Register now here REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED!
This is the last time this course will be offered until after next Ramadan!
al-Salāmu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullāh,
Many of us would have listened to our Imams reciting Qur’an during Ramadhan, perhaps we would have witnessed their voices wavering at certain verses. Many of us at that point may have made dua to Allah to give us an understanding of these words that cause the hearts to quiver. The position of the Qur’an in the life of the Muslim can not be overstated, and how much more so for the mothers of this Ummah who are the first school for their children, within whose embrace the child forms their first perceptions of the world that encompasses them. Ramadhan has now passed, but for the successful one its effects will in shaa’ Allaah remain and opportunities to develop and learn will now appear and enable us to progress, such that next year when our guest arrives at our door he will find us different, more welcoming better able to provide him with hosipitality – may Allah help us to do this…ameen.
My journey through the Arabic language
My name is Ola Shoubaki, I was born and brought up primarily in England to Palestinian parents. Arabic was spoken at home and I learnt to speak my parents’ dialect of Arabic as most immigrant children do, although I always considered English to be my first language. Like many from my generation when I began to understand Islam in my own right, I began simultaneously to appreciate the absence of the Qur’an in my life. This lead me to enrol in a degree in Arabic in SOAS which by the grace of Allah I passed with a first class. Within a year of starting the course my life had been changed forever. The Qur’an was now understandable to some degree, I was able to memorise verses with understanding, my prayer was different, and that year Ramadhan was different.
My enthusiasm for the language led me to start teaching Arabic from the second year of my degree, which I did to friends at home and to students from other disciplines at college. Facilitating their journey through the Arabic language has been and continues to be from amongst the most rewarding memories that I have, and I pray to Allah that He accepts those efforts from me.
My life then moved out of the UK for a while and I found myself with the opportunity to do a Masters in Arabic Linguistics from the International Islamic University of Malaysia where I lived for two years. At the Masters level, which was taught entirely in Arabic, I had the opportunity to develop my appreciation of the language to a completely new level. It was a fascinating two years, and it led to the development of this very website.
My teaching
Reflecting over the past fourteen years teaching Arabic to English speakers I feel that my style of teaching has matured considerably. Being native to the English language and the English educational mind-set I feel very comfortable cultivating an understanding of the language in the English medium. As any teacher who has been teaching for more than ten years, I find myself anticipating problems within the mind of the learners before they arise, based upon my experience and approaching subjects in a way sensitive to this anticipation. The results have been very encouraging by the grace of Allah. I have seen sisters who were struggling to learn Arabic, flourish through their hard work, not because I was more knowledgeable than their previous – often native – Arabic teachers, but because I have travelled the same path they are attempting, my insight into the stumbling blocks they might face upon their journey is more personally intuitive.
Course content
The course will take the students through the book ‘Arabic through the Qur’an’ by Prof Alan Jones, accompanied by supplemental exercises and handouts. The classes will be taught in the English medium, which I have found accelerates the learning of English speaking students. I find the book to be exceptional in the comprehensiveness of its explanations and the fact that all the vocabulary, examples used and exercises are from the Qur’an, therefore students feel they are beginning to understand the Qur’an from the very first lesson. The course will be divided over three trimesters, each lasting 3 and a half months. By the end of the course the sisters should be very comfortable with all elements of Arabic grammar, and depending on how well they memorise the vocabulary they will be very comfortable understanding the Qur’an on the whole, and for the words that they do not know they will have the skills to translate using dictionaries.
Course timings, commitments and cost
Places on the course will be limited and offered on a first-come first-served basis (subject to suitability). Attendance every week is compulsory, as is completion of all homework to a satisfactory standard. Anyone who cannot attend the live class for a good reason, will have access to the recording of the class which they must review as soon as possible. They must still complete the homework and assignments by the deadline.
Time: Thursdays 8.30pm – 10pm GMT, starting Thursday 17th Jan 2013
Cost: £120/trimester. The entire course will be completed over three trimesters
Any sisters interested will be required to complete and submit an application form, on which basis their suitability for this course will be judged. Places will not be secured without payment. Due to the demanding nature of the course, I would not recommend it for sisters under the age of 16.
I ask Allah swt to enable us to be from the best of people as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Narrated Uthman bin Affan: The Prophet said, “The most superior among you (Muslims) are those who learn the Qur’an and teach it.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)
wa al-Salāmu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullāh,
Your sister in Islam,
Ola Shoubaki
Anyone who joins the course must be aware that they have an obligation and responsibility to ensure no men view or hear the class on their side.
TESTIMONIALS
Absolutely outstanding teaching. Having studied Arabic at SOAS University of London I would say Ola’s ability to give the English speaker a thorough understanding of Arabic in such a simple way, surpasses that of any institution..truly gifted in both understanding & teaching therefore a must for those who want to invest in their aakhira … the course allows you to almost immediately have an appreciation & further attachment to our Noble Quran. – Bushra Daudi, London
This course is for serious learners who would like to grasp Arabic grammar and to have a firm foundation in order to progress further in understanding the language of the Quran. The teacher is highly qualified and experienced and has deep subject knowledge and patience with learners. The course is well structured and after the first lesson you will be able to translate portions of ayahs of the Quran. I have great admiration and respect for our teacher who is an absolute asset to the Muslim Ummah. - Drakshan A, London
As a busy mum of four I have tried various teach yourself Arabic books over many years and always struggled to comprehend over-complicated grammar explanations. This course was a great relief as Ola was able to simplify these same grammar explanations to a level that everyone can understand very easily. - Mrs Ahmed, London
Register now here REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED
Anyone deemed not suitable for the course will be contacted to discuss the matter and course fees refunded if necessary
Pls I want to learn. Pls Pls
Salam,
This course sounds really good……however I will not be able to do it at the present time….was wondering if you will repeat it next year?
Was Salam
Shaheda
Assalamualaikum Dear sister,
Just wondering if its a right level for me to be in.
I can read arabic fluently and have some knowledge of words and grammer.
I would also like to know how much of Quran will I be able to understand on successful completion of this course, and will you be starting intermediate to advance level at any point.
Thanks,
your keen sister in Islam!
al-Salaamu ‘alaykum,
Shaheda , at the present time there are plans to repeat the course next year, but we shall have to see closer to the time in shaa’ Allaah.
Farha, being able to read Arabic is a prerequisite for the course. We will start assuming students have no knowledge of grammar but will progress quite rapidly, and you may find that the vocabulary you are required to learn is new quite early on. On successful completion of the course, you should be able to understand all of the Qur’an, other than some of the perhaps trickier sentence constructions (in which rhetorical devices have been employed). You will know all the grammar, but the students would then further be advised to study some basic balaghah as well.
The course will be split into three trimesters, but I will not allow students to join from trimester 2 or 3, because the vocab and grammatical rules covered in class may not be the same as the ones they are already familiar with.
Assalamualaikum wa rahamtullahe wa barakatuhu sister
Where can the course book be purchased?
Is there a final exam at the end of the course?
Will lessons be recorded and uploaded anywhere to go over?
Are we permitted to record to the session?
Is the fee £120 in total?
When will the course end?
Jazakillah khair for your time
Wassalam
Wa ‘alaykum as salaam wa rahmatullaah sister,
The course book is available on Amazon.
There will be a final exam at the end of each trimester, and students must pass before being allowed to move to the next trimester.
Lessons may be recorded depending on the logistics of protecting sisters’ privacy as they will be using webcams. Students may not record the lessons themselves.
The fee is £120 per trimester, and the first trimester will last until the end of January.
Wassalaamu ‘alaykum
Dear Ola
Could you please email us your contact email as we tried through the site, but it does not show your email address anywhere including contact us page.
We would be interested in promoting this course especially as we have students that have bee waiting for such a chance.
Salaam sister
I am interested in registering on this course inshaAllah. I am not sure if i will be able to attend the first session on the 16th october. Is this a problem? Am i able to catch up somehow?
JazakhAllah khair
Saba
Wa ‘alaykum as salaam,
Sister Saba, I’ve sent you an email.
All the best, Ola
Salam sister,
I am interested in registering on this course, however I will be unable to attend the first session on the 16th October. Is this a problem ?
Can I catch up later ?
How much studying will I be required to do per week ? Being a mum of five I’m not sure whether I will manage to keep up with the pace, so please can you give me some insight as to how much work is required ?
I would consider myself a beginner, so would this course suit me ?
Jazak’Allah khair
Wa alaikum as salaam wa rahmatullaah,
Sister Sima, I hope your questions are all now answered following our telephone conversation. If not, please do feel free to ask away!
Wa al-Salaam,
Ola
As salaamu alaykum yaa ukhtee. I tried several times to submit the registration and I am having troubles. Will you email me directly so that I may share the difficulty/determine what the problem may be inshaa Allaah?
Btw, I have heard from others that the form has troubles if you try submitting it from your phone. If that is the case, please try again from a laptop/pc in shaa’ Allaah.
As Salaamu Alaikum sister, is the author of the book – Alan Jones a Muslim??
Wa alaikum as salaam wa rahmatullaah,
I do not know. He is Emeritus Professor of Classical Arabic at Oxford University, and his aims as mentioned in the blurb and the Introduction are “to enable readers of English to learn enough Arabic to read the Qur’an in its original language…language is the language of their daily prayers…is ideally suited for those Muslims who wish to learn Arabic exclusively for use in their religious and spiritual lives.” But there is no reference given to what religion he is :/.
Assalam alaikum sister.. Ive just paid and cant wait for the course to begin!
Id just like to ask when does it begin? Or has the first semester already begun, because i really want to start from the beginning
jazaakhiAllaahu khayran
Wa alaikum as salaam wa rahatullaah,
It will start on 19th January in shaa’ Allaah!
Payment has been received, but I could not see your registration form. Please fill it in again in shaa’ Allaah so your place can be secured!
Wassalaamu alaikum
Ola
salam alaikoum
BarakAllahufik for your initiative. I am very interested by the course. Just one thing the book is not included in the £120 fee, is it? If not how much does it cost ? and where can we get it ? Chokrane
Thank you sister. May Allah bless you.
Here’s the book in PDF –
http://aryabima.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/arabic-through-the-quran.pdf
Dear Sister, asalam aliakum,
I wan to join the arabic programme starting 19th jan but the timings are too late for me as I am in the UAE, so its +4GMT. What can you suggest?
Umm Adam
Salaams Ola! I just noticed that 19th Jan 2013 is a Saturday. Do you mean Thursday, 17th Jan 2013?
Wa ‘alaykum as salaam,
Yamina, the book will be provided in pdf.
Umm Adam, you will have access to the recordings in shaa’ Allaah so you can watch them the following day if you cannot make the course live.
Hass, I just came online to correct that! Yes Thursday 17th in shaa’ Allaah!
Salam alaikoum sister Ola.
Is there away to do it during the day when kids r at school ? i motivated but…
hi may allah add u more knowledge and im interested
Wa alaikum assalaam,
Yamina, the sessions are recorded so whoever cannot make the live sessions can access the recordings. But they still have to submit assignments and complete the online tests by the deadline, so I always recommend they listen to the recordings ASAP.
nasir, sisters are welcome to fill out the registration form in shaa’ Allaah and process payment and secure their place on their course at http://www.arabicgems.co.uk/quranicarabic/apply
sister, do have another one starting after 9 months? in september or so?
al-salaamu ‘alaykum Basmah!
At this stage I honestly cannot say, it depends on a number of other factors that I will only know once the summer has come and gone. I am advising anyone who is interested to try and do it from now, as I can’t promise I will run it again (although I really want to), and I don’t want anyone to miss out!
Salam alaikoum Ola,
Just one more question. Can we communicate during the lesson ? What about if we have questions ? Thanks
Wa ‘alaykum as salaam yamina,
Yes maa shaa’ Allaah of course. Students prefer to type their questions in the chat box and I reply to them, or else if you really want to you can put up your hand and ask over voice/video in shaa’ Allaah.
Asalaam alaikoum sister Ola,
My question or concern is similar to the one posted by sister Sima, as in I’m worried about keeping up with homework during the week. You answered her queries over the phone, so if you could please reply and let me know how much we will be expected to study during the week and the nature of the exams?
Jazak Allah Khair
Wa ‘alaykum as salaam sister Noreen,
In brief, the minimum homework every week will be to translated around 20 sentences (parts of ayahs) from the Quran based on the grammar topic we have learnt that week. To do this you would need to consolidate the rules and learn a list of vocab. In addition, you have to complete a short online vocab and grammar test (20-25 mins for both), plus write a couple of paragraphs on a specific topic.
I advise students to dedicate one hour each day, every day, at the same time of day, to their Arabic. If an hour is not possible, then 30-45 mins. One of these days will be spent on the translation, possibly another one on the research, and the rest of the time is for learning/reviewing the vocab and rules.
The end of term exam is similar to the weekly tests but longer: the vocab section is asking for the meaning of words that have appeared in our lists, and the grammar section is either translating english > Arabic or vice versa, or asking you to identify a grammatically correct sentence from a choice of 4, etc.
Just want to let you know that I am proud to see you doing this as my sister in faith. Finally something for sisters the let their knowledge grow in a safe environment.
I wished I could financially afford to follow your course. Inshallah in the future…
Wishing you all the best.
al-Salaamu ‘alaykum,
Jazakillaah khayr Khadijah, it means a lot. Please email me your situation in shaa’ Allaah and we can discuss things.
Wassalaam
Ola
Salam alaikoum sister Ola,
I would like to register but i need to ask you something first. Can I have your email please. Thanks
Wa alaikum assalaam
arabicgems[at]gmail.com