Unit information: Beginners Modern Standard Arabic in 2023/24

Unit name	Beginners Modern Standard Arabic
Unit code	UWLP10008
Credit points	20
Level of study	C/4
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24)
Unit director	Dr. Kayali
Open unit status	Open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)	None
Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)	None
Units you may not take alongside this one	None
School/department	School of Modern Languages
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Unit Information

This unit provides a general introduction to the target language. It is intended:

• To provide students with a solid foundation of the essential structures of the target language thus enabling them to communicate effectively across the four key language skills at an elementary level on a variety of general topics
• To enable participants to give and understand information and to achieve a confident elementary level of communicative competence in everyday situations
• To introduce students to the customs, culture and society of the regions/countries in which the languages are spoken and to develop student awareness of the general social and cultural background of the language
• To enable students to apply their developing language skills into areas related to their field of study

Your learning on this unit

Students will:

1. be able to communicate orally and in writing with a reasonable degree of accuracy and fluency.
2. be able to work at a basic level with authentic material and retrieve necessary information.
3. have acquired knowledge and awareness of the general social and cultural background of the target language
4. be able to understand and interpret written texts at a basic level
5. be able to respond to written texts at a basic level

Overall, students will attain a level comparable to A1/ A2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

How you will learn

Learners will be involved in a variety of synchronous activities, mostly interactive with maximum use of the target language, but with attention devoted also to explaining the fundamentals of the target language’s structures. These activities will be supported and amplified by asynchronous e-learning opportunities and self-directed exercises.

How you will be assessed

Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):

Written exam (2 hour) testing reading and writing

• Reading (25%) [ILOs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
• Writing (25%) [ILOs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Oral

• 1 x in-class oral test (25%) [ILOs 1, 2, 3]

Listening

• 1 x in-class listening test (25%) [ILOs 2, 3]

When assessment does not go to plan

When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. UWLP10008).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.