Arabic

Arabic is spoken by approximately 280 million people in 22 countries over two continents. It is the official language of the Arab world, which includes countries of the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf region, and is one of the official languages of the United Nations.

Since the end of the 19^th century, large communities of Arabic speakers have migrated to countries such as the United States, Europe and Australia. More than 370,000 Australians are of Arab descent, living predominantly in Sydney and Melbourne. Australia has strong relationships with countries in the Middle East, North Africa, the Gulf and the wider Arabic-speaking world through family ties, trade and education.

Arabic is a Semitic language, and shares linguistic and phonological similarities with other Semitic languages such as Syriac, Aramaic and Hebrew. Arabic is a scripted language and is written from right to left. There are 28 letters, which are all consonants with short and long vowels.

The Australian Curriculum: Languages, Foundation to Year 10 for Arabic is pitched to background language learners, the dominant cohort of learners in the Australian context. The Australian Curriculum: Languages for Arabic has been developed according to two learning sequences: Foundation to Year 10, and Years 7 to 10 (Year 7 entry). Teachers will use the curriculum to cater for learners of different backgrounds by making appropriate adjustments to differentiate learning experiences for these students.