The Excellence Center in Europe presents two Arabic courses for Arab children in the city of Halle. The courses are focused primarily on teaching writing and reading Arabic to children between six and 14 years old. The young students come from countries, such as Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. Although they speak Arabic fluently, they require instruction in reading and writing.

The Arabic language course offered by the Excellence Center spans five weeks of interactive instruction at the child-friendly level in reading and writing Arabic. The children come twice a week to the Center for classes. The Center offers three levels of Arabic instruction, starter Arabic, and beginning Arabic 1 and 2, that are designed to lay a solid foundation in language skills.

Ali, from Iraq, has two daughters, aged six and seven years old, who study Arabic at the Excellence Center. Ali stated that it is very important to him that his daughters learn the Arabic language, and he added that he cannot ensure that he will remain permanently in Germany. It may be that his family will return to Iraq, so that he believes it to be very important for them to know their mother language.

Another parent, Salim, from Syria, has three sons who are six, 11, and 13 years old. They study Arabic at the Excellence Center. Salim expressed that each of his children should learn how to write and read in their mother language. He added, “It is really important for me that my children learn my mother language.

At home, I help and supervise their learning progress. I will send them to attend many courses at the Excellence Center in Halle”. He also commented, “One day we might go back to Syria to stay or visit, so it is really important for my sons that they read whatever they see in the street or also if they go to Arabic school”.

Rafat Shantir, co-founder and manager of the Excellence Center in Halle, commented, „ We offer the Arabic language courses for the Arab children in Halle to teach them their mother language in interactive ways, and we try to make the learning fun as much as we can. Students have a lot to do during the week, including learning  the German language, so if we do not motivate them to learn Arabic, it would be hard for them to do so.“

Rafat said also, „Since we started the Excellence Center in Germany, we always try to bring new methods and games to motivate and encourage students to learn, and we organize the courses in small groups of only five to eight students in each group.“