Article: High School Kids Take Arabic in Hawaii

From http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/20110221_High_school_kids_take_Arabic.html

High school kids take Arabic
Three nonprofit groups fund language lessons that students find timely due to Mideast events
By Susan Essoyan
February 21, 2011

After just four months in the first Arabic-language class offered in a Hawaii high school, the Adly Mirza’s students are speaking, singing and even writing the swirling script of the Arab world, learning from each mistake along the way. With news from Egypt taking center stage, the students are able to make out some Arabic words on signs appearing in television reports.

Students earn social studies elective credit for the course, Arabic Language and Global Leadership, held after school on the Ewa Beach campus with support from three nonprofits. The curriculum was created by OneWorld Now! of Seattle, which promotes strategic languages and leadership for underserved youth. The Pacific and Asian Affairs Council administers the program in Hawaii, and it is funded by the Qatar Foundation International. The class meets three times a week, twice for Arabic lessons and once for leadership training provided by PAAC.

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