Identifying the English language needs of Saudi police officers

الملخص EN

This study attempts to identify and assess the English language needs of police officers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

For this purpose a questionnaire was developed, piloted and distributed to 103 police officers on the job.

The results indicate that English plays a remarkable role in police work.

The administration of English courses by the various sectors and by the Higher Institute of Security Sciences show that the Ministry of the Interior is aware of the importance of English for police cadets and officers.

The participant officers were found to be conscious of the significance of tailoring the language materials they study to their occupational needs.

All officers rated those items which were relevant to their jobs as important.

The results show that although police officers and their sectors understand the significance of English to police work, many officers stated that they have never been trained on how to use English for police purposes.

This finding is alarming since the overall results indicate that English for police purposes should be emphasized.

Based on this finding, the study has proposed some general guidelines for the improvement of the English program at King Fahd Security College, the Higher Institute of Security Sciences, and the individual security sectors.

The paper concludes by highlighting a number of topics that await further reselifch.