Children keen to learn but find Arabic classes difficult

One 15-year-old pupil said classes often went off on a tangent. 'Students talk a lot and regularly take the teacher off topic, so I would like to see more focus and structured lessons,' he said.

ABU DHABI // Children across the UAE said they enjoyed learning Arabic but it was difficult.

“I find it really hard to understand the writing and words,” said Jack Seldon, an 11-year-old pupil at Cranleigh School Abu Dhabi.”

One 15-year-old pupil said classes often went off on a tangent. “I would like to see more control in the Arabic class,” he said. “Students talk a lot and regularly take the teacher off topic, so I would like to see more focus and structured lessons.

“The teachers do not put much emphasis on reading ability, although they can see that the students are weak. They ignore it.”

Emirati Lina Anas, is in Grade 2 at Raha International School in Khalifa City A. “Learning Arabic is my favourite thing because it is my mother tongue,” said the eight-year-old. Fellow Emirati pupil Saeed Al Ghaythi, agreed. “I like Arabic because I am from the UAE and I am proud to learn the Quran’s language,” said the six-year-old, who is in Grade 1.

Ben Dronfield, 12, from Thailand, said Arabic was an enjoyable class for him. “I love it because it is a new language for me and it’s good to learn a new language,” said the Year 8 pupil from Dubai British School (DBS).

Classmate, Hyundong Kim, 12, from South Korea, agreed. “I like learning new languages and it is lots of fun to write in Arabic,” he said.

Brit Christina Kurian, 12, said it was important to learn the language of the country she lived in. “It’s an amazing language and lessons are always fun and interesting,” said the DBS pupil.

Fellow Brit Jasmine Reynolds, 12, also from DBS, said: “We learn it in a fun and exciting way because my teacher is very passionate about the language.”