⌂ Free resources 📖 Reader index
Modern Articles & Essays · Lesson 11 · Business, Work & Employment
مُستَقبَلُ العَمَلِ — ماذا سَتَختار؟
Mustaqbal al-ʿAmal — Mādhā Sa-Takhtār?
The Future of Work — What Will You Choose?
Feature article with embedded dialogue·Pearson IGCSE 4AA1 — Topic 7 (Business, Work & Employment)·~280 words
📄 Source, license & editorial notes

Source

Original passage written for the Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Arabic (4AA1) mock practice materials (Paper 1 Mock 9, June 2026).

Text type and topic

Contemporary feature article in modern MSA, Pearson 4AA1 house style. Two named voices: a university careers advisor (Ustādh Sāmī) + a young startup founder (Nūr). Topic: Business, Work & Employment (Topic 7 of 10).

How this lesson is designed

Body shown without tashkīl by default. Show-vowels toggle reveals the vocalised version.

License

© Aravoca — non-commercial educational use only.

0 of 0 lines expanded Tap any Arabic line to reveal translation, vocabulary, and a language insight.

مُلاحَظَة نَحوِيَّة· Grammar Notes

المُستَقبَل (سَـ / سَوفَ) — مُراجَعَة· future tense — review & deeper
Spec: future tense · basic structure (spec p. 17) · regularly tested in Q11–14
سَيَختارُ الشَّابُّ في المُستَقبَلِ بَينَ ثَلاثَةِ طُرُقٍ— Line 7 — "the young person will choose, in the future, between three paths"

Recap from Lesson 7. Arabic builds the future by adding ONE thing to a present-tense verb:

  • سَـ (stuck to the front of the verb) — for any future. sa-yadrusu (\"he will study\").
  • سَوفَ (a separate word) — heavier, more emphatic. sawfa yadrusu (\"he shall study\").

The verb itself stays in its normal present-tense form. Endings unchanged.

This lesson stacks the future tense for prediction. Notice how the writer chains several futures together to paint a picture of what's coming:

  • Line 7: sa-yakhtāru (سَيَختارُ) = \"will choose\"
  • Line 11: sa-yakūnu (سَيَكونُ) = \"will be\"
  • Line 17: sa-yakūnu… lan yakūna (سَيَكونُ … لن يَكونَ) = \"will be… will not be\" — a contrast between positive and negative future.

Stacking futures is a high-impact essay move when you're predicting how things will change — and the spec rewards it on Paper 2.

Watch for: never use سَـ AND سَوفَ together (sawfa sa-adrusu is wrong). For the NEGATIVE future, drop both — use لَن (see Grammar Note 2). And don't confuse سَ (future prefix) with سا (sā — part of a different word). The future سَ is short, no alif.
لَن + المُضارِع المَنصوب· the negative future
Spec: negative future with لن · basic structure (spec p. 17) · examiner-tested
لَن تَبقى الوَظيفَةُ الثّابِتَةُ مَدى الحَياةِ كَما كانَت— Line 6 — "the fixed lifelong job will not remain as it was"

How to negate the future. To say \"will not\" in Arabic, don't use سَـ / سَوفَ with a negation. Instead use a single particle: لَن. It comes in FRONT of a present verb, AND it forces that verb into المُضارِع المَنصوب (the subjunctive — drops its final -u).

So:

  • Positive: sa-yadrusu (سَيَدرُسُ) = \"he will study\"
  • Negative: lan yadrusa (لَن يَدرُسَ) = \"he will not study\" — note the final -a (not -u)

Examples from this passage:

  • Line 4: lan yajida l-khirrīju (لَن يَجِدَ الخَرّيجُ) = \"the graduate will not find\".
  • Line 6: lan tabqā l-waẓīfatu (لَن تَبقى الوَظيفَةُ) = \"the job will not remain\".
  • Line 13: lan tanjaḥa fī majālin lā tuḥibbuhu (لَن تَنجَحَ في مَجالٍ لا تُحِبُّهُ) = \"you will not succeed in a field you don't love\".
  • Line 17: lan yakūna li-man yantaẓiru (لَن يَكونَ لِمَن يَنتَظِرُ) = \"will not be for the one who waits\".

Four negatives across the article — all with the same shape: لَن + verb (no final -u).

Watch for: the verb after لَن MUST drop its final -u. lan yadrusu (with -u) is wrong; lan yadrusa (no -u) is right. For plural \"you / they\", the final ن drops: lan tadrusū, NOT lan tadrusūna. Pearson tests this every year — same-shape trap as أَن and لِكَي.

أَسْئِلَة· Comprehension Questions

كَيفَ يَصِفُ الكاتِبُ التَّحَوُّلَ الَّذي حَدَثَ في سوقِ العَمَلِ خِلالَ السَّنَواتِ الأَخيرَةِ؟How does the writer describe the change that happened in the job market in recent years?

الإجابَة النَّموذَجِيَّة

يَصِفُ الكاتِبُ التَّحَوُّلَ بِأنَّهُ تَحَوُّلٌ جَذرِيٌّ شامِلٌ، لا مُجَرَّدُ تَعديلٍ سَطحيٍّ. فَفي كُلِّ عامٍ يَتَخَرَّجُ مِئاتُ الآلافِ مِن الشَّبابِ يَحمِلونَ شَهاداتٍ ويَبحَثونَ عَن وَظائِفَ، لكِنَّهُم لا يَجِدونَ ما كانَ آباؤُهُم يَجِدونَهُ قَبلَ ثَلاثينَ عامًا. أَي أنَّ مَفهومَ الوَظيفَةِ الثّابِتَةِ مَدى الحَياةِ، كَما كانَت عَلَيهِ في زَمَنِ الجيلِ السَّابِقِ، لَم يَعُد قائِمًا اليَومَ — والشَّابُّ الَّذي يَنتَظِرُ نَفسَ تِلكَ الفُرَصِ سَيُصابُ بِخَيبَةِ أَمَلٍ كَبيرَةٍ.

الشَّواهد: الأَسطُر ١–٤

ما الطُّرُقُ الثَّلاثُ الَّتي يَراها الأُستاذُ سامي مَفتوحَةً أَمامَ الشَّابِّ في المُستَقبَلِ؟What three paths does Ustādh Sāmī see as open to the young person in the future?

الإجابَة النَّموذَجِيَّة

يَرى الأُستاذُ سامي — مُستَنِدًا إلى خِبرَتِهِ كَمُستَشارٍ مِهَنِيٍّ — أنَّ الشَّابَّ في المُستَقبَلِ سَيَختارُ بَينَ ثَلاثَةِ طُرُقٍ مُتَوازِيَةٍ، لا طَريقٍ واحِدٍ كَما كانَ سابِقًا. الطَّريقُ الأَوَّلُ هو العَمَلُ التَّقليديُّ في شَرِكَةٍ كَبيرَةٍ. والطَّريقُ الثّاني هو إطلاقُ مَشروعٍ خاصٍّ بِالنَّفسِ والمُغامَرَةُ بِفِكرَةٍ جَديدَةٍ. أمّا الطَّريقُ الثّالِثُ فَهو العَمَلُ الحُرُّ مِن البَيتِ — وهي طَريقَةٌ كانَت نادِرَةً في الماضي وأَصبَحَت مَفتوحَةً اليَومَ بِفَضلِ التِّكنولوجيا.

الشَّواهد: الأَسطُر ٧–٨

ماذا فَعَلَت نورُ في الثّانِيَةِ والعِشرينَ مِن عُمُرِها، وماذا تَنتَظِرُ في المُستَقبَلِ؟What did Nūr do at twenty-two, and what does she expect in the future?

الإجابَة النَّموذَجِيَّة

أَطلَقَت نورُ — وهي في الثّانِيَةِ والعِشرينَ مِن عُمُرِها — مَشروعَها الخاصَّ في مَجالِ تَطبيقاتِ الهَواتِفِ الذَّكِيَّةِ. وقَد بَدَأَت بِفِكرَةٍ بَسيطَةٍ وحاسوبٍ قَديمٍ، ولَم تَنتَظِر أَن تَتَخَرَّجَ مِن الجامِعَةِ، ولَم تَنتَظِر مَن يُوَظِّفُها في شَرِكَةٍ جاهِزَةٍ. واليَومَ تَعمَلُ مع فَريقٍ صَغيرٍ مِن أَصدِقائِها، وتَتَوَقَّعُ بِثِقَةٍ أنَّ هذا الفَريقَ سَيَكونُ غَدًا أَكبَرَ بِكَثيرٍ — أَي أنَّ مَشروعَها سَيَنمو ويَتَوَسَّعُ بِمُرورِ الوَقتِ.

الشَّواهد: الأَسطُر ٩–١١

اِذكُر النَّصائِحَ الثَّلاثَ الَّتي قَدَّمَها الأُستاذُ سامي لِلطُّلَّابِ.List the three pieces of advice Ustādh Sāmī gave to students.

الإجابَة النَّموذَجِيَّة

قَدَّمَ الأُستاذُ سامي ثَلاثَ نَصائِحَ مُرَتَّبَةً لِكُلِّ طالِبٍ يُفَكِّرُ في خُطوَتِهِ الأولى في عالَمِ العَمَلِ:

الأُولى: أن لا يَدخُلَ مَجالًا لا يُحِبُّهُ، فَالنَّجاحُ لا يَكونُ — كَما يَقولُ — إلّا في المَجالِ الَّذي يُلائِمُ شَخصيَّةَ الإنسانِ.

الثَّانِيَةُ: أن يَتَعَلَّمَ مَهارَةً واحِدَةً جَيِّدًا قَبلَ أَن يَجمَعَ عَشرَ مَهاراتٍ بِسَطحيَّةٍ — أَي أنَّ التَّعَمُّقَ خَيرٌ مِن الانتِشارِ.

الثَّالِثَةُ: أن لا يَنتَظِرَ أَن يَأتِيَهُ أَحَدٌ بِالفُرصَةِ، بَل أن يَبدَأَ هو الآنَ، ولَو بِشَيءٍ صَغيرٍ، لِأنَّ التَّأخيرَ هو العَدُوُّ الأَوَّلُ لِلنَّجاحِ.

الشَّواهد: الأَسطُر ١٢–١٥

تَحليلُ الكاتِب· Writer's Craft

Positive and negative futures, side by side. Throughout the article, the writer toggles between سَ-/سَوفَ futures (\"will…\") and لَن futures (\"will not…\"). The closing sentence even puts the two opposite shapes inside one sentence: al-ʿamalu… sa-yakūnu li-man yataʿallamu… wa-lan yakūna li-man yantaẓiru (\"work… will be for the one who learns… and will not be for the one who waits\").

Pick the closing sentence (line 17). Why might the writer have chosen to end with this matched positive/negative pair, instead of a single positive prediction? What does the contrast structure do for the reader?

📝 Marker notes (reveal after attempting)

Top-band answers explain what the matched future/negative-future pair does:

  • The pair forces the reader to choose a side. \"Will be for the one who learns\" and \"will not be for the one who waits\" are not just two predictions — they are two characters the reader can step into. The reader has to pick.
  • The IDENTICAL shape of the two halves (sa-yakūnu li-… / lan yakūna li-…) makes the contrast feel mechanical — like a switch that turns ON or OFF based on what you choose to do. That's the article's whole argument compressed into one sentence.
  • If the writer had only said \"the future will belong to those who learn\", it would feel like advice. The PAIR makes it feel like a WARNING. The negative half is what makes the reader sit up.
  • This is exactly the kind of balanced contrast (مُقابَلة) that Pearson Q4 / Q8 rewards. The grammatical decision (سَ + verb vs لَن + verb) does emotional work.

Analysing the writer's use of parallel grammatical structures (here: future vs negative future) is exactly what Paper 1 Q4 / Q8 rewards. Naming the structure AND explaining its effect is a top-band move.

💬سُؤال لِلنِّقاش· Discussion Question

Ustādh Sāmī says: «العَمَلُ في القَرنِ الواحِدِ والعِشرينَ سَيَكونُ لِمَن يَتَعَلَّمُ ويَتَطَوَّرُ كُلَّ يَومٍ» — \"work in the 21st century will be for the one who learns and develops every day\".

Which of the three paths (a big company, your own project, or working from home) would you choose? Why? And what will you start doing this week to prepare?

Write two short Arabic sentences in answer:

👩‍🏫 Teacher / Self-study notes

Estimated time

40–55 minutes for a self-study learner.

What to know before this lesson

Lesson 7 introduced the positive future (سَـ / سَوفَ). This lesson reinforces it AND adds the negative future (لَن). Knowing the subjunctive — the verb-form that drops its final -u after أَن / لِكَي — is essential prep for Grammar Note 2; لَن uses the same verb shape.

How this lesson maps to the exam

Both grammar focuses are spec-named structures examiners flag year after year: future tense (basic, Q11–14 staple) and negative future لَن + subjunctive (basic, with the dropping-final-ن trap). Paper 2 essays about planning / ambition / careers naturally need both — this lesson supplies the toolkit.

Link to the next lesson

Lesson 12 (Topic 10, Technology) takes up artificial intelligence in daily life. Grammar focus moves to passive participle as a primary structure, with reinforcement of the passive voice from Lessons 1, 3, 4.

Exam justification

Topic 7 (Business, Work & Employment) is on the spec; the future of work / career choice is a classic Pearson angle. Both grammar focuses are spec-named, with case- and ending-traps examiners test every year. The article's voice mix (advisor + young entrepreneur) mirrors what Pearson Reading-paper Text 2 uses.