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Are We Heading towards a Crisis in Dialect Teaching a la Sunna and Shia?
Abstract
In the past decade, the question of Arabic dialect(s) teaching in the classroom has intensified and split Arabic instructors and experts in the American universities and led to a civil crisis a la Sunna and Shia. Indeed, while there is clear and valid disagreement between those who champion introducing dialect teaching in the classroom and those who don't, we tend to forget a third group that makes the point for both. There is also the growing controversy around the legitimacy of some dialects over others. I firmly question the validity of the legitimacy of one dialect over another and make the argument that an introduction of dialects teaching in the classroom while, it shouldn't be a focal component in the curriculum of teaching Arabic in American universities, it remains vital. Like many experts in the field, I firmly believe the ideal situation to learn dialects is through a study abroad experience, but I seek to show that this should be preceded by "Introducing" the learner to "more" than one dialect in the classroom in the American college. With this in mind, my paper will be in three parts: First, I give a review of the literature on diaglossic scenes as well as introduce new findings in the sociolinguistic field starting from Psicharsi (1928) to the present. Second, I compare Moroccan and Egyptian dialects to shed light more on the common features in both dialects than on the distinctive ones. In my third part, I share my experiment, based on topical and communicative approaches, on how it is possible to "introduced" 6 dialects (Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian, Egyptian, Yemeni, and Syrian) over 18 weeks- one semester- as a cultural activity involving second year students in preparation using the internet, songs, scenes from movies...and through visits to the classroom by native guest speakers of the sampled dialects. I also suggest other ideas on how to expand this experiment beyond the classroom in a Film series format (a pressure-free-tool) that represent the 6 dialects. In conclusion, I hope to make the case that more than one dialect should be "introduced" in the Arabic class at a lower scale compared to MSA to give both due credit to the Standard language teaching [MSA] but also to approximately reflect the socio-cultural scene in the Arab world(s).
Discipline
Linguistics
Geographic Area
Arab States
Sub Area
Arabic