Modern Standard Arabic – Why do all universities like to teach it?
Well, there is my reason for this:
It is Easy to Teach Modern Standard Arabic
First (أول شي), there are no comprehensive books designed to teach you Spoken Arabic
Most of the books in the market focus on Classical Arabic, the most famous one is Al-Kitab, it is the most used book, all over the universities, including Cambridge, Oxford, Yale and SOAS.
Second (تاني شي), most teachers are more comfortable in teaching Classical Arabic language, as there are plenty of books available online on this topic, and it is just easier for them to follow the book rather than re-inventing the wheel, mazboot? (right?)
Third (تالت شي), at university, Arabic is viewed more from an academic perspective, the professor will focus on teaching you the history of the Arabic language, Arabic literature (الأدب العربي), and scripts from 12 centuries and stresses on learning Formal Arabic, this approach is good if you want to learn the history of the language and culture.
When Should You Learn Modern Standard Arabic
Now, I am not against learning the formal Arabic language; I think it is very useful if you want to have a deep understating of the history of the Arabic language and its culture, but you won’t be able to speak and communicate with native Arabic speaker in a natural way, you might be able to speak and if you did, most people will find your Arabic very strange and funny at the same time. However, if your interest is more in speaking with Arab people and integrating with their culture, feeling as if you are one of them, and gaining their trust, then you must focus on learning spoken Arabic (اللغة العامية/ al-lugha-al-3ammi-e) which is the practical language is used in the middle east.
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