Undergraduate Module Descriptor

ARA2173: Living and Communicating in the Arab World

This module descriptor refers to the 2019/0 academic year.

Module Aims

The aim of this module is to introduce you to the basics of a given Arabic dialect, starting with the basic morphology and syntax and progressing to simple sentence structures. You will learn how to speak the dialect with confidence, and to understand what you hear through listening and workshop activities. You will also be trained in practical aspects of living in the region – both through scenarios in Arabic dialect and lectures focusing on the successful management of life in the region. The practical aspects of the course will prepare you to deal with the ordinary situations that you will encounter in the region, and the unlikely ones for which you should be prepared. It opens the way for you to appreciate and enjoy the full potential of living and speaking Arabic in the Arab world.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here – you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills	1. Listen to spoken dialect dealing with practical daily topics and understand the main ideas with and without a dictionary, and finding specific information. 2. Speak about yourself, your environment and your needs in Arabic dialect, and carry out conversations on a variety of practical and daily-life topics. 3. Listen to simple Arabic dialect passages and read dialect texts, demonstrating an understanding of what you hear and read. 4. Compose simple spoken and written phrases in Arabic dialect using correct dialect grammar and translate simple dialect sentences from English to Arabic and from Arabic to English. 5. Demonstrate an understanding of basic Media Arabic texts.
Discipline-Specific Skills	6. Identify and use linguistic structures in writing and in conversation. 7. Demonstrate the necessary skills in social interaction, personal wellbeing, life management and risk assessment for living in the Middle East.
Personal and Key Skills	8. Demonstrate time management skills, the ability to conduct independent study and the ability to work in pairs and groups in conversation and on text-based work. 9. Exhibit confidence in the use of a foreign language including the use of audio-visual material, online resources and the language laboratory. 10. Deploy skills necessary for successful independent living overseas, including the abilities to communicate your needs in a foreign language, assess risk, and plan for and manage life overseas.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

Introduction to the concept of Arabic diglossia, dialect and register.
Fundamentals of comparative Arabic dialectology.
Introduction to the phonetics and phonology of an Arabic dialect.
Introduction to the grammar, morphology and syntax of an Arabic dialect.
Lexical development through vocabulary drill and role-play scenarios.
Reading handwriting, reading signage, reading basic media Arabic texts.
Health and wellbeing in the Arab World.
Social conventions and social behaviour in the Arab World.
Risk assessment techniques.
Staying in touch.
Personal financial planning and management.

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
0	0	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	22	Lectures: These focus on explaining grammar topics and acquiring practical skills for life in the Middle East. (11 hours per week over 2 weeks)
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	33	Language Workshops and Seminars: These are conducted in small groups and include Pair work, Group work, Language games and Language Lab work. (16.5 hours per week over 2 weeks)
Guided Independent Study	30	Homework assignments and preparation for class
Guided Independent Study	20	Learning grammar.
Guided Independent Study	35	Learning vocabulary.
Guided Independent Study	35	Listening and speaking practice.
Guided Independent Study	30	Preparation of assignments and for exams

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

Indicative Reading List

This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.

Liddicoat, M., Lennane R., and Abdul Rahim, I. 2008. Syrian Colloquial Arabic, a Functional Course (third edition). Online Resource

Lutfi Hussein. 1993. Levantine Arabic for Non-Natives: A Proficiency-Oriented Approach . New Haven: Yale University Press.

Mitchell, T.F. 1956. An Introduction to Egyptian Colloquial Arabic . Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Mitchell, T.F. 1962. Colloquial Arabic: the Living Language of Egypt . London: The English Universities Press.

Pipes, D. 1983 An Arabist’s Guide to Egyptian Colloquial .

Younes, M, Weatherspoon, M., and Saliba Foster, M. 2013. Arabiyyat al-Naas: An Introductory Course in Arabic. Vol. 1 Oxford: Routledge.

Supporting Materials:

Wehr, Hans 1979. A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic. Wiesbaden, Harrassowitz.