Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language in the Arab World: Some Aspects

The study is an initial contribution to the yet to be foraged niche of theories, developments and features of the practical discussions on Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language (TAFL) made by Arab scholars within their homelands from the end of the 1950s to present day. In specific, it sheds light on those discussions that have directly answered the questions how to teach Arabic to non-Arabs and what to teach, taking into consideration classroom practices and the vehicles of teaching and learning, namely the four traditional language skills, but also other distinct language aspects that characterize Arabic language learning and have been chosen by scholars to represent its specificity and legacy. These are general language aspects (i.e. grammar rules, morphology), class activities (mnemonic exercises, recitation, storytelling, class discussion), disciplines (literature, literary criticism, rhetoric, etc.) and related aptitudes such as literary taste