IGCSE Arabic

Cambridge IGCSE Arabic has been designed to help candidates develop language proficiency to level A2 (basic user) with some elements of proficiency at level B1 (independent user) of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment (CEFR).

The KS4 Arabic course is not suitable for beginners or students who cannot read the Arabic alphabet. Ideally students will have studied Arabic for more than 3 years. The course is designed to be interactive and engaging, with a focus on preparing students for the various skills required for the Cambridge International iGCSE.

Arabic is also one of the official languages of the United Nations. Similarly, other global agencies also recognise Arabic as an international language. For students wishing to study for any degree at Britain’s top universities, Arabic is classified as one of the most important list A subjects that students should do and pass at school in order to be admitted into a top British university. This is based on the recognition that Arabic is the key to understanding some of the world’s greatest civilisations and intellectual traditions. For example, the important texts written by the ancient Greeks in subjects such as medicine, philosophy, mathematics, rhetoric, physics, to mention only these few, were transmitted to the modern western world through the medium of Arabic translations and commentaries produced between the 8th and 10th centuries in Iraq. Mathematical terms such as algebra and algorithm come from Arabic. Similarly, the history and development of subjects such as medicine, engineering, astronomy, physics, and optics were strongly influenced by medieval scientists who wrote and disseminated their science in Arabic.