Page 8 - ALEF EDUCATION PR REPORT - FEBRUARY 2024

Press Release

Alef Education Collaborates with MetaMetrics® to Launch Arabic Reading
Scale to Boost Literacy Rate in the MENA Region

The Two Companies Join Forces to Build Lexile‐Powered, Arabic‐Based Solution to
Match Students with Texts

Abu Dhabi, February 6, 2024: Alef Education, a UAE‐based global leader in education
technology, announces a strategic collaboration with MetaMetrics®, the US‐based developer
of the Lexile® Framework for Reading, to launch an Arabic reading scale to improve the
literacy skills of approximately 100 million K‐12 Arabic speakers across the Middle East and
North Africa. The unique scale is set to become the de facto standard for Modern Standard
Arabic, just as the Lexile® Framework for Reading is now the standard for English, as ministries

of education in the MENA region strive to preserve and promote Arabic language and culture.

This innovative collaboration aims to provide native Arabic speakers with a powerful tool to
improve their literacy in Arabic, promoting a more effective and personalized approach to
improving literacy in the region. By leveraging the expertise of Alef Education and the
MetaMetrics® Lexile® Framework for Reading, the initiative aims to provide students across
the MENA region with the foundational skills they need for academic success and lifelong
learning.

Benefits of an Arabic reading scale include the ability for governments to identify and measure
students’ reading levels and progress over time, regardless of the reading materials used, by
comparing geographic regions, school districts, and individual schools using the same scale.
In addition, publishers, EdTech companies, and authors of Arabic language content will be
able to link their reading materials and assessments to the unified scale to meet learners’
needs for reading materials. It will be easier for teachers to measure their students’ levels and
create data‐driven plans for their individual development. At the same time, parents will
understand their children’s reading levels so that they can further develop and improve their
reading skills.

Recent data from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) shows that six
Arab countries scored an average of 406 points in their PISA exams, while the international
OECD average is 480. The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)
shows that eight Arab countries scored an average of 432 points in elementary school and
441 points in secondary school, while the global average is 500. The Progress in International
Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) shows that seven Arab countries scored an average of 441,
while the worldwide average is 500, underscoring the urgency to address the literacy crisis