Job Discussion Forums

Mira · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 16 Location: Raleigh, NC

I just finished getting my ESL certificate here in the US and started an ESL program at the local mosque for adult women. The class composition is varied but primarily the women are from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, and Morocco. The program is going well but I'd like to tailor it more towards the common errors that Arabic speakers make when learning English. In the research that I've done so far, I haven't found anything particularly useful that I can apply to my lesson planning. Does anyone have any good links or book recommendations?

Henry_Cowell · Joined: 27 May 2005 Posts: 3352 Location: Berkeley

The book Learner English (edited by Michael Swan and Bernard Smith) is the standard for L1-interference issues. The chapter on Arabic speakers provides nearly 20 pages of information.

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

What level are the students and what skills are you teaching?

VS

Mira · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Posts: 16 Location: Raleigh, NC

Thanks for the tip on the book - I'll definitely check it out. The students are primarily Level 1 and 2. I'm focusing teaching survival skills: reading a bus schedule, opening a bank account, using an ATM, visiting a doctor's office, etc.

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

At this level the differences are not that crucial for your teaching, but what will probably jump out at you first is that there is not a 'p' in Arabic. And it can take them years to learn to discern the difference between p/b - no matter how you explain it. We just don't hear sounds that don't exist in our language.

Easier to overcome is the basic verb 'to be' which doesn't occur in present tense in Arabic. They would say "Ena taliba" rather than "I am a student." Which also brings up that Arabic doesn't have the indefinite article a/an. It does have 'the' but the rules of usage are slightly different.

I have never taught conversation, but I would think that these basic differences would come up quite quickly...

VS

tarte tatin · Joined: 02 Mar 2007 Posts: 247 Location: Istanbul

I think teaching conversation will pose few problems as Arabs seem to get a good command of spoken English quite easily.

In my experience literacy is a huge problem for many of them, they read slowly so may need help to speed up and they find spelling very difficult. This may not be too much of a concern for these women at their level but eventually they will want to become literate.