From Language Study to Language-Based Education: Experiment of the Master’s Programme “Modern Asian and MENA studies"

The Master’s programme “Modern Asian and MENA studies” implements an experimental approach to language training. “Our master’s students do not study Oriental languages during the programme; they enter it already as specialists and as people deeply engaged with the East. Therefore, a decision was made to move away from classical language instruction toward teaching core disciplinary subjects in Oriental languages – Arabic, Chinese and Japanese,” notes Elmira Elmanovna Imamkulieva, Academic Supervisor of the programme.

One example of this approach is the course “The Middle East: Regional Security System – Challenges and Solutions”, within which first-year master’s students apply Arabic for the first time as a full-fledged working tool. Andrey Vladimirovich Zeltyn teaches the course and Arabic serves as the primary language of instruction.

Briefly about the course:
The course focuses on a comprehensive analysis of political, economic, and environmental security in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, covering:

• the Arabian Peninsula and Iraq
• Iran and its regional policy
• Egypt, Israel, and the Levant
• the Maghreb countries

According to the master’s students, this format makes learning more integrated and closer to real professional practice in Oriental studies. Egor Babanchikov, a graduate of the Bachelor’s programme Oriental Studies, emphasizes that studying a core disciplinary subject in Arabic ensures important continuity in language training: “Non-language subject in Arabic is a highly valuable and effective experience, comparable to an academic internship abroad.”

Dalila Sabitova, President of the HSE Middle East Club, notes that such courses make it possible to work simultaneously with the region’s history, specialised vocabulary and current affairs: “This contributes to a deeper understanding of the positions of different actors and allows not only maintaining the language, but also improving proficiency in Arabic.”

Particular attention is paid to the development of listening comprehension skills in Arabic. Nikita Alexandrov emphasises the practical significance of the course: “We not only improve our Arabic skills, but also become familiar with the instructor’s professional experience and the finesse of the East, which contributes to the formation of future professional competencies.”

Ilya Semyonov describes the course as one of the few in the master’s programme where Arabic can be practiced systematically in the context of international relations: “The study of the region should be inseparably linked to the language, which makes it possible to understand the logic of politicians, economists and society from within.”