English abstract
The aim of this study is to measure the attitudes of Bahrain University (BU) students towards the "New History of Bahrain and Citizenship" Course and to show differences in students' attitudes based on certain variables developed specifically for this study.
To achieve this, the author developed a 50-item questionnaire on a 5-point Likert scale, based on literature review available on this field, with half of the questionnaire items worded negatively. Adequate methods were used to assess the validity and reliability of the questionnaire. The developed tool was then administered to 220 students enrolled in the above-mentioned course in the summer semester of the academic year 2015/2016. Overall, the findings of the study show that BU students demonstrated positively-oriented neutral attitudes towards the said course. Moreover, the findings show statistically significant differences in students' attitudes towards the "New History of Bahrain and Citizenship" Course. This can be attributed to the average time students spend at home to study the course and to the section which the students register in. No statistically significant differences, however, were observed between students' attitudes that could be attributed to gender, college, year of study and grade point average (GPA).
In view of this, it is recommended that the course specifications are to be reconsidered, and the methods of teaching and assessment be improved. Students should also be encouraged to connect the course to their real life.
