Getting Started

Move like lightning through the 3 stages of Arabic mastery: From “no clue at all” to “this is easy” in a few short weeks… and then on through “reading unvoweled texts like a scholar” to “understanding 80% of what you hear from the Qur’an in taraweeh prayers”, all the while studying part-time without having to quit your job!

(You’ll be reading books by al-Ghazali and Ibn Taymiya while
other beginners are still studying pronouns)

Is This You?

• Are you looking for the eloquence of the Qur’an to penetrate deeply into your heart and mind?
• Do you want to bridge the gaps in your understanding of Arabic in as quickly as 3 weeks?
• Do you want to go beyond the numerous lectures/conferences but don’t know where to go?
• Do you want an organized curriculum, with textbooks, punctual, regular sessions, a clear path and a beginning and an end-goal?
• Are you looking for a program where all lectures, notes, audio, and video are well-documented and easily referenced for your use?
• Are you looking for a program that already teaches the advanced stages of the language to dozens of students so you can feel safe that when you get there, it will not stop prematurely?
• Have you been raised here and can’t access courses in foreign languages? Do you constantly dream of going overseas for Islamic education but don’t have the time/money/freedom-from-responsibility to do so?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, jazakallah khayr, may Allah reward you for your intention and help you achieve it. At the Shariah Program, we want to be a part of your journey and share in the reward, insha’Allah.

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Here’s How We Help You:

The Shariah Program is a powerful online learning experience that literally rewires your ability to read and comprehend classical Arabic in the shortest amount of time possible so that you can finally understand and appreciate the linguistic miracle of the Qur’an. We pull this off using two key insights:

Reading and Learning Classical Arabic vs Speaking in a Modern Arabic Dialect

First, we focus on your purpose in learning Arabic. When most people say, “I want to learn Arabic,” they mean, “I want to understand the Qur’aan”. Instead, they end up in classes teaching them conversation skills which do not help them in attaining their goal.

More often than not, they find themselves spending valuable hours on some over-rated series of text books that teach everything but how the language works.

Sure, it would be nice to converse in proper Arabic, and we have within our program aspects that will definitely aid you in this pursuit.

For instance, we teach 50% of classes in the second year of the program through Arabic medium. Students are required to ask their questions in Arabic and also summarize entire passages in Arabic. The point though is that if one aspires to be impacted by the Qur’an as a pre-Islamic Arab was impacted, one needs to follow the same powerful system which has been in use for centuries since as early as the time of the Sahaba.

The key, then, is to turn attention to building conversational fluency at the correct time. Only after the dynamics of the language are properly ingrained should valuable time be allocated to this secondary goal.

You don’t want to speak Arabic fluently, and you certainly don’t need to get down and dirty in the details of a local Arabic dialect – you want to read and translate classical Arabic texts, from the Qur’an, to the commentaries that expound on its beauty.

Throughout the entire first year, because we focus on reading and translating, we need not spend any time at all building conversational fluency, and this allows us to travel faster down the path of mastery. Therefore, we focus on a balance that increases vocabulary side-by-side with grammatical and morphological mastery. This method speeds development so quickly that you’ll read and understand Arabic texts within the first few weeks of classes.

Students routinely report receiving a better understanding of the language in just the first 3 weeks of classes with us than studying multiple years at the university level. Furthermore, our program is clearly designed with a particular student in mind. When such a student watches the first few minutes of the first video in week one, the teaching style immediately resonates with them. Many have gone as far as stating that they have not experienced such an effective teaching style from any instructor before.

Measurable Milestones for Evaluating Progress

The second thing we do is keep you focused on milestones. These milestones are your checkpoints in the race to understanding the Qur’an.

At each of these milestones, we’ll keep upping the ante and requiring you to read complex texts very early on and throughout the program.

• After just 3 weeks, you’ll read from Qasas al-Nabiyin – the Stories of the Prophets.
• At the end of the 1^st semester, you’ll have already mastered 30% of the language.
• At the end of the 1^st semester also, you’ll be reading Arabic texts without any harakat – that’s right, no fatha, kasra, or dhamma training wheels needed for this ride.
• At the end of the 2^nd semester, you’ll have covered the best book in the world for grammar, and have already begun the study of Qur’anic balagha (eloquence).
• Shortly upon commencing the 2^nd year, you’ll have half of your classes taught to you in Arabic. You’ll be asking your own questions in clear, easy to understand Arabic.
• By the end of the 2^nd year, you’ll have not only torn through multiple books in Arabic grammar AND tafsir, you’ll have covered logic, advanced balagha, books on adab, and much more.

So, what truly separates this learning experience from all the others out there is that grammar and morphology (the two pillars of classical Arabic comprehension) are taught in the span of the first 6 months without relying on any text book. Instead, the major discussions related to both sciences are presented through the instructor’s own specialized teaching style.

The introductory reading text (Qasas an-Nabiyyin) is leveraged throughout the duration of the first semester to teach only the most broadly applicable structures. This is all taught in sufficient detail, only to be revisited in much greater detail via a 132 page classical unvowelled text in Nahw, which Shaykh Yusuf always teaches himself. He has taught the book more than 15 times. The task of reading the unvowelled text in the live sessions is placed solely on the students. They are expected to prepare the passages in advance and infer the vowels based on the rules taught to them earlier.

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Here’s What We Give You

With respect to content delivery, we built a beta version, testing it on hundreds of online students. Then we tore it down completely and rebuilt it from the ground up, literally from scratch, to reflect all the lessons students like you had given us. We took what was already a powerful system and bumped it up to the next level of excellence.

To make this long journey as manageable possible, we’ve taken the best tools and techniques available online, and we’re exploiting them to the absolute maximum for your benefit, such as:

Recording Course Materials to Suit Different Learning Styles

• All Lectures and Notes are Online as Flash Video Presentations: We understand that it’s difficult to keep a set time to watch the lectures week after week, so all material is recorded with the notes and viewable whenever you find it convenient.
• All Notes are Archived in Both PDF and PPT Format: In our classes, you can focus on listening to the lecture without worrying about note-taking because the notes are already online and downloadable.
• All Lectures are also Archived in MP3 Format: Want to listen to lecture s and live sessions while on the go? Just download it to the MP3 player of your choice and you’ve got the Shari’ah Program in your pocket.
• All Lectures are Professionally Transcribed: Do you prefer reading instead of video and audio? Download transcribed lectures to the e-reader of your choice, and you’re in business.
• All Live Sessions Recorded: All Live Sessions are recorded and archived online in the event students are forced to miss class due to scheduling conflicts.

Different Levels of Student-Teacher Interaction

• Live Practice w/the Instructor: Ever learned to do anything by just reading about it? Likely not – what’s required is practicing what you learned with a qualified instructor correcting you along the way and providing feedback specific to your needs. Twice weekly, you’ll meet in a Live Session to read, practice, and be corrected by the instructor.
• Online Support: You’ll be able to access Shaykh Yusuf for any questions you have through the forums. Responses most often come within a few hours after the question is posted. Senior students are also online to answer your questions as needed.
• Accountability System: We know it’s often difficult for students to manage studying Arabic while balancing the rest of life. For this reason, we have an accountability system in place where the students check in with the instructor weekly on their progress, allowing them to keep themselves on pace and get help from the instructor if they’re struggling or falling behind.

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How Do I Know If This Is Right For Me?

The formula is simple and straightforward – pray istikhara and then sign up for the program. You have 30 days to review all our materials without restriction. If our program doesn’t meet your learning needs, feel free to cancel out of the program, no questions asked.

Also, we encourage you to check out other programs before deciding on ours. Other institutes also have fine services and sometimes it is hard to decide until you take their systems for a trial run, just as you did this with our system. After all, you are the best judge of quality.

Tuition Breakdown

• Year One Live: Our Year One batch will have access to all materials described above for $50 per month.
• Year One Self-Study: We realize some of you want to study at your own pace and cannot commit to the live portions of our program. For students like yourself, you’ll have access to all materials minus live practice with the instructor for $25 / month.
• Year Two Live: The Year Two batch will have 5 – 6 hours of live sessions at $100 / month. At this stage, there is no self-study program

	Year 2$100/month	Year 1$50/month	Entry$25/month
Payment Terms	Monthly ($100)	Per Semester ($300)	Per Year ($300)
Weekly Live Tutorials	5-6	2	-
Study at own pace
Switch between levels without penalty
Videos, audios, transcriptions
24/7 Forum Support
Instant access
Content provided in advance
Content fully downloadable
Quizzes and tests
50% classes taught “in Arabic”
30-day guarantee

So, regardless of whether you’re the type of student who learns better at their own pace without pressure (you have no intention of attending live classes), or you want to join our live sessions and study alongside hundreds of other dedicated students of knowledge in a community environment, NOW is the time to take action.

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Ready To Join?

Simply click the button below and fill out the short form, by choosing a username and password. It will redirect you to PayPal, where you can pay through your PayPal account, or through credit card directly (most countries) if you do not have a PayPal account. See FAQ at the bottom of this page for additional payment options.

*Choose the top subscription option entitled “Online Course – 1st Year (self-paced)”

Please do not hesitate: Studies have clearly shown that if you leave without ordering, you’ll instantly forget about this offering… and miss out. Or you might remember at a time when we are no longer accepting any students.

In our previous start-up (October 2010), we were forced to close enrolment because of the overwhelming response. This will most likely be happening again prior to March 2011. Signing up now will give you a head-start with the material AND will secure your seat.

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Frequently Asked Questions

• What are the timings for the live tutorials beginning in March?
  Prerecorded lectures can be accessed immediately upon registration.

  Live weekly tutorials will be scheduled as follows:

  Start Date: Saturday, March 26, 2011

  There will be two, 1-hour tutorial sessions each week. Timings are in Eastern Standard Time.
  • Saturday or Sunday morning: 8:15–9:15 am (EST) &
  • Wednesday evening: 9:00–10:00 pm (EST) –or- Wednesday evening: 5:00–5:40 pm* (EST)
  (*earlier session for International students)

• Will the course materials be shipped to me, or will I have to acquire them on my own?
  Upon registration, you will have the option of ordering Mail-out packages directly from us. Alternatively, you may purchase the books from local bookstores or online from other vendors. As a final option, high quality scans of all pertinent books will be provided. The books you will receive in your Mail-out package from Shariah Program are listed below:

  1. Fundamentals of Classical Arabic, by Shaikh Husain Sattar
  2. Syed Abul Hasan Ali al-Nadawi’s Stories of the Prophets Part 1
  3. Syed Abul Hasan Ali al-Nadawi’s Stories of the Prophets Part 2
  4. Syed Abul Hasan Ali al-Nadawi’s Stories of the Prophets Part 3
  5. Syed Abul Hasan Ali al-Nadawi’s Stories of the Prophets Part 4
  6. Original Arabic text of Imam al-Zarnuji’s Instruction of the Student (Talim al-Muta’allim)
  7. Original text of Hidayatun Nahw to be introduced in 7th month (Will not be placed in international packages due to weight considerations).

  The one-time cost for the Mail-out package (good for the entire first year) is US $50 USD + shipping and handling (approx. $20 for North America, $35 International).

• How are the live tutorials conducted over the Internet?

  The Online Arabic class employs PalTalk’s Premium Secure Classroom to facilitate a fast and reliable internet communications solution for our students. It is a free and easy to use program that allows people from different locations to become a part of our vibrant community. With PalTalk, students enrolled in the North American, European, Australian and the Asian Subcontinent classes can learn traditional Arabic sciences first-hand from a qualified shaykh in the comfort of their homes. We have purchased a group license that supports a capacity of 100 students.

  Click to download PalTalk NOW

  Group Study Sessions

  Our virtual class is no different from an actual class as it allows students to receive the material and communicate their questions in real-time. We strongly believe in providing our students a real classroom environment by fully utilizing the virtual capabilities available to us. Our students can make use of our secure classroom to conduct their own group study sessions where they can collaborate to practice and discuss the course material among themselves.

• What are the system requirements?

  Minimum Requirements:
  Windows XP or Higher
  1GB of RAM
  12MB of Free Space
  Intel Pentium Processor or Higher
  

• Will PalTalk work properly with a Mac?
  
  PalTalk has a browser based version which doesn’t involve any software. This can be used by Mac users and works just as well.
  
• Is Paltalk completely free to use?

  The basic PalTalk service (all that is required for our purposes) is free for users residing in North America and most Western countries, as they sell advertising directed at users, allowing them to keep the service free. In turn, since we have paid a fee to secure the password protected room, this advertising then disappears. Hence, there is no need for the majority of our students to upgrade their accounts.

  However, since they are unable to sell advertising directed at users based in Middle Eastern and most Asian countries, they require such users to pay for the service themselves by upgrading their accounts to a “blue nick” which is the next level up. Otherwise, they will not be able to access any of the rooms. The cost for this, however, is minimal: it does not exceed $40 for an entire year. If you run into any trouble upgrading your account with PalTalk, please contact us.
  

• I do not have a Paypal account. How do I submit payment?
  For users residing in most western countries, payment can be submitted using your credit card without the need for a Paypal account. The option to do this is on the final screen. Continue proceeding even if you do not have a Paypal account.
• I live in a country for which Paypal does not act as a credit card processor. Do you have any alternate method?
  Yes. Please contact us, and we will provide you with a payment link which does not involve Paypal.
  
• Can I pay by cheque or money order?
  Yes. That is also possible. Please contact us for further details.
  
• Once I've submitted payment, how long will it take before I receive access to the material?
  Access will be granted immediately. You will receive both an email with instructions on how to access the live classes and a private message at the forums with links to download the material.
• Will I be automatically re-billed at the end of the first semester?
  No. You will simply receive a notice to resubmit payment through our forum software. At that point, you should renew the subscription. Otherwise, it will expire and you will loose access to the password protected areas of our message board.

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Navigation

• Is This You?
• Here’s How We Help You
• Here’s What We Give You
• Is This Right For Me?
• Ready To Join?
• Frequently asked questions