QF’s innovative education connects students to their cultural heritage through Arabic language

Within Qatar Foundation’s (QF) schools, an innovative approach is being taken to teaching and engaging young learners with the Arabic language – emphasising how it is a pathway for creativity as well as communication.By combining digital technologies with active learning using interactive platforms, educational applications, and multimedia, QF’s educational ecosystem makes the process of learning Arabic smoother for today’s students, while reinforcing its connection to cultural heritage.As Yassine Ayari, a music teacher at QF’s Qatar Academy Al Wakra - who received the Distinguished Teacher Award at the QF’s Pre-University Education Forum 2024 - explains: "The efforts and initiatives undertaken by Qatar Foundation to promote the Arabic language combine authenticity and modernity, presenting the Arabic language and its teaching in a way that keeps pace with the aspirations of a new generation while preserving its cultural, heritage, and human depth."To give an example, he points to the Rasekh platform, an initiative under QF’s Pre-University Education providing high-quality educational resources that connect international curricula to a local context, supporting schools in implementing global education programmes that students can relate to their own society.It is a platform that Ayari has utilised. A graduate of the Sorbonne University in France and the Higher Institute of Music in Tunisia, since joining Qatar Foundation in 2011, he has looked to integrate local music into education, and, through curriculum development and research, link artistic performance to the preservation of cultural heritage."I approach music as both a language of expression and a science,” he says, "as it contributes to building a child's character, developing their imagination, and opening up new horizons for creativity and innovation through performance."Ayari’s project on Qatari chants became an educational programme under the Rasekh platform. Based on the ‘karaoke’ method, it allows students to practise correct pronunciation and performance techniques, relying on rhythm and melody supported by visuals. It also opens up avenues for students to interact with the Arabic language, and enriches their learning experience.Maryam al-Khulaifi is the mother of Ghalia Abdullah al-Muqbali, winner of an Akhlaquna Junior Award through QF’s Akhlaquna initiative, and an active Akhlaquna ambassador. And as she follows her daughter’s education path at QF’s Qatar Academy Doha, she sees how the QF ecosystem is making learning the Arabic language an experience that is relevant to the youth of today, while staying true to traditions and roots."It uses elements that are fun for children, such as exciting stories, interactive educational games, and visual clips that rely on movement, colors, and music,” she says. "This allows children to experience the Arabic language, rather than simply studying it. And integrating technology shows how QF understands the needs of today’s generation, who interact with screens and apps more than ever before – it makes learning more fun and more creative.”As al-Khulaifi says, QF’s 3D edutainment TV programme, Siraj programme, launched to help children learn Arabic in a fun and engaging way, added a new dimension to her daughter's language learning – presenting Arabic as more than simply an academic subject."Our experience with Siraj was very special. Ghalia loved the characters from the first moment, and she began imitating some of them and rehearsing scenes in her own way, which increased her self-confidence and encouraged her to speak Arabic without hesitation. This attachment to the program contributed to building a new habit within her. It was her desire to tell stories,” she added.