The Roundup: News and Analysis in Publishing/Academia from the Arab World
News and stories
with a focus on the publishing industry, education, and technology from across
the Arab world.
Gaza’s Academics Face Censorship in Classroom
By Asmaa
Al-Ghoul (Al-Monitor)
"Previously, the Israeli security department
used to monitor academic freedoms, while today the Palestinian security
apparatus [has taken on this role]," Dr. Atef Abu Seif, an academic in
Gaza, told Al-Monitor. According to
the article, academic freedom in Gaza is in danger of being encroached upon by
politics and the Hamas-led government, as some academics and university
professors have been restricted of saying certain words in classrooms over fear
of being too provocative. It is not only professors who are being restricted,
however, as students are also being monitored. Former student Muhannad Abdul
Bari told Al-Monitor that he was
called into his university’s security department and told that his activities
were being monitored after comments he made in a classroom discussion about
“the Islamic state.”
The Arab World’s
Tangled Linguistic Landscape
Ursula Lindsey (Al-Fanar)
Language is an integral part of education, but how language is interwoven with
education in the Arab world is becoming complicated. Classical Arabic, fusha,
is being disregarded as the main platform for learning, and is being replaced
by local Arabic dialects or sometimes English. Ursula Lindsey writes that more
and more students are becoming less familiar with classical Arabic and their
ability to write and comprehend the language is in a downward spiral. This
partially has to do with the way it is taught and the poor quality of education
systems across the Arab world. In addition, with more students attending
foreign language schools or being taught in English, there is also fear that
the classic Arabic language is in danger of being jeopardized amongst Arab
youth.
Feast of the written word in UAE
By Cheryl
Robertson (Gulf News)
The Abu Dhabi International Book Fair hosts its 23rd gathering of
authors, poets, and musicians to celebrate culture, literature, and traditions
of the GCC countries. More than 500,000 titles from the Gulf region will be on
display, and the exhibition expects a significant growth in attendance and will
accommodate exhibitors from over 50 countries that will feature a range of 30
different languages. ADIBF director Jumaa Al Qubaisi told Gulf News that
the event is becoming one of the fastest growing publishing events in the
region. The exhibit will feature panel discussions, readings, talks, and
performances by authors and literary pioneers from the Middle East and beyond.
Professor advocates higher profile for Arab science
By John
Henzell (The National)
Iraqi-born British academic Jim Al-Khalili, author of the book Pathfinders:
The Golden Age of Arabic Science, will
speak at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair with the aim of reminding
audiences and the world of the Arab world’s history and its pioneers in
scientific research and knowledge production. “It always saddens me when I am
reminded that so many in the Arab world, and the wider Islamic world, are
ignorant of the scientific achievements of their ancestors a millennium ago,”
Al-Khalili told The National.
Al-Khalili claims that Abu Dhabi may become the new mantel for the Arab
publishing world, due to its growing significance as an international center,
replacing what Cairo and Beirut used to be.
Comments