Reading Arabic harder than it looks: Israeli researchers

A series of recent studies performed at the University of Haifa show that learning to read Arabic calligraphic script is much harder that learning English.

The studies compared reading tests given in English, Arabic, and Hebrew, another right-to-left Semitic language also utilizing a system of diacritical symbols.

Professor Zohar Eviatar and Dr. Raphiq Ibrahim believe the greater difficulty stems from the visual complexity of written Arabic.

"Children acquiring languages other than Arabic draw on the use of both hemispheres in the first stages of learning to read, while children learning to read Arabic do not have the participation of the right brain," the researchers were quoted as saying by the school.

Identifying the number and location of such dots in Arabic is critical in differentiating between letters, and is a hard task for the right brain.

Arabic calligraphy contains a number of very similar graphic symbols. Diacritical symbols such as lines or dots and sounds represented by different symbols make it even harder, according to the study.

"The native Arabic-speaking child is faced with more of a challenge, requiring more practice and particular pedagogic effort -- which demonstrates the need for systematic professional involvement in the teaching of Arabic reading, especially for those who have learning difficulties," the researchers concluded.

The results of the study was published on the journal Neuropsychology.

Source: Xinhua