Research on Learning Strategies in Arabic Language Education

The learning of Arabic language like any other foreign language contains four main aspects; reading, writing, speaking and understanding while listening.[i] This learning process can be enhanced if the most appropriate Learning Strategy is used. In this paper the most appropriate Learning Strategy of Arabic Language is suggested. The course outlines for Arabic language are thoroughly studied and several professors and experts of Arabic Language from Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Sudan are interviewed. The author, who himself has vast experience in teaching Arabic language, also had the opportunity to sit in the Arabic language classes to observe various strategies and methodologies adopted by different professors while teaching Arabic. In this paper the time spent on teaching Arabic to the students is also discussed. The appropriate size of the class room i.e, the number of students in Arabic language class also matters in improving the quality of Arabic among the students. The matter of teaching Arabic in Arabic only or in the native language of the students will also be touched in here. As the time has changed and the world is moving ahead on a fast pace, it seems necessary to apply the “Direct Method” while teaching Arabic or any foreign language.[ii] This paper will shed light on what is meant by “Direct Method”. The idea of making the student sit and memorize the dry rules of grammar has become obsolete. The idea of telling the student what part of the phrase is subject or predicate, or what is object and what is a noun or verb, may come later. The idea of memorizing the bulk of new vocabulary in the beginning can also be postponed. Hence a paradigm shift is needed here while talking about the Methodology of Teaching Arabic Language, under the heading of “Direct Method”.   [i]     Muhammad Abdul Khaliq, Professor of Arabic and co-author of 'al-Arabia baina Yadaik'. The author of this research paper had a personal interview with him on 21.03.2014, in the Institute of Arabic Language, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. [ii]    This method is adopted roughly by some great scholars of Arabic language like Dr. V. Abdur Rahim who taught Arabic language for decades in the Islamic University of Madina, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The author was fortunate to meet with him many times and get benefitted from his experience. See for details: Abdurrahim, V. (1999), Arabic Course for English-Speaking Students, Leicester: UK Islamic Academy. See also: Abdullah, F. Ibrahim. (1999), Iqra Arabic Reader. Chicago: Iqra International Educational Foundation. Moreover see: Fawzan, Abdurrahman and others. (2004), Al-Arabia Baina Yadaik, Riyadh: Ministry of Education.

A Study of English Language Learning as An Element Affecting The Social Capital of The People of Pakistan

A Study of English Language Learning as An Element Affecting The Social Capital of The People of Pakistan This research has been a means to look into Pakistani society and to explore how social capital is being generated through schools. The main inspiration for this work was French sociologist, Pierre Bourdieu's research on language and the creation of social capital. Bourdieu (1992) has used the term habitus to describe certain dispositions which incline individuals to act in certain ways — ways that are explicitly articulated in language. He has also used it as a tool to identify the social 'space of individuals in which a piece of language occurs and embraces the whole activity of the speaker or participant in a setting' (1971). This research aimed to find out how social capital is structured and how is it being affected through education in Pakistani society; to explore how parental perception of social capital coincides with the conceptualization of social capital; and to investigate how the language of education in schools is seen as influencing the formation of social capital. The correlation between social capital, education and the language of schooling was investigated through a detailed library research. The theoretical analysis was then transferred to a questionnaire which was administered on parents of secondary school children to find out their perceptions about the medium of education they chose for their children. The research was carried out in Karachi. The questionnaire was administered to parents of children in the final two years of secondary education, aged 14-16 years. Twelve students were selected at random from each single-sex and 24 (12 girls and 12 boys) from each co-ed school. Half the students were asked to have the questionnaire filled in at home by their mother and half by their father. There was a 100% response rate though of course the use of pupils as intermediaries is open to challenge. The questionnaire was translated into Urdu for the convenience of parents. The scale helped to validate the three main dimensions of social capital (structural, relational and cognitive) and to identify which dimension was being affected through schooling more. The following conclusions were drawn from the data collected: 1. Social capital created in schools affects about 10% of the habitus of individuals. 2. Secondary schools in Pakistan are perceived by parents as a means to build structural and relational social capital more than cognitive social capital. 3. Though Urdu is the national language, there are no Urdu medium schools in the metropolitan city of Karachi in the high- cost profit category. 4. Language of instruction has a stronger effect on social capital than the gender of schooling. The medium of education significantly influences the social capital of individuals in Pakistan.