Search results
1 – 10 of 358Christina Zacharia Hawatmeh, Oraib Mousa Alshmaseen and Ghada Enad Alfayez
The purpose of this study is to investigate the reasons behind the persistent preference for printed content among Arabic-speaking library patrons in Jordan. Specifically, this…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the reasons behind the persistent preference for printed content among Arabic-speaking library patrons in Jordan. Specifically, this study highlights the availability of reading materials in print, electronic and audible formats in Arabic as an intervening factor shaping reading behavior. More broadly, it aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of how language preference can impact reading format preferences.
Design/methodology/approach
This study’s research design revolves around understanding reading format preferences among registered members of Jordan’s largest and oldest private library. This approach involved the examination of secondary library user survey data collected from N = 313 of its patrons in 2022. To gain a greater understanding of the preference for printed materials, this study conducted semistructured interviews over the phone with n = 31 participants of the library’s survey.
Findings
The findings of this study indicate a strong preference for print books among Arabic-speaking library patrons in Jordan. However, the availability of content in electronic and audible formats in Arabic, their preferred reading language, emerged as a potentially significant factor in the persistent preference for printed reading materials.
Originality/value
This study offers new insights into the specific role that the availability of content in Arabic, and possibly languages other than English, may play in shaping reading format preferences. By shedding light on this aspect of reading behavior, this research offers valuable information for libraries and publishers seeking to cater to the needs and preferences of Arabic readers.
Details
Keywords
Syihabuddin Syihabuddin, Nurul Murtadho, Yusring Sanusi Baso, Hikmah Maulani and Shofa Musthofa Khalid
Assessing whether a book is relevant or suitable for use in teaching materials is not an easy and haphazard matter, various methods and theories have been offered by researchers…
Abstract
Purpose
Assessing whether a book is relevant or suitable for use in teaching materials is not an easy and haphazard matter, various methods and theories have been offered by researchers in studying this matter. Taking a study of the context of textbooks, researchers found the urgency that textbooks are a foundation for education, socialization and transmission of knowledge and its construction. Researchers offer another approach, namely by using praxeology as a study tool so that the goals of the textbooks previously intended are fulfilled.
Design/methodology/approach
The researcher uses a qualitative approach through grounded theory. Grounded theory procedures are designed to develop a well-integrated set of concepts that provide a thorough theoretical explanation of the social phenomena under study. A grounded theory must explain as well as describe. It may also implicitly provide some degree of predictability, but only with respect to certain conditions (Corbin and Strauss, 1990). Document analysis in conducting this research study. Document analysis itself examines systematic procedures for reviewing or evaluating documents, both printed and electronic materials.
Findings
Two issues regarding gender acquisition have been investigated in L2 Arabic acquisition studies; the order in which L2 Arabic learners acquire certain grammatical features of the gender system and the effect of L1 on the acquisition of some grammatical features from L2 grammatical gender. Arabic has a two-gender system that classifies all nouns, animate and inanimate, as masculine or feminine. Verbs, nouns, adjectives, personal, demonstrative and relative pronouns related to nouns in the syntactic structure of sentences show gender agreement.
Research limitations/implications
In practice, as a book intended for non-speakers, the book is presented using a general view of linguistic theory. In relation to the gender agreement, the presentation of the book begins and is inserted with the concepts of nouns and verbs. Returning to the praxeology context, First, The Know How (Praxis) explains practice (i.e. the tasks performed and the techniques used). Second, To Know Why or Knowledge (logos) which explains and justifies practice from a technological and theoretical point of view. Answering the first concept, the exercise presented in the book is a concept with three clusters explained at the beginning of the discussion. And the second concept, explained with a task design approach which includes word categorization by separating masculine and feminine word forms.
Practical implications
Practically, this research obtains perspectives studied from a textbook, namely the Arabic gender agreement is presented with various examples of noun contexts; textbook authors present book concepts in a particular way with regard to curriculum features and this task design affects student performance, and which approach is more effective for developing student understanding. Empirically, the material is in line with the formulation of competency standards for non-Arabic speakers in Indonesia.
Originality/value
With this computational search, the researcher found a novelty that was considered accurate by taking the praxeology context as a review in the analysis of non-speaking Arabic textbooks, especially in the year 2022 (last data collection in September) there has been no study on this context. So then, the researcher finds other interests in that praxeology can examine more broadly parts of the task of the contents of the book with the approach of relevant linguistic theories.
Details
Keywords
Reema Khaled AlRowais and Duaa Alsaeed
Automatically extracting stance information from natural language texts is a significant research problem with various applications, particularly after the recent explosion of…
Abstract
Purpose
Automatically extracting stance information from natural language texts is a significant research problem with various applications, particularly after the recent explosion of data on the internet via platforms like social media sites. Stance detection system helps determine whether the author agree, against or has a neutral opinion with the given target. Most of the research in stance detection focuses on the English language, while few research was conducted on the Arabic language.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper aimed to address stance detection on Arabic tweets by building and comparing different stance detection models using four transformers, namely: Araelectra, MARBERT, AraBERT and Qarib. Using different weights for these transformers, the authors performed extensive experiments fine-tuning the task of stance detection Arabic tweets with the four different transformers.
Findings
The results showed that the AraBERT model learned better than the other three models with a 70% F1 score followed by the Qarib model with a 68% F1 score.
Research limitations/implications
A limitation of this study is the imbalanced dataset and the limited availability of annotated datasets of SD in Arabic.
Originality/value
Provide comprehensive overview of the current resources for stance detection in the literature, including datasets and machine learning methods used. Therefore, the authors examined the models to analyze and comprehend the obtained findings in order to make recommendations for the best performance models for the stance detection task.
Details
Keywords
Bataa Sayed Mohamed Mazen, Badawi Mohamed Ismail, Rushdya Rabee Ali Hassan, Mahmoud Ali and Wael S. Mohamed
The purpose of this study is to detect the effect of some natural cellulosic polymers in their nano forms with the addition of zinc oxide nanoparticles on restoring the lost…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to detect the effect of some natural cellulosic polymers in their nano forms with the addition of zinc oxide nanoparticles on restoring the lost mechanical strength of degraded papyrus without any harmful effects on the inks.
Design/methodology/approach
In the current study, the USB digital microscopy, scanning electron microscope, measurement of mechanical properties (tensile and elongation), pH measurement, color change and infrared spectroscopy were undertaken for the samples before and after treatment and aging.
Findings
In the current study, the USB digital microscopy, scanning electron microscope, measurement of mechanical properties (tensile and elongation), pH measurement, color change and infrared spectroscopy were undertaken for the samples before and after treatment and aging.
Originality/value
The effect of strengthening materials was studied on cellulose and carbon ink, which makes this study closer to reality as the manuscript is the consistent structure of cellulose and inks, whereas most of the literature stated the impact of consolidation materials on the strengthening the cellulosic supports without attention to their impact on inks.
Details
Keywords
Yasin I. Tayem and Amer J. Almarabheh
All colleges of medicine in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) adopt English as a language of instructions. This study aimed to examine medical students' views on introducing…
Abstract
Purpose
All colleges of medicine in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) adopt English as a language of instructions. This study aimed to examine medical students' views on introducing medical terminology in Arabic within an English-based curriculum.
Design/methodology/approach
This descriptive study targeted preclinical second- and fourth-year students in the College of Medicine and Medical Sciences at the Arabian Gulf University, during the academic year 2022–2023 (n = 407). Within the pharmacology teaching material in unit I (second year) and unit VIII (fourth year), which are taught in English, students were provided with medical terms in Arabic. At the end of these two units, students' views were sought by using a self-administered questionnaire.
Findings
The number of respondents was 263 (response rate 64.1%: 22.2% males, 77.8% females). Most participants received their school education mainly in Arabic (78.8%). A significant percentage of students believed that providing Arabic terms helped their learning (79.8%). If pharmacology is taught exclusively in English, majority of the students anticipated to face difficulties when explaining drug treatment to their patients in the future (71.3%). Most respondents expected this intervention to help them communicate with patients (86.7%), and preferred to include it in the clinical skills training (82.2%). The second-year students and those whose school education was mainly in Arabic were more likely to agree to the intervention (p < 0.05 for both).
Originality/value
The introduction of medical terms in Arabic is an acceptable alternative to complete Arabization, and is believed to help students in their learning and communication with their patients.
Details
Keywords
How closely does the translation match the meaning of the reference has always been a key aspect of any machine translation (MT) service. Therefore, the primary goal of this…
Abstract
Purpose
How closely does the translation match the meaning of the reference has always been a key aspect of any machine translation (MT) service. Therefore, the primary goal of this research is to assess and compare translation adequacy in machine vs human translation (HT) from Arabic to English. The study looks into whether the MT product is adequate and more reliable than the HT. It also seeks to determine whether MT poses a real threat to professional Arabic–English translators.
Design/methodology/approach
Six different texts were chosen and translated from Arabic to English by two nonexpert undergraduate translation students as well as MT services, including Google Translate and Babylon Translation. The first system is free, whereas the second system is a fee-based service. Additionally, two expert translators developed a reference translation (RT) against which human and machine translations were compared and analyzed. Furthermore, the Sketch Engine software was utilized to examine the translations to determine if there is a significant difference between human and machine translations against the RT.
Findings
The findings indicated that when compared to the RT, there was no statistically significant difference between human and machine translations and that MTs were adequate translations. The human–machine relationship is mutually beneficial. However, MT will never be able to completely automated; rather, it will benefit rather than endanger humans. A translator who knows how to use MT will have an opportunity over those who are unfamiliar with the most up-to-date translation technology. As MTs improve, human translators may no longer be accurate translators, but rather editors and editing materials previously translated by machines.
Practical implications
The findings of this study provide valuable and practical implications for research in the field of MTs and for anyone interested in conducting MT research.
Originality/value
In general, this study is significant as it is a serious attempt at getting a better understanding of the efficiency of MT vs HT in translating the Arabic–English texts, and it will be beneficial for translators, students, educators as well as scholars in the field of translation.
Details
Keywords
Mohamed Boudchiche and Azzeddine Mazroui
We have developed in this paper a morphological disambiguation hybrid system for the Arabic language that identifies the stem, lemma and root of a given sentence words. Following…
Abstract
We have developed in this paper a morphological disambiguation hybrid system for the Arabic language that identifies the stem, lemma and root of a given sentence words. Following an out-of-context analysis performed by the morphological analyser Alkhalil Morpho Sys, the system first identifies all the potential tags of each word of the sentence. Then, a disambiguation phase is carried out to choose for each word the right solution among those obtained during the first phase. This problem has been solved by equating the disambiguation issue with a surface optimization problem of spline functions. Tests have shown the interest of this approach and the superiority of its performances compared to those of the state of the art.
Details
Keywords
Social networks (SNs) have recently evolved from a means of connecting people to becoming a tool for social engineering, radicalization, dissemination of propaganda and…
Abstract
Purpose
Social networks (SNs) have recently evolved from a means of connecting people to becoming a tool for social engineering, radicalization, dissemination of propaganda and recruitment of terrorists. It is no secret that the majority of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) members are Arabic speakers, and even the non-Arabs adopt Arabic nicknames. However, the majority of the literature researching the subject deals with non-Arabic languages. Moreover, the features involved in identifying radical Islamic content are shallow and the search or classification terms are common in daily chatter among people of the region. The authors aim at distinguishing normal conversation, influenced by the role religion plays in daily life, from terror-related content.
Design/methodology/approach
This article presents the authors' experience and the results of collecting, analyzing and classifying Twitter data from affiliated members of ISIS, as well as sympathizers. The authors used artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning classification algorithms to categorize the tweets, as terror-related, generic religious, and unrelated.
Findings
The authors report the classification accuracy of the K-nearest neighbor (KNN), Bernoulli Naive Bayes (BNN) and support vector machine (SVM) [one-against-all (OAA) and all-against-all (AAA)] algorithms. The authors achieved a high classification F1 score of 83\%. The work in this paper will hopefully aid more accurate classification of radical content.
Originality/value
In this paper, the authors have collected and analyzed thousands of tweets advocating and promoting ISIS. The authors have identified many common markers and keywords characteristic of ISIS rhetoric. Moreover, the authors have applied text processing and AI machine learning techniques to classify the tweets into one of three categories: terror-related, non-terror political chatter and news and unrelated data-polluting tweets.
Details
Keywords
John J. Sailors, Jamal A. Al-Khatib, Tarik Khzindar and Shaza Ezzi
The Islamic world spans many different languages with different language structures. This paper aims to explore one way in which language structure affects consumer response to…
Abstract
Purpose
The Islamic world spans many different languages with different language structures. This paper aims to explore one way in which language structure affects consumer response to the marketing of cobrands.
Design/methodology/approach
Two between subject experiments were conducted using samples of participants from Saudi Arabia and the USA. The first manipulated partner brand category similarity and brand name order, along with the structure of the language used to communicate with the market. The data for this study includes Arabic speakers in Saudi Arabia as well as English speakers in the USA. The second study explores how targeting a population fluent in multiple languages of varied structure nullifies the findings from the first study and uses Latino participants in the USA.
Findings
This study finds that when brands come from similar product categories, name order did not affect cobrand evaluations, but it did when the brands come from dissimilar product categories. Here, evaluations of the cobrand are enhanced when the invited brand is in the position that adjectives occupy in the participant’s language. The authors also find that being proficient in two languages, each with a different default order for adjectives and nouns, quashes the effect of name order otherwise seen when brands from dissimilar product categories engage in cobranding.
Originality/value
By examining the impact of language structure on the effects of cobrand evaluation and conducting studies among participants with differing dominant languages, this research can rule out simple primacy or recency effects.
Details
Keywords
Wagdi Rashad Ali Bin-Hady, Arif Ahmed Mohammed Hassan Al-Ahdal and Samia Khalifa Abdullah
English as a foreign langauge (EFL) students find it difficult to apply the theoretical knowledge they acquire on translation in the practical world. Therefore, this study…
Abstract
Purpose
English as a foreign langauge (EFL) students find it difficult to apply the theoretical knowledge they acquire on translation in the practical world. Therefore, this study explored if training in pretranslation techniques (PTTs) (syntactic parsing) as suggested by Almanna (2018) could improve the translation proficiency of Yemeni EFL students. Moreover, the study also assessed which of the PTTs the intervention helped to develop.
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopted a primarily experimental pre- and posttests research design, and the sample comprised of an intake class with 16 students enrolled in the fourth year, Bachelor in Education (B.Ed), Hadhramout University. Six participants were also interviewed to gather the students' perceptions on using PTTs.
Findings
Results showed that students' performance in translation developed significantly (Sig. = 0.002). All the six PTTs showed development, though subject, tense and aspect developed more significantly (Sig. = 0.034, 0.002, 0.001 respectively). Finally, the study reported students' positive perceptions on the importance of using PTTs before doing any translation tasks.
Originality/value
One of the recurrent errors that can be noticed in Yemeni EFL students' production is their inability to transfer the grammatical elements of sentences from L1 (Arabic) into L2 (English) or the visa versa. The researchers thought though translation is more than the syntactic transmission of one language into another, analyzing the elements of sentences using syntactic and semantic parsing can help students to produce acceptable texts in the target language. These claims would be proved or refuted after analyzing the experiment result of the present study.
Details