Help me graduate!
September 29, 2008 8:05 PM Subscribe
Does anyone around here have any experience with the online classes offered by Arab Academy? General quality and transferability of credits are my main concerns.
I need to complete a few credits of Arabic to graduate, and my school's sparsely-scheduled classes (as in, one section per class per year) never, never agree with my schedule. At this rate, I'll have to attend school as a part-time student for a whole extra year/two semesters after completing the balance of by biology-and-biochemistry dual degree to discharge my language requirement. I am not wild about this.
I've talked to the department, and they've pretty much told me that they will consider alternate forms of instruction/evaluation, but I dread the thought of having to bring myself up to proficiency in Arabic all by myself. Classes at the local mosque seem to be geared toward helping people who already speak a dialect become literate in MSA, and don't look like a good fit (I'm not a native speaker).
Other options include summer intensive classes at other schools (University of Chicago, for instance; unfortunately, to the tune of $9K), and this Arab Academy site.
I'm considering asking the department about it, but felt like I should do my due diligence before spending any money or pitching it to the department (which is a single part-time instructor), who almost certainly hasn't heard of it. My university's classes use the "red book" (Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum al-'Arabiyya, by Brustad, Al-Batal and Al-Tonsi), if that provides any context.
I need to complete a few credits of Arabic to graduate, and my school's sparsely-scheduled classes (as in, one section per class per year) never, never agree with my schedule. At this rate, I'll have to attend school as a part-time student for a whole extra year/two semesters after completing the balance of by biology-and-biochemistry dual degree to discharge my language requirement. I am not wild about this.
I've talked to the department, and they've pretty much told me that they will consider alternate forms of instruction/evaluation, but I dread the thought of having to bring myself up to proficiency in Arabic all by myself. Classes at the local mosque seem to be geared toward helping people who already speak a dialect become literate in MSA, and don't look like a good fit (I'm not a native speaker).
Other options include summer intensive classes at other schools (University of Chicago, for instance; unfortunately, to the tune of $9K), and this Arab Academy site.
I'm considering asking the department about it, but felt like I should do my due diligence before spending any money or pitching it to the department (which is a single part-time instructor), who almost certainly hasn't heard of it. My university's classes use the "red book" (Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum al-'Arabiyya, by Brustad, Al-Batal and Al-Tonsi), if that provides any context.
Response by poster: I've applied for that; unfortunately, it's competitive, and not a safe bet.
posted by pullayup at 8:31 PM on September 29, 2008
posted by pullayup at 8:31 PM on September 29, 2008
This thread is closed to new comments.
CRITICAL LANGUAGE SCHOLARSHIPS FOR INTENSIVE SUMMER INSTITUTES
posted by waylaid at 8:15 PM on September 29, 2008