AY 2007-2008 Projects - Near East and North Africa

This project has been cancelled

Country                       Kuwait
City                              Kuwait City
Host Institution           Ministry of Education/Public Authority for Applied Education and Training

Project Description
The EL Fellow is requested to come to Kuwait under the auspices of the Kuwait Ministry of Education in order to develop new teaching methodologies, improve usage of technology in classrooms, advance teacher training and development, introduce American English learning materials, and improve English language curriculum at the primary level. The EL Fellow will provide in-service training in the form of workshops and seminars to EL teachers at all levels (primary to secondary) and to teacher supervisors, in conjunction with the Kuwait Teachers Society. The EL Fellow will identify the best technology and supplementary materials for teaching English to younger children. In the context of Kuwaiti efforts to reform its EL curriculum and teaching methods, the EL Fellow will also conduct seminars on current trends in teaching methodology for faculty and students at Kuwait University and the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET), the two institutions in Kuwait that train Kuwait's EL teachers at all levels. 

Project Objectives
The introduction of American English language learning materials makes it necessary to introduce American Culture as part of instruction. As a result of the war in neighboring Iraq and the ongoing War on Terror, the English Language Fellowship in Kuwait is conducted in a high threat environment with a hostile conservative social milieu critical of U.S. motives and actions in the region. Despite Kuwait's pro-American veneer, there is a burgeoning undercurrent, particularly among the younger generation, of distrust, misunderstanding and misinformation about the U.S. and our nation's interests and purpose in the region. To that end, it is imperative that the U.S. Embassy engage these audiences and combat the misinformation with positive programming and new perceptions of American society and values. 

About the Host Institution
Kuwait Ministry of Education handles English teaching needs for all public schools at all educational levels.

The Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET) is the second largest institution for Higher Learning. It has a student population of more than 20,000. They have an English Teaching Department that oversees English teaching units at different campuses.