Read Arabic!
Online Arabic Reading Materials for American High
School Learners and Teachers
Dr. Gerald Lampe
Dr. Frederick Jackson
Dr. Jennifer Robinson
National Foreign Language
Center at the University of
Maryland at College Park

 Introduction
 Features of Read Arabic!
 Demonstration of Three Lessons
 Some Issues in Developing the Materials
 Discussion
Read Arabic!

Introduction
Read Arabic!
Read Arabic!

Read Arabic!
 Funded by a three-year grant from the U.S.
Department of Education
’ s International Research and Studies Program
 Target audience is American high school students
 85 online reading materials of Modern Standard
Arabic ILR Levels 0+ to 1+
 Available to the public at NFLC websites. No cost and no registration!

Read Arabic!
!
 Limited materials available in MSA at secondary school level (ACTFL Novice and Intermediate)
 Support the learning process of an important LCTL
 Provide opportunity for independent study
 Supplement classroom-based learning
 Universal access, online and free

Features
Read Arabic!
Read Arabic!

Read Arabic!
 Topics are selected to interest high school learners
 Some are authentic texts (e.g., signs, menu, classified ads)
 Some are adapted from authentic texts online (e.g., biography)
 Some lower-level texts were composed for instructional purposes
* Based on ACTFL “Communication” Standards and on the ALIF Arabic
Curriculum developed by Professor Wafa Hassan and her team

Read Arabic!
Texts in target language on topics of interest to high school learners
 Basic Arabic structure and vocabulary
 Arab Americans
 Heroes of the Arab world  History and geography
 Customs and traditions
 Facebook and Twitter


Everyday life
Language for travel
 Popular artists & writers  Common signs

Read Arabic!
 Many kinds of “scaffolding” to assist learners
 Translation into English (upon request)
 Audio recording (upon request)
 Glossary of words & phrases with use in context
 Language and culture notes
 Activities to help build reading skills and check comprehension of texts. Specific hints and feedback are provided to help understanding.
 Activities are repeatable

Read Arabic!
 Majority are students, but other users are teachers and adult self learners
 Most use the materials for independent practice at home or in school labs
 Almost 90% find the units interesting and helpful in learning the language
 About 85% find the units to be at the right length and level for their learning
 A frequent comment is “give us more units!”

Read Arabic!
Demonstration of
Three Lessons
Read Arabic!

 ILR Level 0/0+ Novice: Travel: A Train Schedule
 ILR Level 1/1+ Intermediate: Letter to a Friend
 ILR Level 2/2+ Cultural: People: Khalil Gibran
Available at http://readarabic.nflc.org
Read Arabic!

Some Issues in
Developing the
Materials
Read Arabic!
Read Arabic!

Read Arabic!
 MSA vs. dialects
• Everyday language usually in dialect
• Visual & print media
• Social media
 Identifying Texts
• Few authentic MSA examples at low levels
• Presence of dialect in authentic texts
• Need to capture meanings of complex morphology
 Instructions
• Differences in use of gender in verbs
 Translation
• Difficult for certain concepts

Discussion
Read Arabic!
Read Arabic!