Integrating the Genre-Based Approach into Teaching Writing in Arabic As a Foreign Language

Research on teaching writing in Arabic as a less commonly taught language is still in its infancy. Motivated by the dearth of research on the integration of the genre-based approach into teaching writing in Arabic and the absence of such an approach, this paper proposes a genre-based framework for teaching writing in Arabic. Building on conclusions drawn from recent research, it proposes four specific guiding principles. Furthermore, it offers a model lesson plan that shows an instructional sequence of how a single genre, which is congratulation letters, both personal and formal, can be effectively taught. Moreover, results of a survey conducted on a selected group of instructors of Arabic (n = 10) showed that they responded very positively to the proposed model. The guiding principles and the lesson plan are aimed to offer the underlying theoretical knowledge and a practical example for teaching this genre and other relevant ones in Arabic.