Program Structure

The CLS Program in Ibri, Oman offers students opportunities to learn Arabic both inside the classroom and in an immersive cultural setting. An average of fifteen hours per week of classroom instruction in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) will be supplemented with an average of five hours per week working on the Omani Dialect. Coursework addresses the four major skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing, and will cover the equivalent of one year of Arabic instruction at a U.S. institution.

In addition to formal classwork, students will have scheduled hours each week with language partners in one-on-one sessions designed to give opportunities for additional speaking practice with their Omani peers, and to provide greater access to the local Omani community in a way that offers insights into cultural norms and customs. Extracurricular activities and excursions to other parts of Oman will provide students with a basis for understanding the wide breadth of Omani culture.

The Noor Majan Training Institute offers high quality learning experiences in a secure and encouraging environment to the local and global learning community. It serves the ideals of mutual understanding and life-long learning in an international context through the teaching of different languages and by giving insight into Oman’s unique culture. You can find out more about the institute on their website.

Language Levels Offered:

• Advanced Beginning: Minimum requirement: completion of one year of college-level Arabic, or its equivalent, prior to the start of the program.
• Intermediate: Minimum requirement: completion of two years of college-level Arabic, or its equivalent, prior to the start of the program.
• Advanced: Minimum requirement: completion of three years of college-level Arabic, or its equivalent, prior to the start of the program.

Outcomes

In 2010, the CLS Program adopted the Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) developed by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) as an additional measure of the effectiveness and quality of the institutes overseas. Before the program, students take a diagnostic OPI test; at the end of their eight-week course of study, they take an ACTFL-certified post-program OPI assessment. The scores on these tests give students a concrete, widely-recognized measure of their speaking skills in MSA. In addition, students’ writing and reading abilities are assessed throughout the program in a variety of ways.

See the 2011 CLS Program Speaking Proficiency Results.