Syllabus: Colloquial Arabic – Levantine - ARAB-152
Prof. Dina Jadallah
Units: 4 Credits
Spring 2016 – MTuWTh – 1:00 to 1:50
Location: VKC 103
Office: THH 449F
Office Hours: Wednesday, 10:30 am – 12:30 pm, and by appointment
Contact Info: jadallah@usc.edu
Course Description
This is an introduction course to Levantine Arabic (‘lahjah shamiyyah’). The course aims to develop
communicative skills in a wide range of contexts so as to enable students to interact effectively in areas
where Levantine Arabic is spoken. The course exposes students to commonly-used Arabic phrases and
sentence structures, thereby gaining familiarity with the less formal Arabic register of Levantine.
Course Objectives
By the end of this course, students will be fairly competent in recognizing and reproducing the Levantine
dialect, employing and reproducing various survival vocabulary, phrases, and basic conversations, as
well as understanding and appreciating various cultural concepts. After successful completion of this
course, students will be able to express themselves in Levantine Arabic at a beginner to lowintermediate level. They will be able to address various quotidian situations, such as, talking about
themselves and their interests, arriving at the airport, shopping, taking a taxi, renting an apartment,
buying various items, ordering food, initiating social interactions and pleasantries. They will understand
a range of spoken Arabic beyond common courtesy and survival requirements and will be able to
employ a greater range of vocabulary. They will be able to converse using culturally appropriate
expressions about audio/video texts on familiar topics; to write short paragraphs at first-semester level
in Arabic expressing basic information about him- or herself and others; to display competence using
basic Arabic grammar such as in the construction of noun/adjective phrases, use of prepositions, simple
verb conjugations, and asking yes/no questions.
Course work will present students with multiple opportunities to speak, watch and listen to Levantine.
They will be using a combination of Levantine and Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) to read and write in
this course. Grammar is mostly MSA-based, but basic colloquial variations and structures will be
addressed as well.
Prerequisites:
Prerequisite: ARAB 152. Recommended preparation: ARAB 222, ARAB 252. (Duplicates credit in former
MDES 333)
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Students should also have an open mind, a commitment to full participation, and the desire to have fun
while learning.
How to Excel in This Class:
1. Show up and actively participate. You can prepare in advance by thinking about the questions that
may be asked during class and the activities that may be performed so that you can practice
beforehand. Prepare a list of questions regarding difficulties you may.
2. Repeat, Repeat, Repeat. Practice new words, phrases, and dialogues throughout your day. Remember
to LOOK, LISTEN, SAY, and WRITE. Don’t just think Arabic … say it out loud.
3. Own The Vocabulary. Make new words meaningful to you. Think about how you may use them to
express something about you/others in your daily life. Create sentences to practice saying and writing.
Make flash cards with useful vocabulary, verb forms, expressions, synonyms, antonyms, and even
sentences that you want to use successfully. Carry them with you and do 1-5 minute study sessions
throughout the day.
4. Guess. All language acquisition involves guesswork. Practice filling in gaps based on your best
judgment.
5. Make mistakes. It’s absolutely OK to make mistakes in learning a language. Learn from your own and
others’ mistakes.
6. Get exposure/develop an “ear” for the language. Join online networking groups, listen to Arabic radio
stations, watch Arabic films, and welcome any opportunity to speak with fellow students and native
speakers.
7. Take good notes and organize. Writing good notes helps in reinforcing learning and capturing
information for study/recall. Make a separate binder so that you can organize according to such
headings as: Alphabet/Diacritical Marks; Vocabulary; Synonyms; Antonyms; Grammar; Writing Practice;
and Essays.
8. Language helps develop creativity and facilitates learning in other areas of your life. Invest two to
three hours of self-study for every hour of class. This means that you should plan on spending a
minimum of 12 hours/week dedicated to learning Arabic. Master each new building block of knowledge
so that new material will make sense.
Required Book and DVD
‘Arabiyyat al-Naas (Part One): An Introductory Course in Arabic, DVD Edition, by Munther Younes,
Makda Weatherspoon, Maha Saliba Foster, (Routeledge, 2013).
Requirements and Assessment
Participation: 20%
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The student's classwork grade includes participation, and if a student's not present, s/he can't
participate. Participation means reading assigned homework, watching assigned video clips, learning
new vocabulary, and reading the grammar explanations in the book before coming to class so that class
time could be devoted to activating the new materials.
The student is allowed three unexcused absences per semester. Every other absence thereafter will
result in the deduction of 1.5 points from the student’s participation grade. This percentage basically
represents the classwork for one session (60 sessions x 1.5 = 90; plus a 10 point bonus to reach 100). So
if a student gets 89% for their classwork, they'll receive 87.5% (one absence), 86 (2 abs.), 84.5 (3 abs)
etc. An excused absence means a written note from the appropriate office (doctor, coach, dean)
justifying the absence. Please inform me of absence as soon as possible.
To succeed in a language classroom, you must take an active part in your learning. Come to class
prepared, and participate as much as you can. You are expected to use Arabic to communicate with your
classmates and instructor at all times during class. This effort will help you make rapid progress in the
acquisition of new language skills.
Your class work grade is a reflection of your language learning activity. It is based on your level of
preparation (completion of assigned readings and activities prior to class), the quantity of your
participation (involvement, effort, positive attitude) as well as the quality of your participation (fluency,
accuracy, pronunciation). If you appear not to be prepared, your grade will suffer. If you are prepared
and do not participate, your grade will suffer similarly.
If you miss class, not only will you rapidly fall behind but you will not be able to participate and your lack
of attendance will therefore negatively influence your class work grade. Your overall classwork grade
will be reduced by 1.5 points for every unexcused absence (one class hour or portion thereof).
Homework: 20%
There will be daily written assignments. Homework is due at the beginning of class on the day for which
it is assigned. Late homework assignments will be corrected but will not be given any credit.
Please hand in homework on a separate sheet of paper. For each assignment, please include the date as
well as the lesson, exercise, and page number.
Please note that, because this is a colloquial class, a good portion of the homework assignments must
be turned as audio recordings; I will announce which exercises should be turned in as such during
class.
Daily homework assignments will be rated on a scale from 1 to 3 (3= excellent/very good, 2= good but
not your best effort, 1= poor or sloppy work). You will be rated on the overall quality of your work, not
on the number of correct or incorrect answers. Homework assignments are intended to enhance your
learning of the new material. So, spend time on your homework assignments and make sure that what
you submit reflects your absolute best.
You should expect 10 hours per week of homework for this course. It is typical for students to spend 2
to 3 hours daily, 7 days a week on their work for this course.
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When you get back your assignment, you should go over it to see where you made mistakes and make
sure you understand the corrections.
Quizzes: 10%
There will be 5 pop quizzes during the semester. These quizzes will typically last 10 minutes and are
designed to test new vocabulary.
Mid-terms: 15% + 15% = 30%
Two mid-terms are scheduled for this course, on Monday, February 8, 2016 and on Monday,
March 21, 2016. They will include oral portions.
Final Exam: 20%. The final exam will contain written, oral, and listening portions.
The final is scheduled by the USC for Wednesday, May 6, 2-4 pm.
Course Schedule – subject to change
Week 1
1/11
1/12
1/13
Topics/Daily Activities
Readings and Homework
Introduction & Review;
Common Expressions
No assignment for first class
Unit 1: Ex. 8 (p. 21); Ex. 6
(p. 27)
Review polite greetings
(p. 28), Ex. 3 (p. 29); Ex. 3
(p. 38-39)
1/14
Unit 2: Ex. 6&7 (pp. 4547)
Week 2
1/18
Martin Luther King’s
Birthday
1/19
Ex. 7-8 (pp. 47-48); Ex. 1
(p. 49)
Deliverable/ Due Dates
Grammar, feminine gender,
relative adjective ‫ النسبة‬,
singular, dual, plural: pp.
18, 24
Possession, the construct
‫اإلضافة‬: pp. 27, 36
‫ الصف‬Ex. 1-5 (pp. 44-46);
‫ دول وعواصم عربية‬Ex. 1-5 (pp.
46-47)
‫ الساعة وأيام األسبوع‬Ex. 4,5,6
(pp. 47-53)
4
‫ شهور السنة‬Ex. 2,3,6 (p. 54)
1/20
Ex. 1 (p. 52), Ex. 4 (p. 53),
Ex. 5 (p. 53)
1/21
Ex. 7 (p. 56); Grammar,
Ex. 8&9 (p.60)
Week 3
1/25
Ex. 7 (p. 62); Ex. 8-10 (pp.
65-66)
1/26
Song (p. 72); Ex. 1-4 (p.
73-74
1/27
1/28
‫ فصول السنة والطقس‬Ex. 1, 2-5
(pp. 54-56); ‫البيت والمواصالت‬
Ex. 2-7 (pp. 58-59)
‫ العائلة والمهنن‬Ex. 1-6 (pp. 6061); ‫ المالبس واأللوان‬Ex. 1-7
(pp. 63-65)
‫ األكل‬Ex. 1-7 (pp. 66-69);
Review Vocabulary (pp. 7072); Translate into Arabic
(write and speak about
yourself) Ex. 6&7 (p. 75)
Unit 3: Passport control;
passenger; vocab practice
Study Vocab p. 77, Ex. 1-2
(pp. 78-79). Watch ‫إملي في‬
‫ تأشيرة دخول‬،‫( المطار‬pp. 7980); Ex. ‫( كتابة في البيت‬p. 80)
Cab role-playing; vocab
practice
Watch ‫( تاكسي للفندق‬pp. 8283); Listen and read p. 84
and answer questions on p.
85 and Ex. 1.
Read grammar (pp. 85-90);
Ex. 1 (p. 86) and Ex. 4-5 (pp.
88)
Week 4
2/1
Possession, comparative,
negation, past, sociolinguistic corner, Ex. 6 (p.
88)
2/2
Ex. 2 (pp. 91-92); dialogue
Ex. 4 (p. 92); Crossword
puzzle (p. 93)
Study new vocab (pp. 9091); Ex. 1 (p. 91), Ex. 3 (p.
92)
2/3
Unit 4: Hotel role playing;
vocab practice
Watch: ‫ ;إملي في الفندق‬Vocab
(pp. 94-95); Ex. 1-2 and
questions (p. 96); Read pp.
96-97 and answer questions
(p. 97)
2/4
Cab role playing, vocab
practice, questions (p.
100)
‫ ;في التاكسي‬Study vocab 9899; Read/listen p. 99
Week 5
First Mid-term Exam 2/8
Study for mid-term
First Mid-term Exam 2/8
5
2/8
2/9
Possession, ‫كان‬, ordinal
numbers; Ex. 3-5 (p.104105)
2/10
Watch ‫ضيعت جواز السفر‬
and Read ‫;صندوق الموجودات‬
pp. 108-109
‫ جواز السفر‬Vocab (pp. 106107); Ex. 1-2 (p. 107)
Vocab practice; dialogue
practicing audio-visual
material
Watch ‫إسمك الكامل لو سمحت‬
and answer questions, (p.
109); Read/listen ‫مذكرات إملي‬
and answer questions (pp.
110-111)
2/11
Week 6
2/15
President’s Day
2/16
Grammar exercises
2/17
Ex. 4-5 (pp. 118-119)
Grammar (pp. 100-102);
Vocab (pp. 102-103); Ex. 2
(p. 103)
Read Grammar (pp. 111115), negation (p. 112),
‫( اإلضافة‬p. 111)
Vocab (p. 116); Ex 1-3
2/18
Week 7
2/22
2/23
2/24
Unit 6: ‫;األكل في المطعم‬
practice vocab; role play
restaurant
Vocab (pp. 120-121); Ex. 1-2
(p. 121)
Answer questions (p.
124); Watch ‫في مطعم السالم‬
(pp. 124-125)
Watch ‫( فيه مطعم قريب؟‬p.
122), questions (p. 122)
Vocab practice,
restaurant role-play
Practice Grammar
2/25
Vocab practice; Song (p.
133)
Week 8
2/29
Ex. 1-2 (p. 134) and Ex. 6
(p. 136)
Read (p. 125); Watch ‫إذا بدك‬
‫( أكل عربي كويس‬p. 126) and
answer questions (p. 127)
Read Grammar (pp. 127130); ‫ ب‬،‫ كل‬،‫ بد‬imperfect;
comparative, superlative; ‫ال‬
‫ ;وهللا‬Ex. 2 (p. 130), Ex. 4 (p.
131)
Vocab (p. 132); write 10
sentences with new terms
Ex. 3 & 5 (p. 135) – first part
only. Prepare Ex. 6 for class.
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3/1
Unit 7: ‫السكن‬Practice
Vocab
3/2
Watch ‫( فيه غرفة لإليجار؟‬p.
140) and questions (p.
141)
Read and answer questions
(pp. 139-140).
3/3
Vocab and dialogue:
renting/apartment living
role-playing
Listen and read ‫مذكرات أملي‬
and do vocab (p. 142).
Questions (pp. 142-143)
Week 9
3/7
Practice Grammar
Grammar (pp. 143-146);
‫ األمر‬،‫ راح‬Ex. Table (p. 144);
agreement in nounadjective, case system,
sociolinguistic corner, ‫ ما‬،‫ال‬
‫بعرف‬
Song (p. 148); dialogue
(p. 149)
Vocab (pp. 146-147);
prepare to discuss in class:
Ex. p. 149.
Unit 8: ‫ التسوق‬Practice
Vocab. Watch ‫إملي بدها‬
‫( تشتري سرير‬pp. 151-152)
Vocab (pp. 150-151) and Ex.
1-2 (p. 151)
3/8
3/9
3/10
Spring
Recess
3/14 to
3/20
Week 10
3/21
Review Vocab and role
play at the market
Vocab (p. 137); Ex. 1-2 (p.
138). Watch ‫وين رايحه تسكني‬
‫( يا أملي؟‬p. 138-139)
Vocab 152 and questions.
‫ إملي في الملحمة‬Vocab and
questions, p. 153
Second Mid-term Exam
3/21
Prepare for Second Midterm Exam 3/21
Vocab and role play,
shopping and comparing
Amman with the U.S.
‫في سوق الخضار ومذكرات أملي‬
Vocab and questions (pp.
153-155)
Second Mid-term Exam 3/21
3/22
3/23
Ex. 2 (p. 157); Practice
grammar
3/24
،‫ إنتو‬،‫ إحنا‬،‫ ه َّم‬،‫ ف‬،‫ و‬،‫ مش‬،‫ليش‬
،‫ كمان‬،‫ لما‬،‫ هيك‬،‫ مش‬،‫أقل من‬
‫ كثير هون‬،‫ مبارح‬،‫رحت‬. Ex 1 (p.
152) and roots and ‫اإلضافة‬
Ex. 4 (159).
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Ex. 1, (p. 161); dialogue
(p. 163); ‫جذور وعائالت‬
Vocab (pp. 160-161);
comparative sentences in
Ex. 2-3 (p. 162); prepare for
dialogue in class (p. 163)
Week 11
3/28
Unit 9: ‫;في دكان المالبس‬
watch !‫ ;ما أحلى هالكوفيه‬and
questions (p. 166)
Vocab (p. 164); Ex. 1 (p.
165); watch ‫إملي تشتري‬
‫( المالبس‬p. 165); questions
(p. 166)
3/29
Practice vocab; role play
shopping for clothes
3/30
Practice vocab and role
play comparative
shopping experiences; Ex.
2 (p. 169)
‫ ;مذكرات إملي‬vocab and
questions (pp. 167-68); Ex.
1 (pp. 168-169)
3/31
Sociolinguistic corner, p.
171
Grammar; verbs; Ex. 1 (p.
169); plural possessive
nouns; Ex. 2a (p. 170)
Week 12
4/4
Ex. 5 (p. 174); Describe
someone in class/famous
personality; Ex. 6 (p. 174)
Vocab (p. 172); Ex. 1-3 (pp.
173-174)
4/5
Unit 10: ‫ ;الدراسة‬Practice
vocab
Vocab (pp. 175-176); Ex. 1
(p. 176)
4/6
Practice vocab and role
play
‫( إملي في دكان المالبس‬pp. 166167); questions (p. 167)
Watch ‫ ;دراسة إملي‬vocab and
questions 9p. 176); ‫الجامعات‬
‫;األمريكية والجامعات األردنية‬
vocab and questions (p.
177)
4/7
Ex. 1 (p. 177); ‫ ;الجمع‬vocab
practice ‫الجامعات‬
‫ الجامعات عربية قديمة‬:‫;القراءة‬
vocab, Ex. 1 and questions
(pp. 178-179)
Week 13
4/11
Translate using ‫ شامي‬p.
182 and question 4 (pp.
183-184); Ex. 3 (p. 183)
Grammar ‫ من‬،‫ من أكبر‬،‫من أهم‬
،+comparative adjective,
negation, lack of existence
‫ما‬, verb-subject
disagreement, relative
pronounces, no passive
formation and moods of
8
imperfect verbs in ‫ ;شامي‬pp.
182-184; Ex. p. 182.
4/12
4/13
4/14
Week 14
4/18
Vocab and grammar
practice; Ex 1 & 3;
dialogue question 1 or 2
(p. 188)
Unit 11: ‫ ;المهن‬Vocab and
dialogue p. 191.
Dialogue Ex. 1-2 (p. 192)
Ex. 1 (p. 194); dialogue
about work and family
4/19
Ex. 1 (pp. 197-198);
Practice grammar
4/20
Crossword puzzle Ex. (pp.
201-202); dialogue (p.
202)
4/21
Unit 12: ‫;اإلكل والطبيب‬
polite expressions and
meals dialogue (p. 205)
Week 15
4/25
Song Ex. 2 (p. 215); ‫خمن‬
‫ ;الكلمة‬dialogue
4/26
Unit 13: ‫ ;المواصالت‬Ex. 2
(p. 218); ex. 1 (p. 218);
short dialogues
Vocab (p. 185); song (p.
186); prepare dialogue for
question 1 or 2 (p. 188)
Vocab (pp. 189-191); Ex. 1;
‫;عائلة إملي وعائلة فدوى‬
questions (p. 191)
Watch ‫;أنت مخطوبة وال أل؟‬
vocab and questions (p.
192)
Vocab (pp. 203-204);
questions (p. 204); watch
‫ شاي أو قهوة‬،‫ ;المنسف‬questions
(p. 205)
Watch ‫في وجع في راسي وبطني‬
and ‫;كلنا أكلنا منسف وما مرضنا‬
vocab and questions (pp.
206-207)
Listen/read ‫ مذكرات إملي‬and
‫ ;رحلة إملي إلى إربد‬vocab and
questions (p. 208)
Grammar, past, roots and
verb stems, sociolinguistic
corner (pp. 210-213); Ex. 2
(p. 210) and Ex. 4 (p. 212)
Vocab review (pp. 213-214);
prepare dialogue Ex. 3 (p.
215).
Vocab and Ex. 1 (p. 216);
watch ‫ وال تاكسي‬،‫ سرفيس‬،‫;باص‬
vocab and questions (p.
217); ‫إملي تحكي مع سائق‬
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‫ ;التاكسي‬vocab and questions
(p. 218)
4/27
4/28
Sentence formation and
short dialogues (p. 219)
Watch ‫رايحة تشتغلي مع‬
‫ المخابرات‬and ‫;التاكسي المميز‬
Questions (p. 219);
transportation and vocab
(pp. 220-221)
Review for final exam.
FINAL
5/6
May 6, 2-4 pm
Date: For the date and time of the
final for this class, consult the USC
Schedule of Classes at
www.usc.edu/soc.
Statement on Academic Conduct and Support Systems
Academic Conduct
Plagiarism – presenting someone else’s ideas as your own, either verbatim or recast in your own words –
is a serious academic offense with serious consequences. Please familiarize yourself with the discussion
of plagiarism in SCampus in Section 11, Behavior Violating University Standards
https://scampus.usc.edu/1100-behavior-violating-university-standards-and-appropriate-sanctions. Other
forms of academic dishonesty are equally unacceptable. See additional information in SCampus and
university policies on scientific misconduct, http://policy.usc.edu/scientific-misconduct.
Discrimination, sexual assault, and harassment are not tolerated by the university. You are encouraged to
report any incidents to the Office of Equity and Diversity http://equity.usc.edu or to the Department of
Public Safety http://adminopsnet.usc.edu/department/department-public-safety. This is important for
the safety of the whole USC community. Another member of the university community – such as a friend,
classmate, advisor, or faculty member – can help initiate the report, or can initiate the report on behalf of
another person. The Center for Women and Men http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/cwm/ provides
24/7 confidential support, and the sexual assault resource center webpage http://sarc.usc.edu describes
reporting options and other resources.
Support Systems
A number of USC’s schools provide support for students who need help with scholarly writing. Check with
your advisor or program staff to find out more. Students whose primary language is not English should
check with the American Language Institute http://dornsife.usc.edu/ali, which sponsors courses and
workshops specifically for international graduate students. The Office of Disability Services and Programs
http://sait.usc.edu/academicsupport/centerprograms/dsp/home_index.html provides certification for
students with disabilities and helps arrange the relevant accommodations. If an officially declared
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emergency makes travel to campus infeasible, USC Emergency Information http://emergency.usc.edu will
provide safety and other updates, including ways in which instruction will be continued by means of
blackboard, teleconferencing, and other technology.
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