Economic Motivation of Iranian Public University Students in Learning Conversation (Case study: Tehran universities)

Motivation is one of the most important influential factors in life that leads an individual to achieve his mindsets, which is effective in various aspects of human life and one of the most important aspects is learning. Also, considering the importance of economics in today's world and its role in learning, the position of economic motivations for learning can be further understood, which is very evident in learning foreign language courses. Therefore, it can be claimed that the economic motivation of learning provokes the feelings of Arabic language learners and encourages them to continue their university education because language, like money, is the cornerstone of modern economic activity. In particular, conversational skills have become an important element in the communication of economic activities.
The syllabus include all the resources used in the classroom for teaching, including books, CDs and all educational software and notes, but the curriculum is a program prepared by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology and includes types and amount of courses, number of sessions and duration needed for each course, and course objectives. It also usually introduces the resources and training materials needed to teach the courses.
 Additionally, learning occurs only when there is a proportion and harmony between the factors that affect the education and students' motivations. For instance, we can mention the subjects and curriculum, which have a special role in the success of students and reaching to their goals. Regarding the weakness of Arabic language students in learning language skills and especially Arabic conversation skills at the end of the undergraduate program, researchers aim to study the economic motivations of Iranian students majoring in Arabic language and literature and Arabic interpreter in learning Arabic conversation skills in undergraduate courses. Therefore, in this research, descriptive-analytical research method and relying on field research method were used. Due to the coronavirus pandemic lockdown and lacking of face-to-face education in universities, an electronic questionnaire was used to collect information required for research from students by researchers.
Press Line application is utilized in order to distribute questionnaire among students. Randomly, 110 undergraduate students with different academic years in the field of Arabic language and literature of Tehran public universities (University of Tehran, Allameh Tabatabaei University, Shahid Beheshti University and Al-Zahra University) were selected as case study, of which 17 were boys and 93 were girls. In this questionnaire, a five-point Likert type scale is used to measure items. After measuring the reliability of the questionnaire, Cronbach's alpha coefficient was equal to 0.84, which shows the stability of the questionnaire. Finally, the study concluded that due to the importance of the Arabic language among Iranians and considering highly effect of financial interests of studying Arabic language, it has turned to one of the most elected field by students. In general, students are highly motivated to learn Arabic language and, especially, learning conversation skills.
Additionally, this study provided rational reasons that, there is a direct relationship between students' motivations and subjects. The results also emphasized the effect of curriculum on increasing students' motivation. Therefor, increasing students' motivation depends on improving curriculum and subjects. We also figured it out that most students learn Arabic language for financial purposes and to get employed that guarantees their future. Among the various types of jobs that need individuals graduated in Arabic, students tended to choose translator as their first priority and Arabic language teacher as the last choice.
After financial interests, interacting with Arabic spoken language countries was the most important reason that has led students to choose this field. Unfortunately, the current subjects and curriculum that has designed for this field are based on cultural, political and religious point of view and rarely pay attention to economic factors. Because of lacking appropriate curriculum, students are not well-prepared for today's marketplace, and they gradually lose their motivation and interests to learn further skills. Even worse than that, students may fail to finish their bachelor or decide to change their field. The results also showed that the impact of current subjects and curriculum on increasing students' motivation to learn Arabic is very low and cannot satisfy students.
In conclusion, it is essential to review the subjects and teaching materials of the conversation courses. It requires a change in traditional perspectives on the teaching of the field and its language skills, so that the economic and even social motivations of students currently have no role in determining what curriculum is suitable and what professor should select as reference textbooks. Finally, this article recommends paying attention to the economic and job motivations of students and the preparation of improved and appropriate curriculum and subjects based on these motivations in Iranian universities for teaching Arabic and conversation skills.