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6/19/25, 5:17 PM Miqyas Al Dhad Completes Arab World's Largest Field Survey Ahead of Launching First Comprehensive Scientific Framework to As…

Miqyas Al Dhad Completes Arab World's Largest Field Survey Ahead of
Launching First Comprehensive Scientific Framework to Assess Arabic

Literacy

Abu Dhabi, June 18, 2025: In a significant milestone towards enhancing Arabic reading proficiency among native students, Arabic
Scale - known as ‘Miqyas Al Dhad’ has successfully concluded the final phase of its comprehensive field survey. This achievement
paves the way for the official launch of the Arabic reading scale in the third quarter of this year, following an intensive research effort
grounded in advanced scientific methodologies. The field survey was carried out in collaboration with Ministries of Education and school
chains across the Arab world and involved the active participation of hundreds of educators and language experts.
The field survey encompassed over 110,000 students from 204 schools across 70 rural and urban areas in nine Arab countries, namely
the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Sultanate of Oman, the Hashemite Kingdom of
Jordan, the Kingdom of Morocco, the State of Libya, the Lebanese Republic, and the Republic of Iraq, reflecting the initiative’s scope
and scale. The field survey was administered digitally using tablets, desktops, and computer labs. Rigorous proctoring was followed to
ensure security of survey administration.

In developing the field survey items, several reading frameworks and standards were reviewed and the socio-cognitive framework for
reading (Khalifa & Weir, 2009) was utilized. It should be noted that the sociocognitive framework for reading has been used by
reputable examination boards such as Cambridge. The key components of the sociocognitive framework for reading comprehension
are linguistic knowledge, cognitive processing, background knowledge, and metacognitive strategies. In building the reading items for
the survey, a rigorous methodology was followed in terms of recruiting, inducting, training, monitoring and evaluating item writers to
ensure the highest standards of item quality.

The Arabic Scale is developed using triangulation scientific research methodology that integrates both quantitative and qualitative
analyses of multiple data sources. In addition to data gathered from the field survey on students’ reading proficiency, the second data
source involved the creation of a large Arabic corpus featuring over 70 million structures and words, derived from more than 8,000
carefully curated Arabic texts from various subject areas, fields and topics reflecting the language’s richness, culture, heritage and
diversity.
The third data source was via conducting a pairwise comparative study with participation from over 450 Arabic language experts and
educators from 18 Arab countries. In this study, participants were given two passages and had to identify which one was more difficult.
The data collected from this study was used to create rankings of difficulty for 2,000 passages. These were the basis for the machine
learning algorithms of Miqyas Al Dhad readability formulae. Pairwise study is a known methodology in the machine learning field.
Smart and Comprehensive Services / Innovative and Large-scale Solutions

Miqyas Al Dhad offers a comprehensive suite of smart tools and services designed to elevate Arabic reading proficiency and enable
accurate assessment of reading ability and text readability. At the Centre of it all is the Reading Scale, an innovative tool that evaluates
reading comprehension, empowering educators to assess student reading ability and pinpoint learning needs accurately.

Additional tools include: a validated item bank of reading items suitable for each school grade; a Smart Text Analyzer, an AI-powered
tool for evaluating text complexity; and high frequency keyword lists offering a rich academic vocabulary database for every school
grade. It also includes ‘Find-a-Book’, a smart digital hub that provides students, educators, and parents with measured texts and books
suitable for their reading levels and interests. Miqyas Al Dhad further supports educators through its innovative Reading Growth Plan, a
predictive system that monitors student reading development over time and delivers actionable insights to guide educational planning
based on individual needs.

A Scientific Reference for Arabic Educational Development
Miqyas Al Dhad marks a significant milestone in advancing Arabic literacy. By providing standardised, research-based tools, it enables
the creation of more effective and responsive educational curricula tailored to the needs of educators. Additionally, it provides
educational decision-makers and researchers with accurate data to understand linguistic challenges and devise sustainable solutions.

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