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5 Ratings
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Sections 3
I had so much fun in my first year of Arabic with Bilal (Maanaki), but when I started my second year I realized how behind I was. If you take it with Maanaki and plan to continue on with it, be prepared to play major catch up. In hindsight, as much of a good time as I had, I wish I'd taken my first year with a different professor, even if it was a little more stressful. With Maanaki, you can expect frequent and often last minute class cancellations (I'd conservatively estimate 7 a semester), and you can get by without developing your ability to speak and listen. We never had a speaking assessment (both semesters), and when I started my second year I realized both my ability to speak Arabic and comprehend basic spoken Arabic were underdeveloped. I don't claim to be exceptionally skilled at language acquisition in general, and I'm sure some more responsible students put in the necessary time to prepare themselves for the next level. But I slacked off more than I realized just because of the lowered expectations and casual feel of class itself. I can't speak for all of the other professors, but Bilal Humeidan is great. If you're interested in taking a semester of Arabic just for the hell of it, definitely take it with Maanaki. If you want to go all the way with the language, I'd say your best shot is with one of the other professors. Maanaki is hilarious, and I love the guy; it's hard to reconcile that with him not being perhaps the best Arabic teacher. But now that I've had another professor I can say with confidence that there better paths out there than the one I've taken to learn the language.
Such a great professor, makes learning about Arabic language and culture super fun! Only downside is that he is less consistent with homework and classes; he is known for canceling class last minute or forgetting to send homework out (which can be nice, but you don't learn as much)
Still recommend, tho!
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