Arabic-L:GEN&PEDA:Arabic and HTML query and response on Coll/MSA

[Dilworth B. Parkinson]

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Arabic-L: Tue 31 Jul 2001
Moderator: Dilworth Parkinson <dilworth_parkinson at byu.edu>
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1) Subject: Arabic and HTML query and response on Coll/MSA

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1)
Date: 31 Jul 2001
From: Ahmad Elghamrawy <aghamrawy13 at hotmail.com>
Subject: Arabic and HTML query and response on Coll/MSA

Hi all. I'm designing a course to teach Arabic as a foreign language
for some children. It's a CALL course (Computer Assisted Language
Learning). I have a problem with the HTML coding. I can't type Arabic
in there. I'm using netscape composer and I tried typing Arabic in
word then copying and pasting it in composer, but it still doesn't
work. The only thing I could figue out was to type the material and
save it as an image then inserting it in the HTML code... but that
would gravely reduce the interactivity of the course. Does any one
have any advice?

As for teaching MSA or CA first, I think we have to take into account
the general picture of the student needs and the organizational goals
in our needs assessment process. In other words, if the student is
basically interested in learning Arabic only for the sake of
furthering their understanding of the qur'an and of Islam and they
are not planning to live or travel to one of the Arabic speaking
countries, they would be better off starting with Modern Standard
Arabic. Colloquial Arabic at this stage might confuse the learner
with its sutle cultural, semantic and pragmatic attributes. If the
student starts with the colloquial version first, they will face the
difficulty of learning the qolloquial version, and when they start
with the MSA, they would face the same difficulties native speakers
face when they learn MSA, yet the fact that they are not native
speakers might just make it more difficult. (Methinks!!!)

On the other hand, if the student is planning to live or travel to
the Middle East, or for any social non-religious reason, the
colloquial version might fit their purposes better. Colloquial Arabic
carried a lot of the live culture and could be used in live
situations, and the student could put it to the test immediatly and
be able to communicate. If used in a situational syllabus, it can
boost the student's confidence after a couple of classes.... they
will be able to function in the communiet in the contexts they
studied. As Dr. Wilmsen said, colloquial Arabic is easier, and that
is due to its rich cultural context and deep pragmatic uses, which
makes modern standard Arabic white-and-black in the diglossic
situation of the Middle East. Egyptian Arabic would definitely be the
version to learn for it's the easiest,and the most understood all
over the Middle East.
Ahmad Elghamrawy
Arabic Teacher
New Horizon School
Pasadena, CA

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End of Arabic-L: 31 Jul 2001