A Framework for Evaluating Research on Distance Chinese Learning in UAE: What Aspects of Distance Learning Can We Study?

In 2019, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) became the first Arab country to integrate Chinese language education into its national basic education system, employing 172 Chinese language teachers and educating over 54,000 Emirati students by 2022.In response to the global pandemic, the UAE also became the first Arab nation to implement distance learning on a national scale, transitioning public schools to this mode of instruction in March 2020.However, existing research on distance Chinese learning primarily focuses on international students in Chinese universities or countries where Chinese language education is more established, and mainly targets older age groups such as university and high school students.There is currently no research dedicated to distance Chinese learning in the UAE.This paper addresses this research gap by exploring three key aspects.The first section reviews current literature on the key stakeholders and influencing factors in distance learning.The second section examines the development of distance Chinese language education and proposes an initial evaluation framework for this field.The third section analyzes the current state of distance Chinese learning in the UAE, highlighting specific issues that warrant further scholarly attention.This study serves as a valuable reference for researchers interested in advancing research on both distance learning and Chinese language education in the UAE.