saifiarabic.com

URBAN ARABIC: Learn to speak Arabic, live among Arabs, and communicate effectively in the spoken Arabic of everyday life, while building your practical ability to read, write and decipher written Arabic.

The primary curriculum taught at Saifi is written by Saifi teachers to teach the Lebanese/Syrian Arabic vernacular called "Urban Arabic".  In addition Saifi offers Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), mostly to students who wish to do research of authentic materials in their original language.

Urban Arabic is a comprehensive and systematic approach to spoken Arabic course meant to teach the absolute beginner the skills to communicate effectively with Arabs in everyday situations.  Urban Arabic is structured around real Arabic alphabets: both script (عربي) and the "Arabic Chat Alphabet" (3arabiyeh).

Because language schools divide Arabic between colloquial and MSA many students of Arabic find themselves with very limited practical skills.  MSA courses give the student extremely limited speaking/listening skills, and colloquial Arabic courses don't teach reading/writting and often don't go beyond a beginner level.  The Urban Arabic curriculum doesn't skip any aspect of communication, and teaches all of the practical skills necessary to effectively engage native Arabic speakers.

The Urban Arabic curriculum progresses from learning basic survival/courtesy phrases and gaining a phonetic understanding of the Arabic script, to proficiency in social situations and comprehension of simple authentic documents (menus, forms, signs etc.), to work proficiency, and finaly to advanced comunicative flexibility in a variety of styles and circumstances... the same way that Arabs themselves use the language.