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Teaching and Learning Arabic Variation Through Vocabulary

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Teaching and Learning Arabic Variation Through Vocabulary Teaching and Learning Arabic Variation Through Vocabulary A mixed-methods study on diglossic vocabulary building for higher- education students of Arabic as a foreign language Submitted by Giorgia Ferrari to the University of Exeter as a PhD dissertation towards the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Arab and Islamic Studies, January 2018 This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this dissertation which is not my own work has been identified with appropriate acknowledgement and referencing and I also certify that no material is included for which a degree has previously been conferred upon me. Signature ……………………………………………… 1 Abstract The field of Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language (TAFL) has seen in recent decades a growing interest in portraying and teaching one of the most salient and intrinsic features of Arabic: language variation. This thesis takes a position in contrast to approaches that portray the two varieties as being distinct and well-defined dichotomic units, in favour of an approach that interprets them as two heterogeneous language varieties within one singular linguistic system. The two language varieties are embodied by Standard and Colloquial Arabic and it is argued here for the teaching of both varieties to students of Arabic as a foreign language. In this light, this thesis sets out to investigate the development of two language skills, vocabulary knowledge and language awareness, in a diglossic learning environment. Moreover, it explores the attitudes and perceptions of the students towards Arabic variation. Two experimental methods based on focus-on-form instruction are used in this research to teach Colloquial Arabic to students of Arabic as a foreign language at higher-education level, and the empirical research is conducted within a semi-embedded research design in which qualitative and quantitative data are collected. Students from three universities participate in this research: the Universities of Exeter, Genoa and Milan. This allows for the comparison of results from students of different mother tongues. The main research question that this thesis sets out to answer is: does focus-on-form instruction lead to vocabulary development in two diglossic varieties, namely Standard and Colloquial Arabic, more effectively when it focuses on the two varieties separately or when it links their forms? Two sub-questions investigate which of the two methods of focus-on-form instruction lead more efficiently to the development of language awareness, and the impact they have on students’ attitudes towards Arabic variation. The last sub-question asks to what extent the development of the diglossic language skills and attitudes is a consequence of the method of instruction received. The results of this study suggest that the answer lies in focusing predominantly on one variety at a time with additional consolidation exercises that compare the forms of the two varieties. 2 The main contributions of this thesis are both theoretical, to the literature of TAFL, and empirical, regarding the development of the language skills and attitudes measured. Table of content 1 CHAPTER 1 – Introduction ....................................................... 11 1.1 Introductory words .............................................................................. 11 1.2 Research questions ............................................................................ 12 1.3 Organisation of the study .................................................................... 14 2 CHAPTER 2 – Literature Review .............................................. 18 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................... 18 2.2 Arabic varieties ................................................................................... 19 2.2.1 Classical Arabic ......................................................................... 20 2.2.2 Dichotomy between spoken varieties and Classical Arabic ...... 21 2.2.3 Development of Standard Arabic .............................................. 23 2.2.4 Standard Arabic and Colloquial Arabic ..................................... 25 2.3 Diglossia ............................................................................................. 27 2.3.1 Criticism of Ferguson’s model of diglossia ................................ 31 2.3.2 Standard and prestige ............................................................... 34 2.3.3 Variationist approaches to Arabic variation ............................... 37 2.3.4 Educated Spoken Arabic ........................................................... 39 2.4 Approaches of this research to Arabic diglossia ................................. 42 2.4.1 The reference-packagings model .............................................. 43 2.4.2 Diglossic code-switching ........................................................... 47 2.5 Implications of Arabic variation for TAFL ............................................ 50 2.6 Conclusion .......................................................................................... 56 3 CHAPTER 3 – Theoretical Framework ..................................... 60 3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................... 60 3.2 The systematic nature of variation ...................................................... 63 3.2.1 Intrinsic variation of SA ............................................................. 63 3.2.2 Intrinsic variation of CA ............................................................. 65 3 3.3 Diglossic code-switching use in real-life communication .................... 68 3.3.1 Intra-dialect conversations ........................................................ 70 3.3.2 Cross-Dialect Interactions ......................................................... 71 3.3.3 Written productions ................................................................... 73 3.4 Arabic proficiency ............................................................................... 75 3.5 Focus of investigation ......................................................................... 77 3.5.1 Diglossic vocabulary development ............................................ 78 3.5.2 Language awareness ................................................................ 84 3.5.3 Students’ perceptions and attitudes of Arabic variation ............ 86 3.6 Conclusion .......................................................................................... 86 4 CHAPTER 4 – Methodology ...................................................... 89 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................... 89 4.2 Review of focus of investigation ......................................................... 91 4.3 Focus-on-form instruction ................................................................... 95 4.4 Research method ............................................................................. 100 4.4.1 Mixed-Methods Research Design ........................................... 100 4.4.2 Data Collection and Analysis Methodology ............................. 105 4.5 Selection of participants ................................................................... 116 4.5.1 Selection of the Universities .................................................... 118 4.5.2 Pilot study ................................................................................ 119 4.6 Language material ............................................................................ 123 4.6.1 Orthography of language material ........................................... 124 4.6.2 Activities and exercises of language material ......................... 127 4.7 Conclusion ........................................................................................ 129 5 CHAPTER 5 – Diglossic vocabulary development ............. 132 5.1 Introduction ....................................................................................... 132 5.2 Statistical formulae ........................................................................... 134 5.3 Language tests ................................................................................. 136 5.3.1 Design of pre-test .................................................................... 136 5.3.2 Design of post-test and delayed post-test ............................... 140 5.4 Results on language tests of participant universities ........................ 147 4 5.5 Results of subgroups on diglossic vocabulary development ............ 155 5.5.1 University of Milan ................................................................... 156 5.5.2 University of Genoa ................................................................. 161 5.5.3 University of Exeter ................................................................. 163 5.6 Comparative analysis of results on diglossic vocabulary building .... 167 5.6.1 Low-average proficiency subgroups ....................................... 168 5.6.2 Average proficiency subgroups ............................................... 170 5.6.3 High-average proficiency subgroups ....................................... 172 5.7 Conclusion ........................................................................................ 173 6 CHAPTER 6 – Language awareness ...................................... 176 6.1 Introduction
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