Madrasa - Learning to Communicate

What Madrasa - Learning to Communicate does

Madrasa - Learning to Communicate ("Madrasa - School for Arabic") is an Israeli non-profit organization (registered amuta No. 580616498) founded in 2017 and headquartered at 39 Ramban Street, Jerusalem. The organization addresses a documented gap: roughly 95% of Jewish Israelis cannot communicate in spoken Arabic despite Arabic being the native language of about 22% of the Israeli population. Its core product is a free online campus at madrasafree.com offering MOOC-style spoken-Arabic courses, supported by an in-house content library (the largest spoken-Arabic content library in Israel), a mobile app co-developed with the Technion, and the largest spoken Arabic-Hebrew dictionary in Israel (~12,000 monthly users). Distribution extends to podcast/audio on Spotify (500,000+ listeners; 22,500+ monthly downloads), YouTube, and daily social-media publishing across Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, generating approximately 200,000 monthly impressions and 1,000,000+ annual reach.

Name

Madrasa - Learning to Communicate

Legal name

Madrasa - School for Arabic (Registered Amuta (NPO))

Website

https://madrasafree.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Madrasa - Learning to Communicate is an Israeli non-profit teaching spoken Arabic to Jewish Israelis via a free online platform with 100,000+ registered students, complemented by paid Zoom and in-person courses, a mobile app, dictionary, and customized enterprise training for government, healthcare, and corporate clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Language Education Services

NAICS

Language Schools (61163), Language Schools (611630), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Online Tutoring, Conversation Exchange & Language Coaching Platforms (EDAFAOAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Live Online Language Tutoring & Small-Group Classes (EDAMAFAD), In-Person Language Tutoring & Small-Group Classes (EDAMAFAE), Specialized Language Immersion (Medical, Legal, Hospitality, Aviation) (EDAIAEAJ)

Keywords

• Spoken Arabic education
• Online language learning
• Blended learning platform
• Arabic-Hebrew dictionary
• Corporate language training

Headquarters

HQ city

Jerusalem

HQ country

Israel

HQ region

Middle East

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Free Online Courses: Core offering is completely free to all users. Funded through donations and grants from foundations and government bodies.
2. Paid Zoom Courses: Instructor-led group courses via Zoom: 12 sessions at ₪870 (₪290/month), 24 academic hours over 18 hours of instruction. Practice sessions available for ₪240 for 4 sessions.
3. Summer Intensive Programs: 3-week Arabic marathon with 4 days/week, 5 hours/day. Pricing varies from ₪1,200 (one week) to ₪2,700 (full three weeks). Locations in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
4. Corporate and Organizational Courses: Hybrid courses for organizations, businesses, and community groups with subsidized pricing. Contact-based pricing for enterprise clients.
5. Donations and Grants: Nonprofit funding from foundations (Leichtag, Irving Harris, Rayne), government bodies (Mifal HaPayis), and individual donors. Tax-deductible donations under Israeli Section 46.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Madrasa - Learning to Communicate is a non-profit social, educational, and technological organization that teaches spoken Arabic to Hebrew speakers in Israel. Its core offering is a free online Arabic learning campus supported by a learning management system with MOOC-style courses, a spoken Arabic-Hebrew dictionary, podcasts, and a mobile app. Paid offerings include instructor-led Zoom courses, in-person flipped-classroom courses, organizational training, medical team courses, school programs, and a 3-week summer intensive immersion program, all using a blended learning model that combines online self-study with live conversation practice.

Product overview

Madrasa - Learning to Communicate is a non-profit social, educational, and technological organization offering free and paid spoken Arabic language learning across Israel. The core offering consists of a free online campus (courses.madrasafree.com) with 4 MOOC-style courses, a mobile app developed with the Technion, the largest spoken Arabic-Hebrew dictionary (~12,000 monthly users), and Spotify podcast content (500,000+ listeners). Paid offerings include Zoom-based live courses at 5 levels (Levels 01-05, ₪870 for 12 sessions), in-person flipped-classroom courses nationwide, group practice sessions, organizational courses, medical team courses, community center courses, and a school program for grades 5-8 (34 lessons). A summer intensive immersion program (3 weeks, 4 days/week, 5 hours/day) is also offered. The platform uses a blended learning model combining online self-study with instructor-led practice sessions. Specialized projects include Ma'alam (teacher training) and Bunya (communication/social impact).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Madrasa Online Campus (קמפוס דיגיטלי) Free MOOC-style online campus with LMS containing hundreds of videos, thousands of exercises, discussion forums, and educational games across 4 online Arabic courses. Serves as the digital home for Arabic studies in Israel.
• Madrasa Mobile Application Mobile app co-developed with the Technion that allows learners to study spoken Arabic courses and practice conversational and communication skills on mobile devices.
• Madrasa Dictionary (מילון מדרסה) The largest spoken Arabic-Hebrew dictionary in Israel, regularly updated, with approximately 12,000 monthly Israeli users. Available as a standalone reference tool for Hebrew speakers learning colloquial Arabic.
• Madrasa Spotify Podcasts Podcast content on Spotify delivering spoken Arabic lessons in audio format, with over 500,000 Israeli listeners and 22,500+ monthly downloads.
• Zoom Courses (קורסים בזום) Live instructor-led group courses delivered via Zoom in a blended learning format combining online self-study with weekly 90-minute group sessions. Available at 5 levels (01-05) for 12 sessions, priced at ₪870 per course.
• In-Person Courses (קורסים פרונטליים) Face-to-face flipped-classroom courses available in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Herzliya, Ramat Gan, Ra'anana, Givatayim, and additional cities, combining in-class practice sessions with a Madrasa teacher and independent online study.
• Summer Intensive Program (אולפן קיץ) Intensive 3-week Arabic immersion program with 4 days per week and 5 hours per day, offered in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Covers beginner (Level 01), intermediate (Level 02), and advanced conversation practice.
• Organizational Courses (קורסים במשרד) Hybrid Arabic courses designed for public sector organizations, businesses, and corporate clients. Delivered in blended format combining online self-study with on-site instructor-led practice at the client's location.
• Medical Team Courses (קורסים לצוותים רפואיים) Specialized spoken Arabic courses designed for medical professionals to improve communication with Arab patients and colleagues, delivered in partnership with the Israel Medical Association.
• School Program (לומדים לתקשר בבית הספר) A 34-lesson program for elementary and middle school students (grades 5-8), delivered by Madrasa teachers within school hours over a semester or full academic year using the Proficiency Approach focusing on conversational skills, vocabulary, listening, and expression.
• Community Center Courses (קורסים בקהילה) Arabic courses delivered through city municipalities, community centers (matnasim), and leisure centers across Israel, making spoken Arabic accessible at the neighborhood level.
• Free Trial Lesson (שיעור ניסיון בחינם) Free introductory Arabic lesson with a Madrasa teacher, allowing prospective students to experience the learning format before committing to a paid Zoom, in-person, or organizational course.
• Group Practice Sessions (מפגשי תרגול) Standalone 4-session weekly practice groups of 90 minutes each, focused on pronunciation correction, vocabulary retrieval, and conversational 'ping-pong' skills, priced at ₪240 for the four sessions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 95% of Jewish Israelis cannot communicate in Arabic despite 22% of population speaking it natively
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• IDC Herzliya (Interdisciplinary Center)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic institution collaboration for educational programs and research.
• National Student UnioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational program 'Speaking Arabic' where Arab university students teach thousands of Jewish students in subsidized courses for stipends.
• Israeli Government MinistriescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOver 10 governmental ministries participating in public servant Arabic training programs for better service delivery.
• Teacher's UnionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for teacher training and Arabic education programs.
• Israel Medical AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Arabic training program for medical professionals to improve healthcare communication.
• Jerusalem MunicipalitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAhlan program: Arab students from East Jerusalem teaching children in 30+ schools in West Jerusalem.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• italki: Online marketplace connecting learners with native-speaker tutors across languages including Arabic. Comparable as a teacher-led online learning platform with live conversation focus, mirroring Madrasa's Zoom/blended courses and paid 1:1 tutoring.
• Preply: Online tutoring marketplace offering Arabic lessons with native teachers via video. Comparable in offering live, paid, instructor-led Arabic instruction, including conversation and fluency coaching for adult learners.

Broad incumbents

• Mango Languages: Language learning platform with Arabic courses sold to libraries, schools, and enterprise/government. Comparable as a digital language platform with a meaningful institutional/government sales motion that overlaps with Madrasa's B2B training.
• Duolingo: Global language learning platform offering Arabic (MSA and Egyptian) for English speakers. While it does not specialize in spoken Arabic for Hebrew speakers, it competes for the same 'learn a language digitally' mindshare and provides a free benchmark against which Madrasa must differentiate on niche quality.
• Pimsleur: Audio-based language program with conversational Arabic courses. Comparable as a self-paced, conversation-focused alternative; like Babbel, it competes at the methodology level rather than the niche-locale level.
• Babbel: Subscription-based language learning platform with Arabic courses designed by experts. Comparable as a paid structured alternative for adult self-learners, though it targets a broad global audience rather than the Hebrew-speaker niche.
• Rosetta Stone: Long-established language learning platform with Arabic (MSA) courses targeting immersive self-study. Comparable at the structured curriculum and self-paced digital learning level, even though its target language is not colloquial Arabic.

Emerging players

• Coursera: MOOC platform hosting Arabic language courses (MSA and dialectal) from universities. Comparable as a digital self-paced learning channel with freemium and subscription models, competing for self-directed learner attention.

Regional players

• Hebrew University of Jerusalem — Rothberg International School: Academic institution offering intensive Arabic (including spoken/colloquial) courses for international students and Israeli learners. Comparable as a high-credibility alternative channel for Arabic instruction aimed at the same Israeli audience.
• Tel Aviv University — Arabic Language Program: Tel Aviv University runs Arabic language programs including a dedicated medical Arabic track. Comparable as a formal academic alternative that overlaps with Madrasa's medical/corporate audience and content.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCQ9R24MMV1Wx8ilfezb6Qfg
• Facebookfacebook.com/madrasafree
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/madrasa-learning-to-communicate
• Instagraminstagram.com/madrasafree
• TikToktiktok.com/@madrasafreearabic

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Madrasa - Learning to Communicate