Updating and expanding Business Arabic textbook and existing Business Arabic courses in a web-based environment

Updating and expanding Business Arabic textbook and existing Business Arabic courses in a web-based environment

Academic Year:
2013 - 2014 (June 1, 2013 through May 31, 2014)
Funding Requested:
$7,500.00
Project Dates:
-
Applicant(s):
Overview of the Project:
The latest economic and political developments in the Arab World and recent advancements in instructional technology have produced a wealth of new materials and provided us with opportunities to update and expand the content of the Business Arabic textbook and its two Business Arabic courses (AAPTIS 409 Intermediate Business Arabic and AAPTIS 410 Advanced Business Arabic) to make them available for the entire community of learners, including students, members of the business community, and government personnel. The students who took the two Arabic business courses previously expressed their desire for the addition of a web-based Atlas of the Arab World unit to the Intermediate Business Arabic course and the expansion of the Advanced Business Arabic course to include current authentic formal correspondence, economic reports, banking documents, trade and industry agreements, policies and rules for investment in the Arab and Islamic world, Islamic banking, and business contracts. The professional development and training activities associated with this project fit very well with UM's commitment to internationalizing the curriculum. The proposed project will also support the project director's scholarly research in integrating media into the teaching of Arabic language and culture and the GSMA's research interest in Arabic second language acquisition. The revision process will follow the communicative-proficiency, learner-centered approach, with a focus on incorporating effective learning strategies that encourage collaboration, sharing of information, and using videoconferencing exchange sessions with faculty and students in Arab universities that focus on critical discourse analysis of texts and cross-cultural differences in business transactions.
Final Report Fields
Project Objectives:
The objective of this Internationalizing the Curriculum grant was to update and expand the web-based content of the Business Arabic textbook and its two Business Arabic courses: AAPTIS 409 Intermediate Business Arabic and AAPTIS 410 Advanced Business Arabic. The revision process involved adding new authentic texts from online sites of major Arab newspapers and video recordings, creating a website for the new and updated materials, and establishing videoconferencing exchanges with partners in Arab universities in Kuwait, Qatar, and Libya.
Project Achievements:
1. expanded the website materials to include fresh authentic texts and video panels from Aljazeera, Center for Arab Unity in Beirut and Arabic journals, 2. obtained copyright permissions from all the resources from which we selected the website materials, 3. tested the completed lessons with students enrolled in Arabic 504 Advanced Arabic Media in fall 2014, 4. conducted two videoconferencing exchanges with students from the United Arab Emirates University on "The Economic Situation in Arab Spring Countries" and" High Costs of Marriages in the Gulf Region". The newly-developed website will be used as a complement or supplement in Arabic programs in universities and Language Foreign Service institutes as well as by business companies dealing with the Arab world. The website will be distributed FREE OF CHARGE and, therefore, I expect to have about 400 undergraduate and graduate students who have reached the Intermediate Proficiency level in Arabic across the country using the website materials. At UM, the website material will be used as complement in Advanced Business Arabic and Advanced Arabic Media classes, and will supplement the Advanced Standard Arabic Conversation and Composition course (total of 3 classes). It will also be used in similar Advanced Arabic classes offered in other academic and government institutions in addition to educational business centers.
Continuation:
Now that the copyright permissions have been obtained, I'm preparing the final version of the website for further experimentation of the lessons in the Intensive Advanced Business Arabic course 412 which I'll be teaching in summer 2015. At the end of the summer, I plan to make revisions of the lessons on the basis of feedback I receive from students taking the course.
Dissemination:
The final version of the Advanced Business Arabic website will be distributed in fall 2015 FREE OF CHARGE to colleagues in Arabic programs, government schools, and business companies who wish to expand their Arabic offerings to include business Arabic courses for professional purposes. I have received a few requests from these places. I'll ask users of the website to provide me with their comments and feedback to use in future revision of the website.