Brothers and other students are spending the spring 2014 semester taking part in an intensive Arabic immersion program in Jordan. He hopes that the new major will discourage many widely held and misplaced fears about the Middle East. “My studies have made an otherwise alien world familiar to me,” Brothers said. “If we can put a couple of faces to the fear — faces of good Arabs, Muslims and Arab-Americans –– maybe we can improve relations and leave our ignorance behind.” It’s almost impossible for students to fully understand the Arabic language without understanding the culture it springs from, so the new major emphasizes placing students in learning environments that immerse them in Arabic culture. One means of immersion is to offer students opportunities to study in other countries at places such as the Center for Arabic Study Abroad at the American University in Cairo. Saadi offers his students another means of cultural immersion closer to home by inviting them to break bread with his family on a regular basis.
“I consider the classroom only part of our role as teachers,” Saadi said. “One thing I do is host a meal at Penland Dining Hall each week and bring my family or our friends so that students can join us and get practice speaking the Arabic language.” Matthews remembers the first time she joined Saadi’s family for a meal. “I sheepishly introduced myself in Arabic, and Dr. Saadi’s wife gave me a puzzled look. Obviously I had said it incorrectly,” Matthews said. “But after some time conversing, my perspective on the language changed and it became much more tangible and real. Arabic has colloquialisms and slang — and I have a lot to learn.”
“The idea is that students have to be able to read, write and understand elementary Arabic so that they may continue their study.” Dr. Abdul-Massih Saadi
Dr. Abdul-Massih Saadi helps students gain a proficiency in Arabic language and culture.