Description
This Intensive Arabic Video-Course introduces the students, in an innovative way, to the formal and informal Arabic language. It will help the learners express themselves properly, gain more self-confidence and be able to understand informal Arabic used daily.
The 20 videos contain comprehensive detailed explanations of formal and informal Arabic. There are 3 dialogues where the characters help the learners speak Arabic and provide them with a rich vocabulary to be used in conversation. Moreover, the MP 3 slides dealing with a comprehensive series of questions and answers will undoubtedly help those who want to learn how to speak the Arabic language properly and communicate in it with ease and confidence.
Furthermore, there is a grammatical component made up of 12 videos dealing with:
1. Gender of nouns
2. Personal pronouns
3. The present tense of some common verbs
4. Possessive pronouns and adjectives
5. The negative of the present of the verb to have
6. The negative of the present of the verb to be
7. The past tense of to have in the negative.
8. The past tense of the verb to be
9. The past tense of the verb to have
10. The past tense of some common verbs
11. Relative pronouns
12. Compound sentences
The textbook will be an effective reference tool for the students to consult now and then. And the Activity Booklet will be a challenge for those students who want to improve their writing skills in Arabic.
Book Review: Bulbul by Mr. Antoine Khoury I read with great interest Bulbul, the very original manual of Arabic learning written by Antoine Khoury from the University of Windsor. Professor Khoury combines two very important qualities that qualify him to write such an interesting and efficient manual: he has theoretical pedagogical knowledge and experience in second language teaching, specifically in French and Arabic, two of the most important languages in the world. Since he teaches two very different languages belonging to two totally different families of languages – Semitic and Indo-European – he is very aware of the universal psychological processes at work in the acquisition of a language, such as the importance of motivation and of inference of meaning, rules, structures and pronunciation. The motivation to learn what he teaches is achieved by the typical Lebanese sense of humour with which the pedagogical material is presented. The dialogues are funny and authentic; the learners feel that they are being introduced to a specific mentality and culture while acquiring a new language. Wanting to know more about these cultures and mentality, they make the effort to understand the dialogues which constitute the text, and by doing so, they become motivated to acquire the language taught. The psychological process of learning is achieved by authentic dialogues. This process combines behaviorist and cognitive principles: the learners deduce rules and meaning from the dialogues in the same way that a child learns his/her mother tongue; since they are adults, they are capable of generalizing with the help of the instructor. The acquisition of the pronunciation of Arabic is very difficult for speakers of European languages because several phonemes in this language, specifically some belonging to the guttural paradigm, are not found in the European languages. This part of the acquisition process is taken care of by the videos that accompany the written text. I am sure that “ Bulbul” will not only help students of Arabic to acquire this language but will also become a teaching and learning model for teachers and students of other languages.
Dr. Moshé Starets, Professor Emeritus, French and Applied Linguistics Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Cultures The University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
December 01, 2008
Testimonials
An effective approach towards language acquisition for beginners. It may be difficult at times for adults to learn a new language, especially one that is so different from the English language. However, the explanations are simple enough to help understand the differences in the language. The dialogues demonstrate the differences between masculine and feminine words. They helped me to understand and apply their use in different contexts. As for the vocabulary, it is simple enough to learn and to apply in everyday conversations. I appreciated learning the formal use of the language and the “magic expressions” which are key sentences, words and phrases that are used in everyday language. After listening and repeating several vocabulary words and key phrases, I can now read simple sentences in the Arabic language. These are great stepping stones towards further language development in Arabic. Being someone who has been exposed to the Arabic language throughout my life, I never really spoke the language, due to a lack of confidence. However, after learning several grammatical rules and proper pronunciation, I will not be intimidated to participate in a conversation with those who speak the language fluently
David Joseph
Teacher Consultant – Languages
Greater Essex County District School Board
“As a teacher and a student, I found that exercises such as Reading I, What is this Mark?, combined with the supplementary listening aides provided, not only created a positive learning environment in which I could begin my understanding of Arabic but helped instill a sense of success and accomplishment that helped carry my understanding throughout my work and time with the language. It was here, by actually using Arabic in a clear, concise and fun way that both my ability and my desire to use the text and the language truly took off.”
Joshua DEBOCK
M.A. student
Faculty of Education
University of Windsor
For a non-native speaker of Arabic such as myself setting off into the world of the Arabic language could have been a daunting and difficult task from the very beginning. However, thanks to the teaching aids of easy dialogues, common phrases, and informative transliterations, your text Bulbul made my initiation to Arabic easy and rewarding. The most difficult aspect of Arabic for speakers who have never encountered a language outside the European realm is surely, in my opinion, vocabulary acquisition. That is why your text was so helpful, it initiates speakers to useful vocabulary, both formal and informal, before moving on to the complex grammar rules of Arabic. The basic tools I acquired from this text have helped me pursue a greater understanding of the Arabic language and language as a whole in the last 3 years.
Andrew C. McKinnon
Arabic Studies, University of Windsor
I have just started using your Arabic course with my children and we are finding it to be very straightforward and user-friendly. We don’t have any background in Arabic, but your course is making it easy and fun to get acquainted with the language. Your Videos have been helpful for learning the correct pronunciation. We are thrilled to have found this course, and we look forward to using your French materials as well.
Lorna,
A Homeschooling mother of four in Cottam, ON
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