A Review of Arabic Study Materials, Part 1

Anybody that has decided to study Arabic might well wonder why finding good Arabic study materials takes an almost Herculean effort nearly four years after the language was thrust into the forefront of the American consciousness.

When I first decided to study Arabic after a 12 year hiatus, I assumed that finding good study materials would be as easy as walking into the nearest Barnes & Noble and heading for the foreign language section - but no. I was still upbeat as I knew that my city library would be bursting with Arabic learning materials. Nothing could be further from the truth here in Seattle, Washington and I imagine it must be even more difficult in a small city.

Online retailers provide a number of choices but there really is no way to tell what you’re getting until the purchase has been made. I wanted to begin posting reviews of different resources I’ve come across to help potential learners of the Arabic language begin their journey as smoothly as possible!

Because I have a strong foundation from my study of Arabic at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California, my reviews won’t focus on the absolute beginner. I do, however, recommend the Alif Baa with DVDs primer. This is one book written specifically for those beginning to learn Arabic and will give you a firm grasp of the basics that are needed to begin your study of the language.

First up for review is Transparent Language’s, Before You Know It Deluxe (BYKI), $59.95, available by download or CD-Rom. This is one of my favorite programs for building vocabulary. The program comes with 75 word lists that are organized by theme (office, body parts, adjectives, verbs, etc.). The words on the list are presented, in Arabic, on virtual flashcards that you flip to reveal the translation. This can be done in the following different learning modes:

• Review It – Review your cards without being scored.
• Recognize It – See the information from one side of your card (Arabic) and think or say the information from side two (English).
• Know It – See the information from one side of your card (Arabic) and then type the information from side two (English).
• Produce It – See the information from side two of your cards (English) and think or say the information from side one (Arabic)
• Own It – See the information from side two of your card (English) and type the information from side one (Arabic)

Each word is spoken, in Arabic, as it is presented and can be made to replay the pronunciation by clicking on the appropriate button. The program keeps track of your successes and failures during each learning mode and when you have successfully completed the list you are given the option to continue practicing or to review a new list. If you need to stop in the middle of studying the list in question, BYKI will remember your responses for that list and you can pick up where you left off at a later time.

In addition to the above mentioned “Flashcard” mode, BYKI comes with an “Activities” tab that offers Multiple Choice in either of the above mentioned Recognize it and Know It modes. The Activities tab also offers a Pronunciation mode to let you compare your pronunciation to a native speaker’s and a Dictation selection to spell the Arabic word that you hear (Done by use of a virtual Arabic keyboard).

BYKI also has an “Alphabet Exploder” tab that will let you choose an individual Arabic letter and pronounce it for you and also show you how it is written in the Isolated, Initial, Medial, and Final position.

Perhaps one of the more interesting features is the ability to create your own lists or add words to the existing lists (utilizing the virtual Arabic keyboard or in transliterated form) and associating that word with a sound recording of the pronunciation and/or image. You can also share the lists you create with your friends.

There is no limit that I’ve found to the number of times the program can be installed. BYKI also allows multiple user profiles. Transparent Language will let you download, for free, a “lite” version of the program that contains only about seven of the lists, but otherwise offers full functionality, giving you a chance to decide if this is the program for you before you actually buy it.

I personally cannot fault BYKI Deluxe on any level. I would have preferred if some of the words came with some context as to their use but to be fair, this is more nitpicking on my part and not really criticism of the product.