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[lollaerd]

Improve your Arabic skills to learn English: Expert
THE PENINSULA

DOHA: �When Arab students do not learn proper Arabic grammar, their English will suffer because they lack a strong linguistic foundation in their mother tongue. By improving their Arabic skills, students will be able to improve their English as well�, says a language expert.
As parents in the Arab world seek bilingual education for their children, they are increasingly opting for schools that educate them in languages such as English or French.

This has resulted in an increase in the number of Arab students fluent in the regional dialect. Such students are becoming less proficient in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), the accepted form of Arabic used in writing and formal speech. Abbas Al Tonsi, an Arabic professor and expert at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Qatar), is building an innovative solution to this incongruity.

Al Tonsi and his team were recently awarded a grant by the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) to study Arabic language instruction in Qatari schools, and to help identify some of the current shortcomings. The team has proposed a study to explore ways in which the demand for English education is affecting the Arabic language skills of Qatar�s youth, and address the challenge of maintaining strong linguistic skills of native Arabic speakers who spend many of their formative school years in English language schools. Their research will focus on addressing the needs of heritage learners, native Arab students raised in Arab countries who lack formal instruction of MSA. The first six months of the project will be dedicated to conducting a large field study of the different Arabic language curriculums used within Qatar�s school system.


http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local_News&month=January2010&file=Local_News2010011115920.xml

I agree, competency in your mother tongue makes for better second language acquisition.

[Manuel Geere]

[quote=
This has resulted in an increase in the number of Arab students fluent in the regional dialect.


I agree, competency in your mother tongue makes for better second language acquisition.[/quote]

So basically, the study, and the OP, do not accept regional dialect as a mother tongue?

[veiledsentiments]

This article was a bit confusing for those who don't understand how Arabic works. I interpret it to be saying that because so many of the Arab students are going to schools which teach in English (or French), they are not becoming fully literate in MSA, which is not really their "mother tongue." Every country's spoken Colloquial Arabic is quite different from MSA, which they learn when they start school in standard Arabic public schools. As a writing teacher, my student's constantly told me that they were very weak in both Arabic grammar and writing. If anyone has ever tossed out an Arabic grammar question to a classroom, you are aware of a debate breaking out... and often the whole class can't come up with an answer that they are sure is correct in MSA.

And I think it does affect their learning of their second language.

VS

[Rawdata]

I was told by several individuals, on numerous occasions, that the level of spoken Arabic (In the GCC) is quite poor. Elementary level or slightly higher.

RD

[lollaerd]

This is the best place to work in Qatar.


Ministry woos Qatari graduates

HE Dr Khalid al-Attiyah with a group of SFS-Q students
The Ministry of International Co-operation is in dire need of well educated Qatari graduates to serve their country, Minister of State HE Dr Khalid bin Mohamed al-Attiyah has said.�The ministry is under a heavy load, as Qatar has established official ties with over 246 countries,� he told a group of Qatari juniors and seniors at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Q).

The minister was on a visit to SFS-Q to discuss with students internship and employment opportunities with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
HE al-Attiyah explained that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was recently split into two separate departments - Political Affairs and International Co-operation.�We hope to launch a two-year training and employment programme to encourage Qatari graduates from SFS-Q and Qatar University to join the Ministry of Foreign Affairs right after earning their bachelors� degrees in international politics or culture and politics,� he said.
For the first six months, participants in the programme will remain in Qatar and receive training on Qatari history, language, religion and economy.

After the initial training session, the participants will either be given international assignments to work with United Nations offices abroad, or sponsored to complete their masters� degrees at graduate schools abroad. �We intend to accept a total of 40 students into the programme,� HE al-Attiyah said while strongly emphasising that any senior from SFS-Q who applies would be accepted.
�We have organisational problems because there is a large load on our people at the ministry and that is why we need you so much,� he told the Georgetown students. Dana al-Semaiti, a junior at SFS-Q, said she enjoyed the interaction with the minister and would seriously think about applying once she graduates.�This programme offers better opportunities compared to others from different institutions I�ve heard from,� she said.
Safiya al-Naimi, a senior, echoed Dana�s thoughts. �I will definitely apply,� she said, �because this programme will expose me to different opportunities that will expand my knowledge and experience