Yesterday I started classes. I have 5 classes a day, Sunday through Thursday, and each class lasts about an hour. We have classes from 8:30am-10:30, then an hour break, then classes again from 11:30-2:30. Every day we have a different schedule that includes 5 out of 6 of the following classes: Speaking, Writing, Grammar, Reading, Listening, and a class on the local dialect. Instruction is almost exclusively in Arabic, so our professors rarely if ever speak a word of english. This can lead to some serious difficulties, especially when learning new vocabulary. Often, when introducing new vocabulary words, the professors refer to other words in Arabic to signal the meaning of the new word. This works great until the word that they refer to is also unknown to anyone in the class. This can be frustrating at times, but we always work through it. Our professors are all extremely enthusiastic, patient, and engaging, which really makes all the difference. They have no problem resorting to what seems like a game of charades in order to communicate the meaning of new words. Laughter is abundant, cutting through the tension and anxiety that could easily ruin the experience.
Learning a new language certainly is humbling. Today, in our listening class, we watched a short clip from Sesame Street that was dubbed over in Arabic - that's how low we have to steep to hear vocabulary that we can understand! However, all shame/ego aside, I don't care how old you are: when Ernie plays tricks on Bert, it's still funny! As funny as Sesame Street may be, I'm looking forward to the classes when we listen to al-jazeera. Then I'll feel like I've made progress.
So, we have 5 hours of class a day, and then we go back to our apartments and do hours and hours of homework. Many of my classmates complain of headaches by the end of the day because of the sheer amount of concentration it takes to listen, speak, and read Arabic for 5 hours of class, the homework on top of it, and then the even more difficult task of interacting with local Jordanians. As for me, I haven't suffered from headaches - just exhaustion. We are able to get out around town, though, whether to eat, shop, or just to walk. We also have time to do some kind of exercise on some of the nights. Tonight we played soccer with some of the students that go to Yarmouk University, which was really fun. As a whole though, the weekdays seem like they will be filled with loads of hard work. It makes sense, then, that I've heard that the motto of the Arabic department at Yarmouk is: "Arabic, like beauty, is pain."
Learning a new language certainly is humbling. Today, in our listening class, we watched a short clip from Sesame Street that was dubbed over in Arabic - that's how low we have to steep to hear vocabulary that we can understand! However, all shame/ego aside, I don't care how old you are: when Ernie plays tricks on Bert, it's still funny! As funny as Sesame Street may be, I'm looking forward to the classes when we listen to al-jazeera. Then I'll feel like I've made progress.
So, we have 5 hours of class a day, and then we go back to our apartments and do hours and hours of homework. Many of my classmates complain of headaches by the end of the day because of the sheer amount of concentration it takes to listen, speak, and read Arabic for 5 hours of class, the homework on top of it, and then the even more difficult task of interacting with local Jordanians. As for me, I haven't suffered from headaches - just exhaustion. We are able to get out around town, though, whether to eat, shop, or just to walk. We also have time to do some kind of exercise on some of the nights. Tonight we played soccer with some of the students that go to Yarmouk University, which was really fun. As a whole though, the weekdays seem like they will be filled with loads of hard work. It makes sense, then, that I've heard that the motto of the Arabic department at Yarmouk is: "Arabic, like beauty, is pain."
Wow--sounds like quite a rigorous schedule. But you were always good with languages. I understood every word Bert and Ernie said in Arabic, by the way!
ReplyDeleteYeah, definitely sounds exhausting! I liked watching the Sesame Street clip in Arabic. :) The best way to learn a language is immersion, and it sounds like that's pretty much what you're getting, so even though I'm sure it's frustrating, you'll learn so much!!
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