the differences that may be attributed to job title or gender are statistically significant or not. Analysis of variance is conducted to explore whether the differences that may be attributed to experience and directorate are statistically significant or not. Tables No. (7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13) present the results related to the second question: First: Results related to job title  (7), the t-value of the intermediate skills is 2.214,. Thus, there is a statistically significant difference -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of the intermediate skills which can be attributed to job title. The latter difference is for the favour of principals. For instance, the mean of principals is 3.20 and the mean of academic supervisors is 2.64 in the latter area.
The t-value of the advanced skills is 2.515. Thus, there is a statistically significant difference at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of the advanced skills which can be attributed to job title. The latter difference is for the favour of principals. For instance, the mean of principals is 3.24 and the mean of academic supervisors is 2.63 in the latter area. There isn't any statistically significant difference -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of the elementary or upper intermediate skills which can be attributed to job title. That's because the t-values of the elementary and upper intermediate skills aren't statistically significant.
The overall t-value is 2.213 which is statistically significant. Thus, there is a statistically significant difference -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of the all the skills jointly which can be attributed to job title. The latter difference is for the favour of principals. For instance, the mean of principals is 3.56 and the mean of academic supervisors is 2.12 in all the areas jointly. The latter result indicate that principals and academic supervisors realize the significance of professional training programs in developing the Arabic language teachers' intermediate and advanced skills. It may be attributed to the fact that principals are more aware of the effectiveness of such programs due to their daily interaction with Arabic language teachers. However, the academic supervisors don't interact with teachers in a daily manner. Thus, they have less knowledge than principals about the effectiveness of such programs in developing the digital skills of Arabic language teachers. Second: Results related to gender:  (9), it appears that there are differences between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to experience. To explore whether those differences are statistically significant or not, the one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) is conducted. The results of the latter analysis are presented in table (10) below:  (10), there isn't any statistically significant difference -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of primary and upper intermediate skills which can be attributed to experience. In addition, there isn't any statistically significant difference between the respondents' attitudes in terms of all the areas jointly which can be attributed to experience.
There are statistically significant differences -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of advanced and intermediate skills which can be attributed to experience. To explore the ones whose the differences are for their favour, Scheffe test was conducted.   (11), there are statistically significant differences -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of intermediate skills which can be attributed to experience. The latter differences are for the favour of the ones who have 5-10 years (m= 3.36) and the ones who have more than 10 years (m=3.14). That's concluded when conducting a comparison between the ones have less than 5 years from one hand and the ones who have 5-10 years and the ones who have more than 10 years from another hand.
There are statistically significant differences -at the statistical significance level of α ≥0.05-between the respondents' attitudes in terms of advanced skills which can be attributed to experience. The latter differences are for the favour of the ones who have less than 5 year (m=3.66) and the ones who have (5-10) years (m=3.71). That's concluded when conducting a comparison between the ones have less than 5 year and the ones who have (5-10) years from one hand and the ones who have more than 10 years from another hand. The latter results indicate that experienceaffects the respondents' attitudes. Fourth: Results related to directorate  (12), it appears that there are statistically significant differences between the respondents' attitudes which can be attributed to directorate in all the areas jointly and separately. To explore the ones whose the differences are for their favour, the one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) is conducted. Table (13) presents the results of the latter analysis.