Exploring linguistic teachers' perceptions of introducing Chinese language courses in Saudi Arabian public schools

Chinese language courses have been introduced in Saudi public schools, but linguistic teachers’ perceptions remain underexplored. This study examined their attitudes, perceived challenges, and professional development opportunities. A cross-sectional survey of 420 linguistic teachers from 116 public schools used a 19-item Likert-scale questionnaire and one open-ended item. Quantitative data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, and multiple linear regression; qualitative responses underwent thematic analysis. Overall, 63.6 % reported positive attitudes toward integrating Chinese, 78 % cited high or very high challenges, and 67.1 % saw professional growth opportunities. Attitudes correlated strongly with perceived professional growth and moderately with challenges. Younger age predicted lower attitudes; teaching Arabic predicted higher challenges. While overall support exists for introducing Chinese courses, barriers such as limited resources, student motivation, and community acceptance remain.