For 17-year-old Elias, learning Arabic wasn’t just a step outside his comfort zone, but a way to get closer to his roots. Born in Germany to a Tunisian father, Elias often wished he could communicate with the Tunisian side of his family. He had been looking for a way to study the Tunisian dialect for a long time, but even in his hometown of Stuttgart, one of Germany’s biggest cities, he couldn’t find a school that taught it.
“The options were always for Modern Standard Arabic or a different dialect,” he recalls. “But those dialects are so different from Tunsi, and I just wanted to learn the language for my family.”
Elias’ search eventually led him to Tunisia itself. A friend of his father recommended WALI, so when Elias visited Tunis on vacation, he and his father stopped by the school. After the warm welcome they received from Wissem, Elias knew it was the right choice. Rather than spend the summer partying, as many of his peers did, he jumped on the opportunity to spend a month studying the language that would connect him with his heritage.
Elias began his classes with a mix of Fusha and Tunisian dialect, learning both the alphabet and basic vocabulary. For him, the hardest part at first was adapting to entirely new sounds, which have no parallel in many European languages. However, the small class sizes and diverse pedagogical tools at WALI kept him motivated in the face of these challenges.
“The teachers were always adapting to my learning style,” Elias says. “For example, I like to write down every new word I learn, so I was managing this big table of all the new words I learned each day. My teacher helped me review it and make sure I was writing everything correctly.”
Elias also appreciated the balance between book-based lessons and practical conversations.
“Some teachers focused more on the book, others more on conversation,” he says. “Both were really helpful, since I wanted to learn how to read as well as use Tunsi in daily life.”
Sometimes, Elias even surprised himself with his own progress. He was especially proud that he could express a range of ideas, given just a limited vocabulary and some creativity.
“When you go to little shops or restaurants or just ask for directions, you realize you can communicate with basic words,” he says. “It’s really useful, especially when you’re alone in the country.”
While Elias acknowledges the difficulties of learning Arabic—especially when it comes to the alphabet—he emphasizes that other aspects of Tunsi are actually easier than many other languages.
“If you compare the grammar to a language like German, it’s actually quite easy,” he says. “And it also doesn’t have as many irregularities as French, for example. The rules are very consistent.”
Elias’ experience at WALI went beyond the classroom environment—one of his fondest memories was when the director, Wissem, organized a lunch for students, teachers, and even family members who were visiting. Together, they gathered to share traditional Tunisian dishes and exchange experiences.
“There was delicious food, lots of talking with new people, and we made a lot of new friends,” he says. “People came from Italy, Romania, the US, Germany—it was great to hear about everyone’s heritage.”
Because of these close relationships with his teachers and other students, Elias feels WALI isn’t comparable to a traditional school: “at WALI, you don’t really get treated like a student—it’s more like a big family,” he says.
By the end of the semester, Elias could respond to questions and share small stories with his Tunisian relatives. After a summer in the Mediterranean, he’s happy to report that each conversation made the distance he once felt a little smaller.