Teaching Arabic Studies in a post 9/11 World
By: Sophia Segal/Arab America Contributing Writer
It’s been 19 years since 9/11, and it still strikes a lot of negative tension amongst people. Fears of people around the United States increased in curiosity about Arabs and Arabic in general. Throughout the almost two decades since 9/11, there have been an increase in teaching and learning Arabic.
Post 9/11
Many twenty-somethings, who were born in the mid-to-late 1990s were too young to know a pre 9/11 world but were all-too-well aware post 9/11. We were immersed in the never-ending global war on terrorism which contributed to global terror. We experienced restrictions and changes at our airports and in America at-large even blockades to America’s house the White House. One of the most egregious actions to spring out of 9/11 was the vilification of Muslim American citizens.
After 2001, interest in Arab Studies and Arabic grew. The U.S. government funded programs related to Arabic and other Middle Eastern languages which lead to greater interest in Arab Studies.
In 2002, funding was increased by 26% the International and Foreign Education (IFLE) office administers Title VI. Between 2001-2010 Arabic became the fastest growing language studied at U.S. colleges and universities. In 1998 the number of students studying Arabic hovered at around 5500, by 2002 the number had almost doubled to over 10,000 Arabic language learners.
Arabic languages have thrived and universities have adapted to provide in depth language studies. Arabic offers opportunities for career advancement not only in the diplomatic corps but also in business, engineering, international development, and academia.
Reasons for Interest
There was a trigger to learn Arabic in the early 21st century. Many people felt the need to understand why September 11th happened. Below are two big reasons why Arabic grew in the United States.
Political
An obvious reason for this spike of interest can be related to understanding the language of those responsible for committing this act on September 2001. The idea was if you can learn the language then you’ll be able to understand the motivation behind the actions. This bond between politics and language has been around throughout human history so it’s not a surprise this became a motive to learn Arabic in the United States.
Military
After the attack, President Bush pledged to take military action against any country that housed accused attackers. With that, the Department of Defense sent out a call for people who knew Arabic and could serve as teachers for the military, either staying domestically or going overseas with troops on their deployment.
Teaching
The interest spiked from all different forms whether it be political or related to family. Having universities to make accommodations to provide Arab studies. This included not only higher education but also K-12. Though teaching Arabic in elementary and high school isn’t as common as teaching Spanish or any other European language, however, it has had an increase in schools.
Each school provides different levels of teaching, some universities may have newer programs and are still adjusting to having it as part of their school. Others may be more advanced and will give you the education you want to learn Arabic. It’s always a good idea to research the university or college you’re looking at and see what their program will be like.
Arabic is now provided in many different areas to learn, whether it be on your phone, individual classes, or watching movies and tv shows. Yes, 9/11 was a terrible time in our history and we know it very well. But it helped bring a part of the world into light that many of us didn’t give a second thought about.
The Arab world has a lot to offer us, but learning Arabic and understanding their culture is a way to start.
Arab Studies Now
Since the attack on the World Trade Center Arabic teaching and learning has become the focus of much more attention from the educational community in the United States. Arabic is the fastest growing foreign language taught at US universities. Ranking it as the 10th among the different languages.
A big issue that schools all over the country are having to overcome is not the lack of students enrolled in the Arabic classes but because there aren’t enough teachers to teach them. Many universities around the country have had to cancel the class due to this problem.
Regardless of the reasons for their interest to learn Arabic, there is now a demand to learn and teach it in the United States. It’s not so much the idea to learn about why 9/11 happened it’s now about connecting with a part of the world that people don’t fully understand yet.
If you want to learn more about teaching Arabic in the United States resources are hyperlinked.
Check out Arab Americas blog here!
