AY 2007-2008 Projects - Near East and North Africa

Country                       Morocco
City                              Rabat
Host Institution           Ecole Normale Superieure/American Language Center

Project Description
This project will again place an EL Fellow at the Ecole Normale Superieure (ENS) in Rabat, which this year is the only institution in Morocco training teachers for the secondary level. The EL Fellow will teach introductory courses in ELT methods, the four skills, and possibly a course on the use of ICT in teaching. These formal courses will take up to 12 hours per week. In addition, the EL Fellow is expected to consult with students on research topics and provide occasional workshops and advice to the faculty as requested. The presence will again bring a fresh American perspective to ELT pre-service at the ENS, which has had a British focus in the past. By working closely with the EL Fellow for ten months, the ENS hopes to further improve its curriculum and be better prepared to train future teachers.

Project Objectives
With more than 100 students from Morocco's English Access Microscholarship Program located in Rabat, the EL Fellow will work with the American Language Center to develop an American cultural element to supplement the language training the students are receiving. This may also involve travel outside of Rabat to other Microscholarship providers. 

About the Host Institution

ENS
The ENS is, in 2006-7, the only Moroccan institution tasked with providing pre-service training to future secondary school teachers, which makes this project even more critical than it was last year, when there were two such institutions. Classrooms at the ENS are found in modern two-story buildings, and there is a multi-purpose room for conferences and films. The ENS has trained many of Morocco's current English teachers and serves as a focal point for disseminating methodological information to the field.

American Language Center
This center, formally a USIS Binational Center, is one of the largest ALCs in Morocco. It provides training in English to thousands of Moroccans, including more than 50 in the English Access Microscholarship program. In addition, the Regional English Language Officer (RELO) works closely with this ALC in an innovative PAS-Rabat program to provide English classes to journalists and other professionals.