Review of Arabic Language and Language Teaching: Policies, Politics, and Ideology, special issue of Languages Cultures Mediation, edited by Marco Aurelio Golfetto, Letizia Osti, Brahim Chakrani

Structured into ten articles, the volume covers the diverse influences on Arabic language education, analyzing the ideological, political, and cultural factors that shape teaching, learning, and assessment practices. In the introduction, the editors Golfetto, Osti, and Chakrani, present the various forms and functions of Arabic and their ideological meanings, advocating for a decolonized and comparative approach to investigate Arabic language teaching. They underline how, despite the different approaches adopted by the contributors, it is evident that “colonialism and identity” (p. 9) are the key words that run through the entire volume. The issue of identity is closely linked to the diversity of Arabic varieties and to the ideological issues related to their teaching. Indeed, Cristina Solimando’s exploration of language tests in the Arabic-speaking world highlights how language policy and ideology intersect, revealing how tests often prioritize standardization at the expense of local dialects. This tension between standardization and dialect is also echoed in Zainab Shahad Marzouk Al-Zaghir and Ghsoon Reda’s work on the complexities of Arabic’s diglossic nature. They argue that Formal Spoken Arabic is unsuitable for beginners due to its lack of standardization, recommending a gradual introduction to Standard Arabic before expanding to specific dialects. From another perspective, Marco Aurelio Golfetto’s piece demonstrates how ‘political’ corpus-based teaching methods for Arabic can enhance students’ critical thinking and analytical skills. However, he also points out the scarcity of comprehensive Arabic political corpora, highlighting that “the door is wide open” for research on this topic “but the task ahead is huge” (p. 57). This lack of resources is paralleled in Alessandro Columbu’s critique of Western-produced Arabic language textbooks, with a focus on Al-Kitaab series, which perpetuates specific ideological and political frameworks. Columbu’s analysis underscores the need for educational materials that reflect broader power dynamics and historical contexts. History is central in Brahim Chakrani’s analysis of French language policies towards Arabic education where he traces the persistent resistance to integrating Arabic into the French educational system. Influenced by ideological and political agendas, this resistance has its roots in la mission civilisatrice in North Africa while nowadays sheds light on debates about language policy and national identity in France which oscillate between an “Islamo-linguistic-phobia” (p. 74) and a laïcité whit an “Arabic deprived of the very ethnic, cultural and religious references” (p. 73). In a different context, Nijmi Edres explores how Arabic language education in Jordan promotes Islamic values and national identity, comparing curricula from 2013 and 2019 to show how educational materials evolve to reflect shifting political and national priorities. Always analyzing ideological issues, Helge Daniëls describes how Lebanese news broadcasts navigate between Modern Standard Arabic and Lebanese Arabic to convey sociopolitical messages. The role of media in shaping language perception is further explored in Francesco De Angelis’ analysis of Arabic literature in dialect. De Angelis highlights the historical evolution of dialectal literature and shows how changing attitudes and technologies have led to greater acceptance and appreciation of dialect in contemporary literary forms. Finally, Abdenbi Khalil Lachkar’s paper takes to post-contemporaneity, examining the position of Arabic in considering historical colonial influences and globalization within a new and evolving technological Arab scenario. In conclusion, the authors effectively underscore the necessity of integrating ideological, political, and cultural considerations into the development of Arabic language teaching practices and policies. One constructive critique is that the volume could benefit from more examples of successful language teaching methodologies that address these ideological and political challenges, like in Golfetto’s paper. Nonetheless, the volume’s rich content and depth of analysis make it a relevant source for anyone involved in research on Arabic language teaching and policy.