A R A B I C - S P E A K I N G S T U D E N T S L A N G U A G E C H A L L E N G E S

R A J A A LT U K R U N IFA L L , 2 0 1 5

1 . FA C T S A B O U T T H E A RA B I C L A N G U A G E

• 420 million people around the world speak Arabic.

• It’s the sixth most spoken language.

• There are three forms of Arabic:1. Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) 2. Qur’anic Arabic / Classical Arabic3. Colloquial Arabic

http://istizada.com/complete-list-of-arabic-speaking-countries-2014/

• Arabic Alphabet consists of 28 letters.

• Arabic is a language that is written and read from right to left.

• Arabic is written in the cursive way.

• Dots are used to differentiate a letter from another.

http://www.arabicegypt.com/news/facts-about-the-arabic-language

2 . L I N G U I S T I C C H A L L A N G E S I N

W R I T I N G & P R O N U N C I AT I O N

2.1 WRITING CHALLENGES:

2.1.1 Word Order (Adjectives Placement)

2.1.2 Capitalization

2.1.3 Use of Articles

2.1.4 Run-on sentences

2.1.5 “Arabish!” (Gomaa, 2010)

2.1.1. WORD ORDER: ADJECTIVE PLACEMENT

IN ARABIC

Adjectives follow the nouns they modify (e.g., girl beautiful ).

IN ENGLISH

Adjectives precede the associated noun (e.g., beautiful girl).

(Barry, 2014)

Therefore, some ELLs may write:- She’s a student good.

- She’s a good student.

2.1.2. CAPITALIZATION: OMITTING OR OVERUSING ENGLISH

CAPITALIZATION IN ARABIC

Each letter has two forms capital/ small (e.g., sentence-initial, proper names…, etc.)

IN ENGLISH

Each letter has multiple forms depending on where the letter is used in a word, for example:

• Equivalent letter for K (ك) B: ك ))M: ( ک) E: (ك)

.

Therefore, some ELLs may write:

-frank likes Playing footBall.

(Barry, 2014)

2.1.3. USE OF ARTICLES: HOW, WHEN AND WHICH ARTICLE TO USE

• Arabic doesn’t include indefinite articles (a/ an).

• To differentiate between definite and indefinite: the =( ال)

. Therefore, some ELLs may write:-It was interesting book.

-It was an interesting book.

(Barry, 2014)

2.1.4. RUN-ON SENTENCES

• “Run-on sentences in Arabic are accepted and there is no error in writing them. Newspapers, magazines and books have run-on sentences and readers can follow them with no confusion.” (Adas, 2013, 255)

2.1.5. “ARABISH!”

ELLs may write a sentence like:

“[flu] infection spreads by peace with hand.’’

“…the student means here the flu infection is caused by greetings and handshakes.” (Gomaa, 2010)

WRITING SAMPLES

Nurse type 1

Every pat ient in the hospital need someone to 2

look after him/ her this someone is the nurse . 3

so the good nurse should be pat ient , carrying 4

even respect ful to make the sick one feel much 5

better and comfortable . he/ she most smile , 6

talk to the pat ient in clear way . most of the 7

situat ion of the pat ient can be worse if they 8

don’t feel comfortable with the nurse it s always 9

Psychology . 10

Bad nurse always unclear and doesn't care 11

about the pat ient . she/ he doesn’t consider 12

his/ her work as a 13

humanitarian 14

Good Nurse And Good Health 1

Occur positions in hospitals between the nurse and 2

the patient because of indifference by the nurse and lack 3

of respect for the patient's feelings. The patient may 4

develop a serious illness he says his nurse news direct 5

way do not pave him the news this affects the patient's 6

health and feelings and lack of respect for the patient 7

cause harm to the nurse the cause of his death or hurt 8

them . As has happened in the series grey's anatomy 9

when Mr. Clark killed a lot of the nurses because he is one 10

of the nurses neglected his wife did not care about the 11

feelings of Mr. Clark told him the news of her death in a 12

manner not indifferent caused of the collapse and kill 13

them . Finally, the nurse must be interested in each patient 14

all sides to be a successful nurse because its safety of 15

human life at every nurses and can not play the lives of 16

people. Smile and speak good sincerity, a cure for every 17

disease. 18

19

20

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2.2. PRONUNCIATION CHALLENGES:/P/ /V/

Arabic does not include these two sounds:• The voiceless bilabial plosive /p/ • The voiced labiodental fricative /v/

Therefore, some ELLs may substitute these sounds, for example:

• [bibəl] beoble for people

• [fyo͞o] fiew for view

3 . T E A C H I N G T I P S

THINGS YOU CAN DO…1) You should be aware of the role of affect in writing (e.g.,

when giving feedback). (Horwitz, 2008)

2) Enhance students’ self correction: they “must go from being passive receivers of corrections, to actively recognizing and correcting their own mistakes.” (Pesce, 2015)

3) Raise students’ awareness of the similarities/ differences between their L1 and L2:

A. Modeling and giving examples.

B. Giving explicit instruction of writing conventions in L2 (e.g., punctuations, capitalization, spelling, …etc).

CONT.

4) Regular practice (e.g., using journals or diaries)

5) Overcoming Arabish style in writing: A. “the teacher can assign readings and at the same time work one

on one with the students to assist them with converting Arabish in English!” (Gomaa, 2010)

6) To avoid run-on sentences in L2: A. “the teacher has to make it clear for the students that it is

confusing for English readers to have very long sentences, unlike Arabic”(Gomaa, 2010).

B. introduce/ practice punctuations (e.g., adding semicolons or periods and using connectors). (Gomaa, 2010)

CONT.7) Practicing unfamiliar sounds:

A. “Unfamiliar sounds -- which do not exist in the learners’ mother tongue -- should be identified and given special attention” (Ahmad, 2011, 34).

B. “Minimal pair drills should be used to distinguish between similar or problematic sounds in the target language” (Ahmad, 2011, 35).

C. Use tongue twisters “a technique from speech correction strategies. (e.g., she sells seashells by the seashore)” (Ahmad, 2011, 35).

D. “The students can be provided a listening model by the teacher or some electronic devices, such as a tape-recorder or CD, and then asked to repeat or imitate it” (Ahmad, 2011, 35).

E. Watch some English programs on TV or other visual media (e.g., BBC English, CNN, etc.) “These programs offer live exposure to English pronunciation”(Ahmad, 2011, 35).

REFERENCESAhmad, J. (2011). Pronunciation problems among Saudi learners: a case study at the preparatory year program.

Retrieved from http://www.languageinindia.com/july2011/jalalsaudilearnersfinalpaid.pdf

Adas, D. & Bakir, A. (2013). Writing difficulties and new solutions: blended learning as an approach to improve

writing abilities. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, (3) 9, 254-266.

Barry, D. (2014). The impact of native Arabic on English writing as a second language. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/7792170/The_Impct_of_Native_Arabic_on_English_Writing_as_a_Second_Language

Gomaa, L. (2010). 5 writing troubles spots for ESL students of Arabic.

Retrieved from http://teaching.monster.com/benefits/articles/10068-5-writing-trouble-spots-for-esl-students-of-arabic

Horwitz, E. (2008). Becoming a language teacher. Boston, MA: Pearson Education.

Pesce, C. (2015). 10 Most Common Writing Mistakes and How to Bust Them. Retrieved from http://busyteacher.org/18134-10-most-common-writing-mistakes-how-to-bust.html