A former Iraqi investigative journalist, working through a Bridgewater College student as his interpreter, is giving a select group of Bridgewater students an immersive – and free – introduction to the Arabic language.
Maged Mahdi, a native of Baghdad who now lives in Harrisonburg, Va., is teaching “Arabic for Beginners” as part of what he says is a personal mission to connect people and share knowledge. Textbooks and all other course-related costs were paid for by the college.
“I see a lot of people who want to learn Arabic, both out of a sense of curiosity and for very practical reasons, such as business,” said Mahdi, who was an investigative reporter in Iraq and publisher of his own newspaper, Arab Virginia News, in this country. “My first goal, of course, is for the students to have the ability to read, write and converse in Arabic on a basic level, but beyond that I hope to provide them with a better understanding of Arabic history and culture.”
Mahdi, who came to the United States as a refugee four years ago, said the course uses the “immersion” method, in which students must speak and write only the language being taught. Mahdi is assisted in his class by Bridgewater sophomore Aseel Y. Saied, a native of Jordan and resident of the West Bank.
Stephanie Wilson, director of multicultural services at Bridgewater, noted that a large pool of applicants for the class was whittled down to eight based on written essays about why they wanted to participate. All agreed to attend every session, which is held four hours a week for eight weeks.
“The college hopes to continue this program in the future,” Wilson said. “We expect there to be a great deal of demand, since a class of this magnitude for free is very rare.”
For further information, contact Wilson by e-mail at [email protected] or by telephone at (304) 703-3813.
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