Jordan: Intensive Arabic Language Studies (Summer)

Homestays

Staff and students gather for lunch at a local restaurant

The Jordan: Intensive Arabic Language Studies program includes two different homestays, in Amman and in the rural area of Badia. Homestays provide students an excellent opportunity to experience two highly different lifestyles, perspectives, and values while practicing their enhanced language skills. All host families are carefully selected.

Amman
Students spend the entire program period, other than the short time on excursions, living with a homestay family in West Amman. The homestay provides students an outstanding window into Jordanian urban life and culture. Most homestay families are middle class and enjoy high standards of living, while maintaining the customs of the typical Arab home. Students are integrated into their host family's daily life, partaking in everyday activities such as sharing breakfast, participating in family outings, and shopping. In some cases, students have the opportunity to experience a Jordanian wedding ceremony or other traditional cultural activities organized by the host family. The homestay in Amman allows students to better understand the life of a Jordanian family and gives them a unique opportunity to further enhance their speaking abilities.

Badia (Bedouin homestay)
Students experience a 2-4 day rural homestay in the Badia area of Jordan, living with a Bedouin family who is either nomadic or semi-nomadic. This excursion allows students the opportunity to experience firsthand the daily life, culture, and traditions of a Bedouin community, one of Jordan's most distinct and well known groups. Students travel on their own to visit their carefully selected Bedouin family. The excursion takes place during the fourth week in the program.