A Qualitative Investigation into the Impact of Diglossia on the Self-learning of an Arabic Spoken Dialect by Arabic as a Foreign Language Learners

Abstract

In a diglossic language such as Arabic, two distinct varieties are used for different purposes. Literary Arabic (LA), also referred to as Modern standard Arabic (MSA) or Fusha, is used primarily for reading, writing, and in formal and educational contexts across the Arab world. In addition to LA, there is a spoken dialect used for everyday communication, which varies from one Arabic country to another. Diglossia raises many challenges in the context of teaching Arabic as a foreign language. While some researchers and educators believe that spoken dialects should be taught in addition to LA, others still believe in the traditional LA-only approach, particularly in Arabic-speaking countries where learners are exposed to the dialect outside the classroom. The current study aims to explore the self-learning experience of the spoken dialect by Arabic as a foreign language (AFL) learners in an LA-only institute in Saudi Arabia. Particularly, the study investigates (a) the difficulties faced by the learners and the solutions adopted, (b) their ability to utilize the linguistic knowledge, and especially the morphological knowledge, they developed in LA to assist their acquisition of the spoken dialect, even if not instructed to do so, and (c) their attitudes towards teaching dialects in addition to LA in language institutes in Arabic-speaking countries. Our results reveal that AFL learners living in an Arabic-speaking country still struggle with the acquisition of everyday spoken dialect. In addition, they were unable to utilize the linguistic knowledge developed in LA to assist their acquisition of the dialect even when they were aware of how LA and the dialect could be linguistically related, especially at the morphological level. The results also show that AFL learners have different attitudes about the importance of teaching spoken dialects in language institutes. Participants’ opinions are shown to be dependent on several factors, including their motivation to learn the language, and the perceived difficulty of the task of acquiring LA and the dialect simultaneously. Future research recommendations and pedagogical implications are discussed accordingly.