MA Track in TAFL

Admission Requirements

Applicants must have a BA or BS degree from an accredited university with a minimum GPA of 3.0. Non-native speakers of English must have a TOEFL score of at least 90 or IELTS 6.5. Non-native speakers of Arabic must complete four years of Arabic or provide proof of Arabic proficiency at the Advanced Level based on the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines.

Course Requirements

The MA degree requires 36 credit hours divided as follows: 21 credit hours of core courses, 12 credit hours of electives, and 3 credit hours of the MA Project. The curriculum will comprise seven core courses that include five courses from MELC and two from SLST, in addition to four electives from MELC and SLST, and the MA Project. The electives will be chosen in consultation with the program advisor.

The MA Project

The MA Project will demonstrate the student’s knowledge and skill in teaching Arabic as a foreign language. It can take one of two forms: the first option is to conduct an empirical research study that focuses on Arabic teaching methodology. The other option is to create a teaching portfolio that demonstrates the student’s ability to create effective Arabic teaching materials, lesson plans, and class activities. The portfolio will also include videos of class teaching to demonstrate the student’s ability to teach effectively at different class levels.

Curriculum Requirements:

• The MA degree requires a minimum of 36 credit hours as follows:
• • 21 credit hours of core courses
  • 12 credit hours of electives
  • 3 credit hours of the MA Project

Curriculum:

The curriculum will comprise seven core courses that include six courses from MELC and one from SLST, in addition to four electives from MELC and SLST, and the MA Project. The electives will be chosen in consultation with program advisor.

Seven Core Courses:

• MELC-M 512 - Arabic Grammar
• MELC-M 688 - The Acquisition of Arabic as a Second Language
• MELC-M 698 - Introduction to Arabic Pedagogy
• MELC-M 633 - Arabic Curriculum and Materials Development
• MELC-M 622 - Technology in the Arabic Language Classroom
• MELC-M 655 - Arabic Teaching Practicum
• SLST-T 550 - Language Testing

Four Elective Courses as Follows:

One of the following Arabic Linguistics courses:

• MELC-M 529 - Arabic Phonetics and Phonology
• MELC-M 677 - The Pragmatics of Arabic
• MELC-M 644 - Arabic Sociolinguistics
• MELC-M 524 - Introduction to Arabic Linguistics

One of the following Arabic Literature courses:                                   

• NELC-M 695 - Arabic Literature from Classical to Modern
• MELC-M 709 - Seminar in Modern Arabic Literature
• MELC-M690 - Research in Classical Arabic Texts
• MELC-M 695 - Issues in Middle Eastern Literature: The Arabic Novel
• MELC-M 695 - Issues in Middle Eastern Literature: Autobiography in Arabic Literature

One of the following courses on Arab History and Civilization:

• MELC-M 695 - Popular Culture in the Middle East
• MELC-M 681 - War and Peace in the Islamic Tradition
• MELC-M 682 - Islam and Modernity

One of the following general Second Language Acquisition courses:       

• SLST-S 511 - Second Language Syntax
• SLST-S 512 - Second Language Phonology
• SLST-S 532 - Second Language Acquisition
• SLST-S 650 - Design and Development of Language Assessment
• SLST-S 660 - L2 Pragmatics
• SLST-T 539 - Pragmatics and Second-Language Learning
• SLST-T 538 - L2 Reading and Writing
• SLST-S 650 - Design and Development of Language Assessment

MA Project:

• MELC-M 710 - TAFL MA Project

A Two-Year Curriculum Model