The Role of English as a Foreign Language in Promoting Global Awareness of Sustainable Development Goals:

Abstract

This study examines the role of learning English as a foreign language (EFL) in promoting students’ global awareness of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) at the University of 8 Mai 1945–Guelma, Algeria. It focuses on some sociolinguistic factors such as age, gender, and academic level to analyze their influence on students’ perceptions of and engagement with sustainability themes. Employing a comparative descriptive method, the research targets a sample of 80 students, comprising 40 first-year and 40 second-year master’s students from the Department of Letters and English Language. Data were gathered through a 17-item questionnaire containing both open-ended and closed-ended questions. The findings reveal that exposure to EFL content, including classroom discussions and global topics, significantly contributes to enhancing learners’ awareness of the SDGs. Notably, senior students demonstrated a higher level of awareness and more critical engagement with sustainability issues compared to freshmen, likely due to their advanced academic level and longer exposure to EFL instruction. Furthermore, the study observed that female students were generally more responsive to sustainability themes, while academic level emerged as a strong predictor of both awareness and engagement. The results underscored the potential of EFL instruction to support the development of global citizenship by equipping students with linguistic skills as well as critical awareness necessary for addressing contemporary global challenges. Furthermore, the study concluded by recommending the integration of SDG- related content into EFL curricula to enrich both language proficiency and social consciousness.