Simplification of Arabic Masterpieces for Extensive Reading

In response to the severe dearth of graded reader fiction in Arabic and the absence of any scale of simplification, the main objective of the Simplification of Arabic Masterpieces for Extensive Reading (SAMER) project at New York Unviersity Abu Dhabi is to create a standard for the simplification of modern fiction in Arabic to school-age learners and to use this standard to simplify a number of Arabic fiction masterpieces.

Intended Timeline

• build a corpus of Arabic texts used in official school curricula;
• analyze it for features of text difficulty using computational methods and tools;
• generate a Graded Reader Scale (GRS) mirroring readability levels in based on school curricula to assist in the simplification process; and
• attract writing talents from around the Arab World to simplify selected works in Arabic fiction according to our GRS levels and guidelines.