Book review: The Arabic Classroom: Context,Text,and Learners

Today’s Arabic classrooms present several new challenges to people in the field of Arabic education. Because the demand for teaching Arabic has increased in the last three decades, there has been a change in both the number of students and the types of students (Akmalia et al., 2021). They come from diverse backgrounds, represent a variety of learning styles, and have different skills and levels of background knowledge. Thus, as Arabic teachers, we must become more deliberate and thoughtful about how we meet the needs of our students, and regardless of the challenges posed by today’s diverse Arabic classrooms, it is imperative all students are challenged appropriately and equitably. The Arabic Classroom: Context, Text, and Learners was edited by Mbaye Lo. The expertise of the authors is Arabic language teaching (e.g., teaching Arabic grammar and Arabic online), pedagogy (e.g., methodologies of developing language education), culture, literature, linguistic, and translation. The writers succeed in offering a reassurance to those concerned about its marginalization in the Arabic language program as a foreign language by emphasizing the centrality of the role of Fuṣḥā.

This book consists of five parts. Each part has three to four chapters. The first part has four chapters by discussing American Contexts of Teaching and Learning Arabic. Chapter 1 was written by Mbaye Lo. He presents a detailed explanation of the growth of Arabic studies by looking at the history of each section discussed (e.g., the context of Arabic is explained from the history of Arabic language and its development). The arguments presented are not the result of research but are based on the existing literature. Chapter 2 by Hanada Al-Masri emphasizes the content of Arabic syllabi at the university level with particular attention to three components: course approach, course objectives, and assessment procedures. He concludes that almost all syllabi adopt skills-based curriculum. The third chapter focuses on Arabic and the problem of learning: experiences in teaching Arabic at two Historically Black Colleges and Universities, by Aman Nadhiri and Maurice Hines. They highlight problems in learning Arabic, seen from the experience of teaching Arabic in two black universities in terms of demographics/background, programs, pedagogy, promotions, and challenges. Written by Miriam Cooke, Chapter 4, On Arabic: reflections from Edinburgh University to Duke, she shows her reflection on how she was taught Arabic in the late 1960s and how her prior education influenced her in her first-year teaching job at Duke University two decades later. Each chapter in the first part does not describe in detail about the research methods and steps. However, the content presented has succeeded in contributing to the development of Arabic pedagogy and curriculum, by looking at the reflections and experiences of Arabic teaching programs in America in terms of syllabus, context, textbooks, students, and challenges.

Part 2, Texts and Textbooks in Teaching and Learning Arabic, begins with Chapter 5 by Badr Abdelfattah Badr. The author evaluates Alif Baa in terms of content and culture with the most commonly used textbooks for teaching Arabic as a foreign/second language in the United States. From the results of 20 Arabic language instructor’s checklist, it was found that Alif Baa is a good textbook because it emphasizes balance (theoretical and practical frameworks) and caters to the differences in student learning styles. The findings contribute to the creation of the textbook (exemplary criteria). The strength of this chapter is that the demographics of the participants give confidence in the accuracy of the research results (Arabic language teaching practitioners in the field). In Chapter 6, On technology and culture in the Arabic classroom by Manar Darwish, he carefully examines the technology (audio, video with personal DVD, electronic materials, and websites) used in Arabic books. The discussion about this technology is very interesting because it can inspire readers of this book from among Arabic language educators to apply it in their classrooms. By relying on relevant technology tools, teachers can maximize the benefits of class time and make projects and classwork more interesting. Chapter 7 points out nine principles of learning Arabic as a foreign language in a simple and easy to understand way, based on his experience in developing textbooks and experimenting with different learning approaches, for more than 40 years of teaching the Arabic language. In conclusion, Part 2 provides readers with a profound overview of textbooks from the aspects of evaluation (i.e., technology, culture, and principles of learning Arabic). The results of the textbooks evaluation show that the culture in teaching Arabic only focuses on the Arab culture. They argue that the text must not be separated from context. It is different from teaching English, which has become a global language (lingua franca, global englishes). In the future, we recommend that multicultural values be represented in Arabic textbooks because it can influence and shape students’ ideology (see Setyono and Widodo, 2019).

Methods and Methodology in Teaching and Learning Arabic is the main theme of the third part of this book, which has four chapters. Personalizing proficiency: a student-centered proficiency-oriented curriculum by David Dimeo, found in Chapter 8. He emphasizes the approach used by the Arabic for Proficiency (AFP) program at Western Kentucky University, in terms of objectives and constraints. Arabic for Proficiency’s goal is to develop students’ proficiency to advanced level in 4 years, with the standard ACFTL test. The obstacle experienced in this program is the limited time available for learning Arabic. David Dimeo reviews the value of learning that students and teachers must accept in order to create an environment conducive to the development of Arabic language proficiency. So, he succeeds in fleshing out the lesson plan to be effective with the limited time. Chapter 9 establishes The Arabyola portal: integrating trusted Arabic e-resources into curriculum by Inas Hassan. He demonstrates mindfulness about how this portal could be integrated into a standard curriculum to enrich the Arabic teaching and learning experience for teachers and students alike. The Arabyola portal is not a technology that replaces teachers but rather as a learning support where students can visit the portal and then discuss in class with friends and teachers. Rachael Harris in Chapter 10 reports about Teaching grammar orally through colloquial Arabic: report of an experiment. It aims to give students a clear understanding and make them confident in learning the complex Arabic language which is a challenge for language teachers. Chapter 11, Teaching literature to advanced learners of Arabic: methods and tools by Rachel Anne Friedman. In particular, it explores on methods and strategies for teaching short stories to advanced learners to increase language proficiency, cultural competency, and content knowledge of Arabic literature. This section contributes to the development of learning methods (online and offline methods, and methods that focus on students and teachers in balance) that can be applied in learning Arabic.

Part 4 is divided into four chapters that introduce Students and Learners of Arabic. Unleashing the power of the learner is discussed in Chapter 12 by Mahdi Alosh. He accentuates how learners are empowered to learn independently, focusing on two aspects of the process (curriculum and methods). The curriculum framework and method proposed are based on the 2012 ACTFL Language Proficiency Guidelines, emphasizing the level of learner ability (categorized into several groups) so that it is easier to categorize student achievements. Chapter 13, Toward a new approach to teaching Arabic language: a model of teaching Arabic grammar by Mounira Gannouni, addresses a binary approach as a new model of teaching Arabic. This approach plays a crucial role in encouraging Arabic teachers to be innovative so that students’ feelings of frustration while learning Arabic can be overcome and make students more challenged. Like learning to write with a poetry approach to EFL learning conducted by Iida and Chamcharatsri (2020), it can be adopted in learning Arabic in the future. Nesrine Basheer’s Connectors in the writing of native and non-native speakers (NNSs) of Arabic: similarities, differences and a teaching model investigate how native speakers (NSs) and advanced NNSs of Arabic use connectors to signal semantic relations in expository and argumentative writing. The last chapter of the fourth part, Kerstin Wilsch, Elsa Belmont Flores, and Emily Goldman’s The Arabic plunge at Middlebury’s School in Jordan: helping students swim after diving into Jordanian language and culture, presents how the school in Jordan aims to create the student learning is the direct result of interactions with the host society.

The last part comprises chapters that close the loop by addressing The Global Contexts of Teaching and Learning Arabic, for instance, Arabic education in China (Chapter 16) was discussed by Lin Fengmin and Lin Zhe, in Azerbaijan (Chapter 17) written by Aida Gasimova, in Southwest Nigeria (Chapter 18) showed by A.G.A.S. Oladosu, and in British (Chapter 19) exemplified by Vicky Gough And Tony Calderbank. Although this part only focuses on four countries, it can provide extensive insight into the transcontinental Arabic phenomenon around the world, giving readers a critical view of the innovations of Arabic education from one country to another.

As an Arabic language education practitioner, reading this book is like swimming and diving in the ocean. When we reached the bottom of the ocean, we could see a variety of coral reefs and various types of beautiful fish. This book contributes to many references from various topics on Arabic teaching and learning innovations that can be applied in Arabic classroom (e.g., use of technology). The use of technology in learning Arabic is not a substitute for teachers, but rather to empower students as owners of their learning (Ertmer et al., 2012). This is in line with social constructivism which encourages students to construct knowledge through their own experiences and social interactions (Vygotsky, 1978), where students become the main actors in the adoption of educational technology. Further, the book has shown some writings about research but does not explain the gaps in the importance of this research that need to be studied. Albeit these drawbacks, the book highlights a balanced and reasonable theoretical, practical, and reflective account of Arabic classroom innovations. Theoretically, this book contributes to the development of Arabic teaching materials in which one of the chapters evaluates teaching materials and finds criteria for developing good Arabic teaching and learning materials in terms of content and culture. The volume successfully captures various reflections from Arabic scholars, Arabic instructors, and language experts and allows them to share their teaching and learning experiences from their different cultural and geographical backgrounds. It also provides a fresh impetus for the exploration of educative innovation and change in Arabic language teaching on classroom. Overall, this book explicitly dissolves many complex topics into an enjoyable and comprehensive read for instructors, administrators, teachers, students in the Arabic language, and those interested in the language.