Modern Standard Arabic in Rabat

John   4 weeks Modern Standard Arabic Course in Rabat

The thing I was most pleased about was the quality of the teaching and instruction throughout the course.  It was consistently good, challenging and the teachers were excellent and very motivational.  I also enjoyed my tutoring sessions.  I liked the fact that the teaching and tutoring staff encouraged the use of Arabic outside of the classroom, as much as in it.  I was impressed by the enthusiasm that instructors and staff for their work and the intensity of the lessons, yet the sense of informality in the school.  It is a great place to study Arabic, not just because of the atmosphere but also because of the excellent facilities.  I really have nothing critical to say.

I really wanted to highlight the college Cultural Clubs, which are open to all students and take place after normal classes.  These clubs are run by college tutors and are another great opportunity for everyone to practise their language skills and put the Arabic language into context.  Even better, the Clubs are free to join and run once a month or even once a week. 

Here’s a quick run down of the one’s available when I was there:

Calligraphy Club: 
Calligraphy class is held in bi-weekly sessions, each two hours in length.  The Calligraphy instructor, Mohammed doesn’t speak English, so you HAVE to practice language skills and increase vocabulary.  For the artistically inclined, it is truly a fantastic exercise (for me it was more of an artistic challenge but I gave it a go)! 

Cooking Club:
Cooking club teachers you the most famous Moroccan dishes.  Students go with their instructor to the souk to shop for the ingredients and the next day prepare the dish as a group. 

Islamic Studies Club:
A lecture series on the basics of Islamic practice and theology.  Lectures take place bi-weekly and are followed by a Q&A session.

Cinema Club:
Cinema club takes place monthly.  Students watch an Arabic movie and then have a discussion led by their instructor.

Media Club:
Students discuss current news events or watch popular Arab media channels.  Students attempt to analyze the information for perspective, bias, and political ramifications.