Teaching and Learning Arabic as a Foreign Language: A Guide for Teachers

This guide clearly and succinctly presents the basic tenets of teaching foreign languages specifically for Arabic teachers. Consolidating findings from second language acquisition (SLA) research and applied linguistics, it covers designing curricula, theory and methods, goals, testing, and research, and intersperses practical information with background literature in order to help teachers improve their teaching of Arabic as a foreign language (TAFL). Karin C. Ryding, a well-regarded scholar of Arabic linguistics and former president of the American Association of Teachers of Arabic, frames the discussion with SLA literature and suggests practical and effective ways of helping students learn. Ryding discusses issues at the core of Arabic teaching effectiveness and the achievement of communicative competence, such as the teaching of pronunciation, speaking, reading, listening, and writing; teaching mixed-level classes; creative classroom organization; corrective feedback; and use of activities and exercises, with plenty of examples from Arabic and tips for teachers. She also covers materials development and proficiency testing, providing study questions and recommended readings for each chapter. This guide, which can be used as a textbook, is the first of its kind aimed specifically at TAFL, and should be of interest to Arabic instructors-in-training, academics, graduate students, linguists, department chairs, language coordinators, and teacher trainers. It also serves as a resource for teachers of other less commonly taught languages (LCTLs), who struggle with similar issues.

Table of Contents:
Table of ContentsForewordRoger Allen Introduction Part I: Fundamentals of Foreign Language Pedagogy1. Some Pedagogical Principles2. Theory and Practice3. Professionalism and Professional Standards Part II: Approaches to Foreign Language Teaching4. Traditional Methods and Approaches for Language Teaching5. Newer Methods and Approaches Part III: Programmatic Issues6. Learning Goals, Curricula, and Syllabi7. Materials, Resources, Technology 8. Assessment and Testing Part IV: Planning and Managing the Elements of Teaching9. Pedagogical Practice: Classroom Management 10. Learning Styles, Strategies, and Affective Factors11. Mixed Classes and Heritage Learners Part V: The Pedagogy of Comprehension12. Comprehension and Arabic Input: Overview13. Reading Comprehension in Arabic14. Listening Comprehension in Arabic Part VI: Teaching Productive Skills15. Teaching Arabic Pronunciation16. Teaching Spoken Arabic17. Writing in Arabic Part VII: Teaching Core Competencies18. Teaching and Learning Vocabulary19. Pedagogical Grammar20. Teaching Arabic Culture Appendices References Index

About the Author :
Karin C. Ryding is Sultan Qaboos bin Said Professor Emerita of Arabic linguistics at Georgetown University. She was dean of Interdisciplinary Programs at Georgetown for three years, and headed Arabic training at the State Department's Foreign Service Institute from 1980 to 1986. She was president of the American Association of Teachers of Arabic (AATA), and has served on the executive committee of the Association of Departments of Foreign Languages (ADFL) as well as on the executive council of the Modern Language Association (MLA). In 2008, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from AATA as well as the Distinguished Service Award from the Faculty of Languages and Linguistics of Georgetown University.

Review :
A must-have book for teachers and teacher trainers of Arabic. This book offers a practical guide for balancing theory and practice in the field of Arabic linguistics and pedagogy. The author is very resourceful in presenting alternative ways of instruction. --Wafa Hassan, Assistant Professor of Arabic, Western Michigan University; Director Arabic Flagship High School Curriculum Project; and STARTALK Arabic Teacher Training Program, Michigan State University This book is more than a guide; it is a pioneering synthesis of the leading research on the teaching of Arabic as a foreign language (TAFL). It combines theory with practice. And it is written in an engaging style that will excite the profession. Karin Ryding has produced a work of great merit which will mark the birth of TAFL as a self-conscious field of study and application. Future generations of students, teachers, and scholars will have a lot to thank her for. --Yasir Suleiman, professor of modern Arabic studies, Cambridge University