Let’s be honest for a second.
For years, Arabic reading classes have had a bit of a reputation among students. Somewhere between “wait… what does this word even mean?” and “why does classroom Arabic sound nothing like the Arabic people actually speak at home?”
And apparently, Ras Al Khaimah just decided to tackle that problem head-on.
A new independent evaluation has found that an early Arabic literacy programme called IQRA is helping young learners make reading progress equal to an extra 25% of a school year — which, in education terms, is basically the academic version of a glow-up.
The programme, developed by the Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation, is now preparing for a wider rollout across private schools in Ras Al Khaimah starting September 2026, targeting children from KG1 to Grade 1.
And honestly? The results are making educators across the region pay attention.
So… What Exactly Is IQRA?
Think of IQRA as Arabic reading lessons with less confusion and more “ohhh, I get it now.”
One of the biggest challenges in Arabic education has always been the jump between spoken Arabic and Modern Standard Arabic used in textbooks and classrooms. For young children, that’s a bit like learning one language at home… and then suddenly meeting its very formal cousin at school.
Not exactly the easiest introduction.
IQRA tries to simplify that journey by teaching reading step by step using structured methods focused on phonics, decoding, fluency, and confidence-building before throwing students into deeper comprehension work.
Basically: crawl, walk, run.
Not “here’s a paragraph… good luck.”
The programme was developed alongside cognitive psychologist Helen Abadzi and is rooted in research on how children naturally learn to read.
And surprisingly, it doesn’t require fancy tech labs, expensive gadgets, or marathon school hours that make parents cry into their coffee.
Most schools delivered the programme during regular classroom hours with just a few days of teacher training. Which is probably the educational equivalent of finding out your favourite recipe only needs five ingredients.
The Study Was Massive
This wasn’t some tiny classroom experiment with three worksheets and optimistic vibes.
The evaluation was conducted by J-PAL MENA, part of the globally recognised Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, during the 2024–2025 academic year.
The study covered:
- 83 classrooms
- 26 schools
- Hundreds of young learners across Ras Al Khaimah
Researchers randomly assigned:
- 41 classrooms to use IQRA
- 42 classrooms to continue standard Arabic instruction
And the results? Pretty impressive.
Students using IQRA showed stronger:
- Letter recognition
- Word reading
- Reading fluency
- Non-word decoding skills
Word reading showed the biggest leap, with students moving from the 50th percentile to the 58th percentile in that area alone. Overall literacy performance also improved meaningfully, with the median student moving from the 50th to the 54th percentile. Which may sound small on paper… until you remember these are foundational reading years where even modest gains can completely change long-term learning confidence.
“Arabic Is Not The Problem”
One of the most refreshing parts of this whole story is the message behind it.
Natasha Ridge explained that weak Arabic reading outcomes have often unfairly been blamed on the language itself. But IQRA suggests the issue may have been more about how Arabic was being taught all along.
According to Ridge, when Arabic instruction reflects the way children actually learn to read, progress can be “rapid, measurable, and achievable within existing school systems.”
Translation?
Kids were never the problem. Arabic wasn’t the problem either. The teaching method just needed a smarter upgrade.
Built for Real Classrooms — Not Perfect Fantasy Ones
Another reason educators are excited about IQRA is because it works in actual school conditions. You know… classrooms with busy schedules, different learning levels, tired teachers, energetic five-year-olds, and occasional chaos.
The programme uses:
- Large-font workbooks
- Sequenced instruction
- Echo reading
- Paired reading
- Choral reading
All designed to help students build reading automaticity and confidence without overwhelming them. And importantly, schools didn’t need to redesign their entire timetable to make it work. In 21 of the 26 participating schools, IQRA was delivered entirely during normal classroom hours. No extra burden. No complicated overhaul. No “please add another hour to the school day” panic.
This Might Be Bigger Than Ras Al Khaimah
What’s happening in RAK could eventually influence Arabic literacy programmes across the wider region IQRA has already been tested in classrooms in Morocco, Egypt, and Jordan, with early signs suggesting it may also help older students struggling with reading.
Hanadi Mohammed summed it up perfectly when she said:
“Arabic is not a difficult language if it is taught in the right way.”
And honestly… that sentence alone probably deserves its own classroom poster.
