Teaching of Arabic in France

At the origins of the teaching of Arabic in France

The teaching of Arabic in France is extremely old. The study of this language, introduced in Europe after Rome started to train the priests Maronites originating in Lebanon, quickly gains France which, as of François Ier, valley of the friendly diplomatic relations with the Ottoman Empire. It is at the 17th century, under the reign of Louis XIV, that Colbert decides to create a school of interpreters which permetterait to do without the local intermediaries, the Drogman S (of Arabic turjumân who gave in French " truchement"). the School of the Young people of Languages is created in 1669. The Republic creates in 1795 one second school, the special school of the Eastern languages, whose mission is to teach the alive Eastern languages " of a utility recognized for the policy and the commerce": the first three taught languages are Turkish, Arabic and the Persan one. This school always exists under the name of National institute of Languages and Eastern Civilizations. As of the origins, the Republic thus attempted to train Arabists.

The progressive massification of the teaching of Arabic

At the beginning additional training reserved to the diplomats, missionaries and soldiers, Arabic gains little by little his recognition like disciplines with whole share: in 1905 is created the aggregation of Arabic. The CAPES will follow in 1975. In the current of the Nineties, under the combined action of an international topicality where the Middle East cuts the lions share and of the increased visibility of the young generation of French resulting from Maghrebian immigration, the teaching of Arabic becomes victim of ideological choices and policies at short sight which create a feeling of precariousness at pupils, students and professors and contributes to give to this discipline the indication of a matter " with risque" where the outlets can widen prodigiously or be dried up from one year to another. Nevertheless, the number of Arabic students knows end of the year 90 with the beginning of the year a 2000 very big rise, in particular in the universities. Thus, the Arabic department of INALCO could record certain years nearly 1000 new registered voters.

The absence of comprehensive policy for the teaching of Arabic in France

A strong demand and which do not meet

But this passion does not know repercussion in secondary education, in spite of the initiative of Claude Allègre which decides significantly to increase the number of stations proposed with the CAPES and with aggregation. Indeed, job creations on the ground do not follow, the chiefs of establishments being extremely reticent to as well open Arabic classes in the underprivileged establishments where one fears as this language contributes to the ghettoisation of the establishment only in the colleges of downtown area where one fears as the opening of this option attracts in this college of the populations " with problèmes" (include/understand: of the Arab French of origin). However, the demand is keen. One evaluates today the share of the State in the teaching of Arabic to less than 15%. In other words, 85% of the young people and the adults who learn Arabic do it private or associative structures, often Community. Whereas one does not cease reaffirming the attachment of the State to secularity, the minister of education main road, which however has sufficient teachers, does not undertake more vigorously to promote the teaching of Arabic at the republican school. Thus, there exists a strong demand for a teaching of Arabic, a consistent offer since the policy followed by Cl. Lively and its successor allowed a substantial increase and a renovation of the teaching body. But this supply and this do not meet.

The mosque rather than the public school? Mistakes of the policies since 2002

Not very sensitive to this question, the ministries which followed one another since 2002 decided, rather than to sensitize the chiefs of establishment to this stake, to even reduce to close recruitment competitions of the Arabic teachers. In 2004, whereas the Minister for state education Luc Ferry proclaims the need for diversifying the language teaching, its services decide, made without precedent since the creation of aggregation and the CAPES, the closing of the two contests. March 16th, 2004, F. Lagrange, president of the CAPES of the jury of the Arabic CAPES and L. Deheuvels, its predecessor, sign in '' Libération '' a platform entitled " The Arab language, a stake social" where they draw the attention to the importance of a teaching of laic and republican Arabic and warn against the abandonment of this language at Community associations. In parallel, a petition entitled Yakfi (" Ca suffit" in Arabic) is launched by the Arabic students. The text takes again the same set of themes and also mentions the administrative long list of brimades whose discipline was victim during the years previous (closure of classes in prestigious colleges in the name of ideological reasons, combat permanent to obtain the maintenance of grants abroad etc). The petition obtains an unhoped-for success which largely exceeds the limits of the medium of the Arabists, collecting more than 2000 signatures in two weeks. '' Inrockuptibles '' (n°434, p.25) and Humanity are made the echoes of them. Vis-a-vis this vigorous reaction, the minister of education main road publishes an official statement qualifying the closing of the contests of " rumor completely infondée". However, at the beginning of July, the same ministry announces the closing of the CAPES. In the newspaper Release dated July 6th, 2004, G. Ayoub, L. Deheuvels and F. Lagrange, old and current president of the jury of the CAPES, refutes the argumentation of the teaching staff management which claims that 40% of the Arabic teachers would be in excess and paid to remain on their premises. However, nothing will make there and only aggregation will be open in 2005. The arrival in Matignon of D. de Villepin, more sensitive to the question, allows the reopening of the two contests in 2006 and 2007. But the teaching of Arabic does not remain about it less hard not touched by four years of constant reductions which divided the number of stations proposed with the contest by four (20 stations into 2002,5 in 2006) and consolidated the idea that the Arab studies are studies at the risks, with the unstable outlets.

External bonds

Two hundred years of teaching of Arabic at the school of the Eastern languages (Gerard Herd, Chronic Yemenis )
Where to learn Arabic in France?

current events of the Arabic contests

the site of the academy of Versailles contains many general information on the teaching of Arabic (Definition of the taught language, programs, documents teaching) as well as the list of the establishments of the academy teaching this discipline.

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