Index to Hebrew Study Aids
Syllabus for Biblical Hebrew I
Note that this course, especially this syllabus is a work in
progress. As it has not yet been accepted by a college or
university, it cannot be considered official or accredited. When
this course is hosted by such an institution, certain aspects are
subject to change, and this syllabus will look much more
complete, reflecting the ideals and policies of such an
institution. If such an institution is non-religious, this
course and syllabus could be reworked very quickly to make it
completely religiously neutral. Otherwise, the way it is written
will be appropriate for anyone who honors the God of Abraham.
Note also that the existence of this course and syllabus
does not guarantee that the instructor will be able to guide
every interested student through personally. One wishing for the
instructor to be present as a real distance-education instructor
must contact him and set up an arrangement. Otherwise, anyone
who has access to this material may go through the class as an
observer, doing the work and taking the mock examinations as a
method of self-testing.
Instructor Information:
Name: Ray McAllister, PhD
Phone: (269) 471 7422 (not after 10 pm Eastern Time)
Address:
8936 Grove Ave.
Berrien Springs, MI 49103
E-mail: raymcal@att.net
Course Information
Credits: 2 semester, 3 quarter (135 hours of work expected of
each student.)
Course Description
Overall description
Development of reading ability involving accurate, fluent
pronunciation of Biblical Hebrew
Working knowledge of the fundamentals of biblical Hebrew grammar
and syntax
Mastery of biblical Hebrew vocabulary (Mitchell down to 200
frequency).
Dexterity in use of lexical aids.
Mastery of the strong verb.
Course Format
This course involves Braille text materials that can be
embossed or read on a refreshable Braille display. Some
materials are in mp3 format. Lecture materials may also be in
standard text format with both Unicode Hebrew and
transliterations that a screen reader should pronounce with
reasonable accuracy. Drop Box, e-mail, and possibly Facebook may
be used for handling class work.
Course Vision:
Every student shall have a life-changing encounter with God
through the study of Hebrew.
Course Objectives
This is a basic, beginning Hebrew course, designed to take
the student through the material of Weingreen up to the weak
verb. The successful student will be able to
1. Experience love for our one, true God on a deeper and fuller
level. (Deut 6:4, 5)
2. Celebrate the beauty and intricacy of Hebrew from the heart.
(Deut 6:6)
3. Understand basic Hebrew grammar and vocabulary well enough to
teach another individual. (Deut 6:7a)
4. read aloud from the Hebrew text with basic understanding which
is commensurate with the degree of difficulty found in the
passage. (Deut 6:7b)
5. utilize appropriate audio, printed, and computer aids &
resources which will increase the student's ability to continue
using his/her knowledge of Biblical Hebrew in the future.
6. Apply to general spiritual growth principles like faith and
perseverance which are learned in proper Hebrew study.
(Deut 6:8a)
7. Synthesize a practical model for using Hebrew to deepen one's
knowledge and overall spiritual experience. (Deut 6:8b)
8. Employ simple Hebrew study, singing, and prayer in worship of
the God of all language spoken and unspoken. (Deut 6:8b)
9. Direct one's household with spiritual principles and truths
gained from study of Biblical Hebrew. (Deut 6:9)
Text books (All of these should be offered free of charge to the
blind under the Chafee AMendment of US Copyright Law from the
listed resources.)
1. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (Full complete volume of the
BHS or individual fascicles) The blind will wish to acquire the
"BHS, Pointed, Unaccented, with Shevas" folder from Bartimaeus
Alliance of the Blind http://bartimaeus.us or Optasia,
http://www.optasiaministry.com. Bartimaeus offers downloadable
resources, while Optasia offers a DVD ROM to mail with everything
on it.
2. A Practical Grammar for Classical Hebrew, Second Edition, by
J. WEINGREEN, M.A., Ph.D. University Press, Oxford, England,
Copyright 1959,Transcribed in English and Hebrew Braille,
originally by Hannah C. Jaffe, LA, CA, for the Jewish Braille
Institute of America, 110 E. 30th St., New York, NY, 10016,
1979. Revised 2013 by Sarah J. Blake and theBraille Hebrew
Grammar Project members for the Bartimaeus Alliance of the Blind,
Inc., http://bartimaeus.us
3. A Morphology of Hebrew Verbs AND Nouns, Compiled and Edited by
Sarah Blake LaRose, Based on, A Biblical Hebrew Reference
Grammar, by Christo H.J. van der Merwe et al., (Sheffield,
1999). Published in Braille by the Bartimaeus Alliance of the
Blind, 2014.
4. Larry A. Mitchel, A Student's Vocabulary for Biblical Hebrew
and Aramaic. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984. The blind need not
purchase this book as the vocabulary needed for this course is
included, excerpted from this book, in the lessons.
5. The Hebrew Bible, read by Abraham Shmuelof, available from
Optasia, the Internet Archive, by link from Bartimaeus Group, etc.
6. Hebrew-English Lexicon, and Hebrew OT with Parsing, From
Findit Bible Software, Amarican Bible Sosiety, C1994, CD-ROM,
Edited and Transcribed by Ray W. McAllister, Ph.D., and
available from Bartimaeus Alliance of the Blind and from Optasia.
7. JPS HOLY SCRIPTURES 1917 (English), originally published by
the Jewish Publication Society, 1917, available also from
Bartimaeus Alliance of the Blind or Optasia.
8. Transliterated Hebrew Bible, as made available to the blind
by Bartimaeus Alliance of the blind and also by Optasia.
9. Course materials as distributed by the instructor.
Other Useful Recommended Reference Works
1. Biblical Hebrew Vocabulary, Learning Words by Frequency and
Cognate, Prepared and Arranged by George, M. Landes, Society of
Biblical Literature, atlanta, Transcribed by Sarah Blake LaRose,
for the Bartimaeus Alliance of the Blind, 2014
Course Requirements
1. Regular Readings -- For each lesson, the student is expected
to turn in an mp3 of him/her reading one verse of the Hebrew
Bible. This mp3 is to consist of an accurately-pronounced,
reasonably-polished reading of the text, an English translation,
and a comment on the experience. Sometimes the lesson will have
a verse assigned to read, and other times, the student may choose
any verse desired. It is understood that, especially at the
beginning, students will rely heavily on Shmuelof for
pronunciation and the JPS Bible for translation. Comments,
especially at the beginning, may be as simple as, "I'm still
struggling with silent and vocal shevas." (4 points for the
reading, 4 points for the translation, and 2 points for the
comment.) A forum may be established via Drop Box for students
to post readings. In this case, an additional 2 points will be
given, for positive feedback notes made to other students. (1
point each.) Only the instructor is permitted to provide
unsolicited negative feedback concerning readings, and such
feedback is generally limited to one comment of improvement per
reading.
2. Regular Exercises -- With each lesson, exercises are
assigned. Many times they will be from the text book, but
sometimes the instructor may assign an alternative exercise such
as practicing transcribing a brief passage by slow, oral
dictation from an MP3. Assignments are generally graded with
emphasis on mercy. (10 points per lesson)
3. Quizzes. -- Each lesson contains a brief quiz. Quizzes
sometimes could be oral, via mp3, or written, with Braille
Hebrew. Vocabulary portions mainly contain the recent words, but
have some comprehensive words also. Translation will be from or
very similar to exercises from the text book for which answers
are not provided by the instructor. (10 points per quiz.)
4. Examinations -- For Parts One and Two of this course, the
student will take triterm examinations, spaced about every five
lessons and covering course material and vocabulary. These
examinations are to be taken in a closed-book environment where
one will not be allowed to bring any written material for the
class. Examinations may include mp3 portions for oral testing and
Braille portions for written testing. Mock examinations are
provided to the student in the lessons before the examinations.
No credit is given for taking the mock examinations, but one may
take them and consult the answer keys provided for guidance as to
how to prepare.
COURSE POLICIES AND GRADING
In addition, because of the research nature of this course,
students are encouraged to keep a log of roughly how many hours a
week they spend. This helps the instructor know how much work is
actually required of people. Points are not given for this. It
is simply something the student can do to help the instructor and
to offer in exchange for the fact that this course is offered
free of charge.
Academic Honesty.
"Honesty in all activities of life is important to the
integrity of every Christian and every trustworthy citizen.
In this experimental course, dishonesty not only hurts the
student who does not gain an accurate picture of his/her
progress, but also hurts the research project. It must be
determined that a blind or visually impaired can successfully
take this course and learn Hebrew with good proficiency. This
cannot be done if students copy answers, bring material to
examinations that is not permitted, plagiarize, or do any other
dishonest activity. Since this is not yet offered for credit,
the student will not be hurt in any way, even by a failing grade.
Such a grade will only show the course's inability to properly
function.
Policy Concerning Quitting
In this research version of the class, there is no way to
penalize someone for quitting. Anyone taking this course,
though, is honor-bound to agree to the following:
If a challenge arises that the student feels makes the
course impossible to finish, the student is to first notify the
instructor about the challenge and allow a few days for the
instructor to determine if a plan can be developed to overcome
the challenge. The instructor and student can then communicate
about how to deal with the challenge, and a decision will be reached
in the best interest of the student. Ultimately, if the student
chooses to quit, he/she is to write an e-mail to the instructor
explaining in helpful detail why it is necessary to quit. It
should be noted that since this is a self-paced course, becoming
overwhelmed with work load may simply indicate that the student
should slow down. Whatever happens, the instructor needs to know
what types of obstacles may arise for research purposes. It also
may be advisable for a student to inform a loved one as to how to
contact the instructor should death or catastrophic illness
befall the student. Whatever happens, it would be considered
extremely discourteous for a student to simply disappear without
leaving any information as to why.
Special Accommodations
If you qualify for accommodations under the American
Disabilities Act, please see the instructor as soon as
possible for referral and assistance in arranging such
accommodations.
Grading
Course grades will be weighted based on the following requirements:
Course Requirement -- % of Grade
Oral readings -- 10%
Text book exercises -- 10%
Quizzes-- 10%
Exam I -- 10%
Exam II -- 20%
Comprehensive Final Exam -- 40%
Letter grades are based on the following percentages:
Percentage -- Letter Grade. Percentage -- Letter Grade
100 - 94 % -- A 78 - 76 % -- C+
93 - 91 % -- A- 75 - 71 % -- C
90 - 87 % -- B+ 70 - 68 % -- C-
86 - 82 % -- B 67 - 57 % -- D
81 - 79 % -- B- 56% and below -- F
The instructor may choose to adjust grades upward based on
the difficulty of a given component or natural break in scores.
One may earn extra credit points for memorizing a block of
up to five consecutive verses in Hebrew from the Bible. (1 point
for each verse) The memorizing test is included with the final
examination.
Completion
When successfully completing this course, the student will
receive from the instructor a certificate noting such with the
student's grade. Even though this course is not offered for
credit yet, such a certificate may still have personal value, at
least.