Arab children snubbing Arabic



DUBAI // Arabic teachers say growing numbers of pupils are studying the language – but much of the interest is coming from expatriates.

A group of teachers gathered on Saturday at the Gems Modern Academy in Dubai for a workshop by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority on how they are teaching the language and best practices.

At the workshop teacher Basima Omari, from Syria, said most native Arab pupils were less interested in the language than their expatriate counterparts.

“I think students aren’t growing to like Arabic and this is a problem,” she said. “I don’t think they like it because no mothers speak to them in Arabic and they are surrounded by English.”

She said English was prevalent among pupils and their friends in school. “So how can they learn Arabic?,” she said. “The improvement is very small. If students want to learn, they will.

“Non-Arabs usually want to learn Arabic but not native Arabs, especially the younger children, because they don’t practise enough.”

But Marwa Haj, an Egyptian teacher at Al Shorouq School, said courses such as the one she attended were helping the spread of Arabic-language teaching.

“I attend at every possibility,” she said. “I find practical courses that give me the methodology of education – how to teach and train – more useful than theoretical courses.”

She said interest in Arabic was increasing across all schools. “Many schools are improving and the love for Arabic is improving too,” she said. “Even English schools and non-Arabic students are becoming very interested in the language.”

Jihan Metwali, a teacher at the academy for the past seven years, believed the country had made advances in developing and training teachers.

“I’m from Egypt and I go to many countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait but I think the UAE gives teachers the chance to have many good things to produce to the students,” she said. “I find it’s beginning to be very good and it creates a very good environment for Arabic learning for students.”

She agreed the language learning had improved across schools. “It’s very clear for me because I find there are many new methods for them to make students enjoy learning it.”

Nesmah Fathi, a teacher in Grade 1, 2 and 3 at Credence High School in Dubai for the past nine years, said courses provided by the Government had greatly helped the language to survive.

“They teach us what new methods are taking place or any new technology we can use in teaching students,” she said. “Arabic learning is improving in schools because we put in a lot of efforts.”

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Five famous companies founded by teens

There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:

  1. Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate. 
  2. Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc. 
  3. Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway. 
  4. Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
  5. Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.