Dr.
Khadija Kaj-Itani is Assistant Professor and Chair of the General Education
Program at Effat University. Dr. Itani received her bachelor's degree in
English Literature at the Lebanese University in Beirut before pursuing her
postgraduate education at the University of Wales and
subsequently the University of London. She earned a professional
doctorate in education at Exeter University, England where her thesis
scrutinized the New English secondary curriculum and explored teachers'
perceptions of the new secondary English curriculum in order to
identify reasons why the actual curriculum was incompatible with the
taught curriculum.
After teaching Early Childhood
Education at Effat University for a long time, Dr. Itani currently heads the
Department of General Education and teaches civic engagement by mainly drawing
upon the target-communities’ values, attitudes and behaviors and research
methodology. Prior to joining Effat, She taught a range of courses in language,
literature and creative writing at King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah and the
University of Sharjah.
Dr Itani’s research interest
lies mainly in educational theories and pedagogies. In one of her earliest
research studies, she examined the effects of peer coaching on professional
development in the context of higher education. In collaboration with her
colleagues, she has produced another study concerned with identifying the
underlying reasons that impede or facilitate students' progress at
learning in general and learning English in particular. In addition, she has
recently produced two more studies on value-based liberal arts teaching model
and educational leadership styles. Currently, she is leading a collaborative
research project on integrating ethics and liberal arts
education in higher education.
