As it is the case with all Arab countries, Moroccans do not use fusha (MSA) to communicate with each other; the fusha is mainly used in printed and spoken media as well as official documents. Just like other Arab countries, Morocco has its own dialect called darija. To make the most of the experience in Morocco, having a background in darija remains very crucial for students, professionals or travelers alike. The darija course is offered to help students and professionals master the everyday language of Moroccans in order to facilitate the immersive experience; this is because living or working in any Arab country necessitates a good background of its dialect as it contributes to a speedy progress in language proficiency and cultural integration.
Similar to Modern Standard Arabic, our darija course is divided into three major levels. The beginning level puts emphasis on speaking practice which includes acquiring commonly-used expressions and structures in order to be able to communicate and ask for information, do shopping, dine in a restaurant or greet the locals in various contexts. The intermediate level aims at enhancing the speaking practice acquired ines the beginning level through more complex role-playing so as to get acquainted with more complex structures and concepts in darija necessary to engage in more intricate activities such as booking accommodation or transportation or providing your point of view on various topics. As a result, students will more confident interacting with locals and make them more appreciative of the Arab culture in general and the Moroccan one in particular. The advanced level builds on the sound foundation built in the previous levels and aims at increasing students’ confidence in interacting with Moroccans and expressing their opinion about different issues in different contexts using advanced vocabulary and more complex structures.
It is worth noting that darija and fusha are complementing each other and learning one does not, by any means, affect the other’s learning in a negative manner. In addition to using A Basic Course in Moroccan Arabic as the major textbook, we incorporate other materials such as the Peace Corp book Moroccan Arabic.
