Arabic diglossia and its impact on the social communication and learning process of non-native Arabic learners: Students’ perspective

Abstract

The Arabic language is characterized as a diglossic language. Hence, this study dealt with this sociolinguistic phenomenon and examine the impact of the Arabic diglossic situation in terms of social communication and the Arabic language learning process based on the second Arabic language learners’ perspective. The study starts with reviewing and discussing the literature by considering the Arabic diglossia from both linguistic and educational perspectives. To achieve the research objectives the researcher used mixed-method research namely, a close-ended questionnaire for quantitative data and open-ended questions for qualitative data. The sample included 26 students from different nationalities at the Arabic Language Center for Speakers of Other Languages at King Khalid University. The researcher concluded that the Arabic diglossic situation, especially the difference between the functionality of MSA (Modern Standard Arabic) and CA (Colloquial Arabic) is an impactful factor that can create an obstacle for the second Arabic language learners in terms of social communication in real context as well as the Arabic language learning process. The data prove that the second Arabic language learners in the Arabic Language Center for Speakers of Other Languages at King Khalid University are aware of Arabic diglossia and its impact on their social communication in real-life situations. Moreover, it was found that the Arabic diglossic situation slightly impacted their Arabic language learning process in terms of their desire to continue learning the Arabic language and the switching between MSA and CA that take place in the educational setting by some teachers