This year, TCLP alumni achieved a variety of successes, including organizing international trips, earning advanced degrees, facilitating professional development sessions, and more.
On June 22, 2024, TCLP alumnus Ayman Abdelkhalek, hosted at Central Academy in Ann Arbor, MI from 2011-2012, successfully defended his PhD dissertation and earned a doctorate degree in Curriculum and English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Instruction from the University of Sadat City in Egypt. Mr. Abdelkhalek’s dissertation, entitled “Using Vlogs to Develop Secondary School Students' Oral Communication Skills and Motivation to Learn,” examined how the use of English language video blogs as a pedagogical tool may improve EFL learners’ speaking skills and motivation. Having now earned his PhD, Mr. Abdelkhalek hopes to obtain a higher position within Egypt’s Ministry of Education, working either as a certified trainer of other EFL teachers or in the Research and Educational Assessment Center.
Top Photo Above: Mr. Abdelkhalek receives comments during his dissertation defense.
On June 8, 2024, TCLP alumnus Abdelilah El Alaoui, hosted at the Thomas Edison Language Institute in Sacramento, CA from 2018-2019, was interviewed on Laayoune National Radio, a Moroccan radio station. Mr. El Alaoui was accompanied by three students for the interview. Mr. El Alaoui’s radio talk focused on how he has helped his school and community through the extracurricular activities he has facilitated. Since his return to Morocco after participating in TCLP, Mr. El Alaoui has worked on many activities with his students, including organizing a recent trip to the United Kingdom for English students. These kinds of initiatives leave a positive impact on students, as they help students improve their English proficiency, building confidence speaking a second language, as well as expose them to other cultures. Mr. El Alaoui’s interview was broadcast once on Thursday, June 13th and again on Friday, June 14th.
Above: TCLP alumnus Mr. Abdelilah El Alaoui and three students share their experiences during a local radio interview.
During the Summer 2024, TCLP alumnus Mouloud Mahi, hosted at Irving Elementary School in Bozeman, MT from 2019-2020, was one of the summer Arabic coaches for the World Language Initiative – Montana (MT). World Language Initiative MT is a nonprofit organization that provides youth and adults in Montana with authentic language and culture learning opportunities. Mr. Mahi has been teaching virtually with World Language Initiative MT since coming to Bozeman as a TCLP participant in 2019. This summer, Mr. Mahi taught language and culture to students in grades K-5 during the "Meander through Morocco: Arabic Language and Culture Camp.” During this week-long camp, Mr. Mahi used play-based teaching methodologies and culture-oriented art and cooking materials to engage participants.
On June 30, 2024, TCLP alumnus Bouslam Abaid, hosted at Seventy-First High School in Fayetteville, NC from 2022-2023, facilitated a professional workshop for teacher trainees entitled “A Journey Across Borders: My Experience as an Exchange Teacher.” Mr. Abaid was invited to give this workshop by the local “Be Skills Club,” a professional organization comprised of English teacher trainees at CRMEF-SM, a vocational school in Inzegane, Morocco. Mr. Abaid’s workshop was the seventh in a series on “Empowering Educators.” During his presentation, Mr. Abaid offered tips and suggestions for the trainees to pursue opportunities similar to TCLP. Mr. Abaid talked to participants about every aspect of his TCLP journey, from the application process, interviews, and waiting period, to orientation days, meeting his mentor and community liaison, and staying with a host family. Mr. Abaid also discussed the academic side of his exchange experience, which included talking about his first day at the host school, online professional development, daily work, teacher responsibilities, and the project he developed, among many other things.
Above: TCLP alumnus Mr. Bouslam Abaid presents to English teachers on his TCLP exchange experience.
On July 25, 2024, TCLP alumnus Mohammed Etify, hosted at Anne Chesnutt Middle School in Fayetteville, NC from 2018-2019, earned another professional certificate titled, “Practical AI for Non-Coders" from IT Masters in partnership with Charles Sturt University. This program’s aim is to give students a solid understanding of the basic constraints and capabilities of contemporary Artificial Intelligence systems so that they can form their own conclusions on the implications of AI.
On August 5th, 2024, TCLP alumna Laila Taik, hosted at Brooklyn Emerging Leaders Academy in Brooklyn, NY, from 2023-2024, participated in the 2024 Back-To-School World Language Teacher Summit. Through her participation in this summit, Ms. Taik completed fifteen hours of virtual courses on various topics, including innovative teaching strategies, integrating technology into language teaching, differentiated instruction, and encouraging active learning and participation in class. These courses enhanced Ms. Taik’s teaching skills and will enrich the educational experiences she can offer to her students. In addition, in September 2024, Ms. Taik was selected by Microsoft for the 5th time as a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert for 2024-2025. She applied for the MIEE program by demonstrating her use of Microsoft tools to teach Arabic to non-native speakers during her time in BELA. The program gives her a connection to a network of like-minded educators who share their technology-related expertise and insights with each other. MIEE program also provides her access to exclusive resources and opportunities from Microsoft.
On September 3, 2024, Teachers of Critical Languages Program (TCLP) alumna Ms. Eman Bekheet, hosted at International High School of New Orleans in New Orleans, LA from 2013-2014, helped facilitate a professional development workshop for English teachers in Alexandria, Egypt. The participants were English teachers from Alexandria city and region public and/or official language schools. During the interactive workshop, the focus was on developing student-centered and engaging literature lesson plans. Local English teachers discussed new technologies and pedagogical tools to use with students. During this session, Ms. Bekheet shared resources for incorporating sound and visual aids into literature-focused lesson plans using activities such as literature circles, and she demonstrated games called “Whisper Race” and “Judge the Book by its Cover”. A teacher commented that the workshop was very effective in helping her to make literature lessons more engaging, instead of just reading literary texts. In total, 30 local English teachers attended the workshop.
Above: TCLP alumna Ms. Eman Bekheet delivers a training session to English teachers on tools to teach English language literature.