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Arabic Across the Curriculum is a broad language support program at Zayed University in the UAE, which has stimulated discussion on several issues concerning Arabic language support in the Arab world in general and in the Gulf area in particular. These issues can be summed up in the following questions: Why do we need to teach Arabic to native Arabic-speaking students? How will Arabic language proficiency help students in their academic and future careers? Which Arabic language skills should we teach native speakers in higher education, and how? What means of assessment and what criteria might be helpful to Arabic programs and instructors?

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

As new English-medium universities open their doors in the Arabian Gulf andsome Arabic-medium universities switch to using English as the language ofinstruction, instructors in all disciplines face the challenge of teaching theircourses in English to students who have learned (and who are continuing tolearn) English as a foreign language. This article reviews theories and practicesfrom the field of Applied Linguistics and Teaching English as a SecondLanguage (TESOL) which can help content-area instructors understand andreach these learners.

Second language acquisition research has produced several concepts ofinterest to content-area instructors. Krashen’s theory of comprehensible inputfocuses on the language used by the instructor, while Swain’s of comprehensibleoutput emphasizes providing opportunities for students to produce language. Cummins differentiates between two types of language proficiency: BasicInterpersonal Communication Skills (BICS), which are needed for dailyinteractions, and Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP), which isrequired for academic tasks. Interlanguage and first language interference mayalso influence students’ second language production in classroom settings.

Specific classroom practices for improving students’ language comprehensionand facilitating content learning are recommended. These include modifyingspeech, using visual aids, utilizing a variety of questioning techniques, andextending the time instructors wait for students to respond. Instructors canemploy strategies, such as mind-mapping and quickwriting, to activate students’linguistic and conceptual schemata at the beginning of a lesson. Scaffoldingprovides structure and support for students to complete tasks until they are ableto realize them on their own. Collaborative/cooperative learning lowers students’affective filters and offers opportunities for participation and language practice. Graphics illustrate some of the suggested practices.

This paper reports a sub-set of results from a mixed-method ethnographic study of literacy among female graduates and undergraduates of a United Arab Emirates public university. With reference to survey data and two in-depth interviews, the paper focuses in particular on the predispositions and preferences of these women with regard to reading and writing in English and Modern Standard Arabic. Employing a New Literacy Studies theoretical framework along with a number of concepts developed by Bourdieu, the paper finds that literacy practices in this context are developing rapidly, influenced by the diverse transnational linguistic marketplaces in which these women grow up. Suggestions are made with regard to possible directions for curricular development in higher education in this region based on the opinions expressed by these young women.

This paper focuses on a project to work on the digital library of Arab children's culture for sustainable development (DLACSD).

This project claims to link the past, present, and future by creating a platform that can grow to include not only works by adults but by children who inspire adults with their imagination and the joys they bring to the world.

This project addresses in phases the different aspects of the problem of the lack of material for Egyptian/Arab children at different stages in Arabic on the internet (with copyright law in mind). It is time to fill this gap by having a rich repository of stories, plays, games and songs for children in Arabic in a digital library to enrich the life of the child and to inform the world that much that is worthwhile is available in Arabic for parents, teachers, and children to enjoy.

Through reading samples of the works by Abdel-Tawab Youssef (1928–2015) by using the Dublin Core Elements, it will be informative to see how his writings address the United Nations Goals of Sustainable Development way before these Goals were discussed.

Writers for children, librarians, teachers, psychologists, literary critics, illustrators, and parents need a platform that makes material available to promote children’s culture in the Arab world and to introduce the world to what is of value for children in Arabic.

Currently, communication brings the world together and although the social media and the new technology have introduced problems that are serious, to say the least, collaborators on all levels must play an active role in redressing the social wrongs, especially those affecting children.

This ongoing project by members of a team who believe in interdisciplinarity and multidisciplinarity has taken the first step to create and develop (DLACSD).

Drawing on the politeness theory, this study explored the dubbing of English children's cartoons into Modern Standard Arabic, focusing on negative face speech acts such as compliments, suggestions, rejections, and suggestions in rejections.

Through quantitative and qualitative comparative analyses, this study investigated the influence of cultural differences on the selection of dubbing strategies, analyzed the politeness strategies employed in dubbing, and examined the maintenance of pragmatic equivalence in translated speech acts. Data were collected from the cartoon series “The Loud House” from popular digital platforms Shahid and Netflix, chosen for their regional (the Arab world) and global popularity, respectively.

The findings revealed shifts and adaptations in the dubbing process influenced by linguistic and cultural factors, particularly emphasizing social norms and power dynamics (e.g. respect for elders) prevalent in the Arab culture. Translators strategically employed politeness strategies, such as off-record and bald on-record strategies, to ensure cultural appropriateness and maintain the integrity of familial relationships depicted in the content. The comparative analysis of translators' approaches on Shahid and Netflix platforms highlights significant differences in the translation of negative face-threatening act scenarios. Netflix shows a tendency to adjust politeness pragmatic levels to better suit the preferences of the target audience, indicating a proactive effort to enhance viewer engagement through effective translation strategies. In contrast, Shahid adopts a more conservative approach, maintaining a consistent politeness level in its translations, which aligns closely with cultural norms and expectations. This comparative analysis underscores the divergent translation strategies employed by the two platforms, with Netflix prioritizing adaptation to audience preferences and Shahid favoring preservation of established politeness levels. The cultural social factors that influenced the translation and adaptation of face threatening acts can be grasped by considering elements such as social distance, power dynamics, and relative imposition. In Arabic culture, these factors play a crucial role in determining the social dynamics and interactions between individuals. The observed patterns of shifts and adaptations in the translation of face threatening acts on Shahid and Netflix reflect the nature of stratified Arabic societies where communal relationships are defined by factors like family ties, elder-younger dynamics, and friendships. These cultural factors shape the social norms and expectations surrounding face threatening acts, which, in turn, influence the translation choices made on these platforms.

The study has several limitations that need acknowledgment. Firstly, the sample size was limited, focusing on the dubbing of only two versions of an animated series and four seasons, comparing translations across two platforms. Additionally, there were challenges related to the accessibility and availability of data, with limited information about the translators involved in the dubbing process. Furthermore, the study's focus on specific types of translations may have overlooked other important factors influencing translation practices. Lastly, regional variations in translation practices within the Arab world were not considered. Despite these limitations, the study provides valuable insights into translation practices in animated series on Shahid and Netflix platforms, highlighting the need for future research to address these limitations and provide a more comprehensive understanding of translation practices in the Arab world.

The findings of this study have significant practical implications for a wide range of stakeholders, including translators, educators, textbook writers, and even non-specialists. For translators, especially those working in the field of audiovisual translation, understanding the nuances of politeness strategies and their application in different cultural contexts is essential. The findings suggest that translators should be sensitive to cultural and social factors when translating negative face-threatening act scenarios in cartoons. By making strategic decisions to adapt translations to align with audience preferences while still preserving cultural appropriateness, translators can enhance viewer engagement and ensure that the translated content resonates effectively with the target audience. Educators and textbook writers can also benefit from these findings by incorporating insights into politeness theory and cross-cultural communication into their curriculum and materials. By teaching students about the importance of politeness strategies in translation and providing them with practical examples and exercises, educators can help prepare the next generation of translators to navigate complex linguistic and cultural challenges in their work. Additionally, non-specialists, such as viewers of translated content, can gain a better understanding of the intricacies involved in translation and the impact of cultural factors on communication. By being aware of these issues, non-specialists can become more discerning consumers of translated media and appreciate the skill and artistry involved in the translation process.

This study underscores the cultural competence and sensitivity of Arab translators in navigating linguistic and social dynamics, contributing to the creation of culturally resonant and entertaining content for young Arabic-speaking audiences.

This corpus-based study provides a descriptive account of the distribution of the polysemous noun nafs in two Arabic varieties, Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and Classical Arabic (CA). The research objective is to survey the use of nafs as a reflexive marker in local binding domains and as a self-intensifier in NP-adjoined positions.

The consulted corpora are Timespamped JSI Web corpus for MSA and Quran corpus for CA. While attending to corpora size differences, MSA and CA exhibit a pattern of difference and similarity in nafs diffusion.

In the modern variety, nafs is pervasively used as reflexive marker in canonical binding domains, along with a less frequent, yet notable, intensifier user, and these uses are partially and cautiously attributed to the specific genre in which they occur. In CA, nafs is mainly recurrent as a polysemous noun, along with extensive use as a reflexive marker in local binding settings. As an intensifier, nafs is totally non-existent in the CA corpus, in the same way as it is in absentia in VP-constituent extraction in MSA.

Examining whether nafs, as a reflexive marker, deviates from canonical binding in Arabic the way English reflexive pronouns do. Building a general account of this distribution is relevant in understanding the explicit (syntactic) and implicit (discourse-based) dimensions of reflexive marker and self-intensifier processing and interpretation in Arabic as a first and second language.

The United Arab Emirates’ complex history, its current demographics, its youthfulness as a country, and the fact that it is a region undergoing fast-paced change make the issue of cultura identity particularly relevant and urgent in this part of the world. This is especially true given the rapid spread of English in the sphere of education and everyday life in recent years. This paper discusses the above issues before analyzing the attitudes and perceptions of female Emirati undergraduate students and female Emirati primary school teachers with regard to global English and its effects on local culture and identity. After analysis of the findings from a qualitative study using open-response questionnaires with 35 undergraduates and twelve teachers, a discussion follows with recommendations on how to overcome issues raised in the study.