Learning Language at a Distance: An Arabic Initiative

This article describes an Arabic distance‐learning course initiative. The most common distance‐learning formats are reviewed, and justifications for offering such courses are considered. Next, the experience of instructors who have pioneered the field and some basics that need to be taken into account when developing distance‐learning courses are presented. The need to adapt pedagogical practices to the distance learning environment is highlighted. Finally, certain constraints—some language‐specific, others specific to the distance‐learning medium—and their impact on the effectiveness of Arabic distance‐learning courses are examined.