This year, UW-Eau Claire students not only have the opportunity to learn languages such as French, Spanish and German, but also Arabic.
A new professor, Sofiene Addala, teaches the four-credit class. Through funding from a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant grant, Addala had the opportunity to come from Tunisia and teach Arabic at the university. After teaching English in private schools in Tunisia, Addala, who arrived in the United States in August, is happy to meet students who want to learn the language.
"It's great that I have students that are so motivated," Addala said. "I expect great results from them."
After the class was announced, the seats filled up fast, Addala said.
Junior Andrew Kaiser, one of Addala's students, warns fellow students that Arabic is not for those looking to merely fulfill their language requirement.
"It is perhaps the hardest class I've taken in college thus far, but is also one of the most rewarding," Kaiser said. "But you get what you put into college and at some point you have to put in a considerable amount of effort if you're going to grow."
In that sense, Addala said Arabic is like any other foreign language in that it takes effort to learn.
"Students might have the idea that Arabic is a hard language," said Addala. "But learning any foreign language is hard and it definitely takes some work."
The Arabic class is not only a place to learn the language but also to learn the culture of the Middle East.
"This is a class for someone who has a sincere interest in understanding beyond the orientalized concept of Middle Eastern language and culture," Kaiser said.
Addala agreed that teaching the Middle Eastern culture is also important.
"While it is important to learn the language, it is also important to learn the history and culture as well," said Addala. "We do different activities to teach the students about the ways of the Middle East."
According to nationsonline.org, Arabic is the fifth most spoken language in the world after Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, English and Spanish. With almost 300 million native speakers, Arabic is also the official language in 26 countries, including Egypt, Israel and Libya.
While UW-Madison has a program in Middle Eastern studies, Addala thinks having one at Eau Claire would be beneficial too.
"If Eau Claire had a minor of Middle Eastern studies, learning Arabic would be important," Addala said. "Hopefully, everything goes in the right direction and a minor can be created. I know my students would really look forward to that."