ASPECTS OF ARABIC TEACHING AND LEARNING

IN ELEMENTARY MADRASAH ON MINORITY MUSLIM INDONESIA

Ismail Suardi Wekke*, Ernawati*, Ujang Hudaya**

Paper Presented in
The International Conference Arabic Language Education and Literature and Islamic Values
between Expectation and Realization
Bandung, 11-12 November 2016

ABSTRACT
This article would explore the practice of Arabic teaching and learning on minority muslim of
Indonesia. There are three regions that allready explored, they are Papua, Minahasa, and Bali.
Teachers are required to be actively using appropriate techniques and methods to stimulate
students’ interest in Arabic learning and teaching by emphasizing on aspects which are not
different from other languages. In addition to language aspects, this writing is also presenting
Arabic learning scopes which make Arabic learning easy to understand by the learners,
especially by the beginners. Methods, techniques and media and approaches of the teachers
play active role in learning process in the school, especially in Arabic learning where those
all are supporting to achieve expected learning competencies. Arabic learning is inseparable
from social and environmental scope around it. There is public role should be foundation and
consideration continuously in the programming of learning system which will be
implemented. Environmental condition becomes one of dimensions building the society.
With inter-society meeting and building collaborations between them, social conflicts may be
prevented. This formulation will be inseparable part within running classes. Psychological
condition taken from outside into inside of the classes may contribute to cultivate the learning
process. Finally, it is a proposal to enhance the material of teaching and learning in
elementary school in adapting the condition of students. This material, besides using
demonstration technique, a language is learned very light and easy to be understood, while
the learning process is involving the learners to be actively using such method.
Keywords: teaching, Arabic, elementary, learning process
INTRODUCTION

Arabic language is Islamic World language which has a big contribution to world-

level improvisation and competition. This is not only in linguistic aspect and linguistic

science but furthermore, is also in the improvisation within methodological sector and

learning techniques. This statement can be proven concretely and factually in the process of

Arabic learning in where, recently, there are interactive-alternative learning techniques and

models are emerging and motivating students’ interest to learn Arabic language

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simultaneously and continuously. This context should be realized actively and creatively, to

make the learning process run maximally and integrally (Gallagher, 2011; Taha‐Thomure,

2008; Vassie, 2000).

In Arabic learning from the field of teaching, usually it is started from the lowest class

by presenting scope of Arabic learning, from basic materials that is acceptable by children

and easy to understand by introducing linguistic elements and activities where the students

should know and understand them two formerly. That is in order to that the learners know the

functions of the language itself. A language is not just involving a field of study but also as a

centered factor in intellectual, social and emotional of the learners. Arabic mastery becomes

an important requirement of the success of individual to answer the time challenges of

globalization era. Formal Arabic learning in Islamic schools is the primary means for the

learners to master Arabic language. This is intended to that the students can response

proactively various developments of information, knowledge and technologies (Durugbo,

2014; McCarty, Zhao, & Garland, 2007).

Through Arabic learning, students’ communication skills can be developed both in

spoken and written language to understand and deliver information, thoughts and feelings.

Thus, Arabic lesson is needed to self-development of the students to grow and thrive as

smart, skilled and Indonesian-personalized citizens and to develop knowledge, technology

and culture, as well as to be ready to take part in national development (Elyas & Picard,

2010). Arabic lesson is a lesson directed to encourage, coach, develop and guide students’

ability and to grow their positive action on Arabic language both receptively and productively

(Wekke & Hamid, 2013). Receptive ability is an ability to understand other talks and

writings. Whereas the productive one is an ability of using language as communication means

both in spoken and written manners (Abdallah, 2010). Arabic ability and positive acts against

Arabic language are very important to help understanding the sources of Islamic teachings

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are Quran, Hadith and Arabic books relating to Islam for the learners (Mohammed-Marzouk,

2012).

Moreover, Arabic language in elementary school is prepared to achieve linguistic

basic competencies including four language skills taught integrally are listening, speaking,

reading and writing skills. Arabic lesson is a lesson directed to encourage, coach, develop and

guide students’ ability and positive acts against Arabic receptively and productively.

Receptive ability is ability to understand other’s talks and understand writings. Whereas

productive ability is ability to use language as communication means both in spoken and

written language. Arabic language skills and positive acts against Arabic language are very

important to help understanding Islamic teachings’ sources are Quran, hadith and Arabic

books regarding to Islam for learners (Agerström & Rooth, 2009). In addition, muslim

minority rely on the teaching of Quran when they started to learn the foundation of Islam.

Therefore, Arabic lesson in Islamic elementary school is prepared to achieve

linguistic basic competencies including four linguistic skills which are taught integrally are

listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. However, in elementary level, it is emphasized

on listening and speaking skills as basis of linguistics, while in the intermediate education

level, the four skills are taught in balance. Meanwhile in the advanced level, it is concentrated

on skills of reading and writing, so that the learners are expected to be able accessing various

references in Arabic language.

ARABIC TEACHING AND LEARNING: ITS IMPLICATION ON CONTENT

In Arabic learning, it is interested to study what had become a concept of Arabic

learning though educational background just taught me religious education at general, since

studens studied in public school. Books and journals that they read encouraged them to know

and understand Arabic learning and entitle this writings by the Scope of Arabic Learning.

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Language is just a means. But in specific conditions it may be considered as political means.

Meanwhile Arabic language has become part of religious lessons in Islam. Moreover, the

choice of Arabic language development becomes compulsory and distinctive requirement. It

is solely on the view of that the language skills should be an individual capacity of Muslim.

So is the position of Islamic boarding school which always attempts to be part of people

empowerment. Structured learning pattern which is run in program may encourage and

motivate the students to get language skills. Therefore, road map is needed to develop such

Arabic learning program. Arabic language as communication tool in Islamic religious

activities, finally, considered as need, not solely as foreign language. This view leads Muslim

to learn Quran letters since childhood before formal study in elementary school, to get the

main foundation of Arabic learning. Absolutely this is related with Arabic learning. Since

childhood, Muslim children have been introduced to this atmosphere. This is called linguistic

awareness which leads to goodness. Like the characteristics of Arabic language have, Koran

has also become a distinctive excellence entity. The Prophet Muhammad when the Koran was

revealed in Arabic language was not the main reason of the use of Arabic language as Quran

language (Wekke, 2015; Yusuf & Wekke, 2015).

Since Arabic language became languages of Quran and Hadith, movements of

understanding Arabic language have been emerged as parts of traditions to understand Islam

(Wekke, 2015). The meaning of Koran is colored by the extent of understanding using Arabic

language approach (Wekke & Lubis, 2008). This can be done if an individual has formulated

such meaning using linguistics awareness since the beginning. However, the education

running is always emphasizing Arabic language on its scientific status per se, not as means

for understanding Islam (Al‐Rajhi, Bartlett, & Altman, 2013). Arabic learning has been

positioned as main activity. But to form a learning atmosphere and simultaneously chances

for the learners to master language skills become distinctive challenges. Mastering Arabic

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lesson will be a foundation to master other lessons. Arabic lesson is a supporting factor to

determine Islamic rulings in fiqh lesson. Simultaneously, Arabic language will lead the

students have ability to identify their capability of studying Islam more widely, not limited to

merely language proficiency. This position of Arabic language becomes a distinctive reason

to continuously attempt renewals to get processes which can achieve goals of learning in a

better manner. It is like the practice of Arabic learning in Islamic boarding schools. A

research about the desire to willingness Arabic language said that there are, at least, three

things are related to this problem of learning (Dean, 2014). Firstly, the widespread practice of

using I’rab which lets the beginners to face difficulties. Whereas the mastery of Arabic

language is not merely measured by the skill of analyzing words in sentences using I’rab

tools. By I’rab, when we are going deep into Arabic language, actually we are not studying to

use Arabic language, but it is about the language itself. Secondly, discussion about nahwu is

very detailed. With a consideration to the effectiveness and efficiency, such material is not

supporting the language learning process. Unless when it is used to go deep into Arabic

language in specific reviews like in department of language and letter. But for students who

are targeted to go deep into religious knowledge, it is a less proper choice to study Arabic

language with its detailed aspects of nahwu in the beginning level it will be overlapped.

Finally, textbooks used, all of them are products of Mid-east area. This means that language

used in the books is devoted to Arabic speakers as their mother language, not as second

language. Thus, it will ignore the existence of the different of language’s socio-linguistics

contexts in mid-eastern culture and Indonesian culture. Material relevancies in the books

become a problem which makes gaps between discussions in the lessons and the real facts

experienced in daily life. As a response to those three problems, Islamic boarding school

education introduces a modern term to be alternation of traditional learning. Using

communicative approach, it is taken as innovation to improve the existing Arabic learning

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process. Meanwhile the emergence of tendencies of making Islamic review as means to

solely implement concepts without going deep into the scholars views contained in heritage

books becomes required (Inayatullah & Milojević, 2014; Niyozov & Memon, 2011).

In Arabic learning, learning system and principles are very urgent for the teacher to

realize the learning process in question since each language has elements and skills which can

be seen separately and integrally, so that there are paradigm and phenomenon formatted and

called language. Language skills and performances are also varied in the forms of spoken and

written language, even there are receptive skills (listening and reading) and there are

productive skills (speaking and writing). This system is called integrated/separated system.

ASPECTS OF ARABIC TEACHING AND LEARNING

Daily real facts show that people are more doing speaking and listening. This is

reasonable since their initial lingual activities are listening and speaking as spoken language.

Speaking skill is ability to pronounce articulation voices or words to state, express and

deliver thought, idea and feelings. The listeners accept information through series of tones,

sound pressures and joints determination when they are doing direct communication (face to

face) and also speaker’s hand gestures and facial expression. Speaking skill is productive skill

which is integrated. ‘Productive’ means that when speaking, people use spoken language to

deliver talks about their thoughts, ideas and feelings. ‘Integrated’ means in the talks, there are

combination of number of skills to be components of talks, mastery of talks, mastery of

techniques and language performance. Speaking skills should be trained for students through

process of learning and practices continuously and systematically to accelerate the students in

communication.

There are two activities done alternately by individuals in their communication: being

communicator and being communicant. In an effective communication, a rapid changing

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process from being communicator to being communicant or vice versa is considered an

ordinary and usual event. There are two kinds of public speaking based on environmental

scopes: Formal Scope, that is, official scope which has particular formality and properness. In

this scope, there are relatively more stringent rules relating to clothes, situation, topics,

vocabs and speaking style which should be adjusted to the formal scope. For example:

peroration. The second scope is Non-formal Scope, that is, a scope which contains more

looseness in speaking where the situation is more familiar, the speaking style is free, the

clothes is unregulated, and so do speaking style and its format. For example: lecture.

The Implementation of Direct Method to Enhance Students’ Speaking Skill in

Conversation Section of Arabic Learning in Public/Islamic Elementary Schools

The implementation of direct method in learning and teaching activities in Arabic learning,

especially in conversation section begins from a view of that the most important thing in

language learning is speaking skill. To make it realized in every individual in language

learning process, especially in Arabic learning, teachers should be used to use Arabic

language in their interactions and as intermediate language in learning and teaching activities,

so that the students will be used to use Arabic language. (El Zahra Fatimah, 2004, p. 9)

According to Arabic learning competency standards for Public/Islamic

Elementary School, speaking competency (expressing information orally in the forms of

explanation or dialog about human body parts/a’dhooul insaan) is a basic competency to

express information orally using simple sentences about human body parts/a’dhooul insaan.

Based on these Competency Standards and Basic Competencies, goals of Arabic learning

for this speaking competency can be formulated, that is, students can perform conversation or

dialog about human body parts/a’dhooul insaan.

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The Scope of Arabic Learning

Arabic language skills and positive attitude against Arabic language are considered

very important to help learners to understand the sources of Islamic teachings are Koran,

Hadith and Islamic Books written in Arabic language. We can also see that the scopes of

Arabic lesson, based on regulation of the Minister of Religion, are directed to topics such as,

(1) in the level of Islamic Elementary School: introduction, stationeries, vocations, family,

human body parts, in the house, in the garden, in the school, in the laboratory, in the library,

in the canteen, hours, daily activities and recreation; (2) in the level of Islamic Junior High

School: self-concept, school life, family life, house, hobbies, profession, religious activities

and environment; (3) in the level of Islamic Senior High School: introduction, family life,

hobbies, vocations, teens, health, public facilities, tourism, Islamic stories, Islamic insights,

Islamic celebration days, Islamic figures; (4) in the level of Islamic Senior High School,

program of language: self-concept, school life, family life, daily life, hobbies, tourism, public

services and vocations; (5) in the level of Islamic Senior High School, religious program: al-

Koran al-Kareem, religious life, noble character, teaching activities, knowledge, trading,

recreation, world of Arab, Arabian people and language (Elzahra Fatimah,2014, p.3).

Success achievement of Arabic language skills is signed by some skills are as follows:

first, listening skill (istima’). Listening skill can be achieved by practices by listening

differences of phonemes and differences of phrases both directly from native speaker and

tape recorder. To understand forms and meanings of spoken words needs practices by

listening recorded materials and, simultaneously, watching series of pictures reflecting the

meanings. Second, Speaking skill (kalam). Speaking skill is considered the most complicated

linguistic skill since it is relating to the matter of thinking or thinking what should be said and

at the same time saying what is being thought. These all needs stocks of words and sentences

which are appropriate for expected situations and needs more practices to pronounce and

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express or state thoughts and feelings orally, as well as using lexical, grammatical and

semantic systems simultaneously in specific intonation. Third, Reading skill (qira’ah). This

skill includes two are recognizing written symbols and understanding their meanings through

some ways such as, among others, providing children with sufficient vocabularies. Reading

activity provides language input which is equal with listening activity. However, reading has

excellences over listening in term of giving more accurate linguistic items. Besides, a good

reader has autonomic property and may build interaction with Arabic magazines, books or

newspaper. This way of learning may provide more vocabularies. Fourth, Writing skill

(kitabah). Writing skill involves three things are: (1) Skill of making alphabet, that is, express

different sounds from other languages. (2) Skill of spelling, which will be developed to be

sentences modification, that is, modifying available sentences with other elements,

completing unfinished sentences or changing active sentences to be passive sentences, or vise

versa. (3) Skill of expressing feelings and thoughts though writings or usually called

composition. This skill can be achieved through practices as follows: (a) Summarizing

selected text and retelling it in written form using the students’ self-vocabularies. (b) Telling

viewed objects or students’ daily activities. (c) Describing an object or event in detail. (d) (4)

Telling things usually done by the students like riding bicycle and etc.

Arabic learning process using these communicative teaching materials is done as it is

without any artificial thing, so that the learning process is meaningful without verbalism

aspect of language learning which is difficult to be understood by the learners. Usually, for

lower class students, the scope of Arabic learning is started by conversation about

introduction using light and easy Arabic language to be understood by the learners like ‘What

is your name?’ while another answers ‘My name is Ainun’, and so forth. Practicing

conversation will make the learners who initially have less fond of Arabic learning to find

that it becomes interesting and makes them continue to learn.

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CONCLUSION

Arabic learning is inseparable from its social and environmental scopes since Arabic

language is not just a foreign language but also a language needed for, mainly, understanding

Koran and Hadith as Muslim’s life guidance. Understanding them two needs Arabic learning

first. Arabic learning tends to be less fun for its learners and even is considered as boring

learning. They consider that Arabic learning is only consisting of Arabic letters that are

difficult to understand, moreover for those who did not recognize hijaiyyah letters from their

early ages. Initially it was difficult to make the children be interested in learning Arabic since

in their minds, Arabic learning is closely related with memorizing Arabic letters and

memorizing Quranic verses, so that, they have been reluctant to follow Arabic lesson before

being introduced to it, let alone those who have not been taught how to write Arabic letters

and to understand Arabic texts in their environment.

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