Since being featured in the Washington Post on April 5th, TCLP Arabic Teacher Tamer Elsharkawy has also been spotlighted by Voice America News and Alhurra's Al Youm Show. The article in the Washington Post highlighted the impact he has had at H.D. Cooke Elementary in Washington, DC. teaching language and sharing culture. The article appeared on the front page of the Metro section in the print edition and was also featured in the Express edition and online. The article shares Mr. Elsharkawy's accomplishments inside and outside the classroom and the goals of TCLP; "The students at the District’s H.D. Cooke Elementary School, in Adams Morgan, are learning Arabic as part of a State Department-sponsored exchange program that places teachers from China and Egypt in classrooms throughout the United States to teach their native languages — languages U.S. officials say will be increasingly important as the country competes in a global economy."
The article focused on Tamer's work and how students have embraced learning Arabic language and culture. This sentiment is captured by Brian Pick, the District of Columbia Public Schools Chief of Teaching and Learning who says; “Teachers like Tamer Elsharkawy are helping their students become global citizens and setting a foundation for a love of languages and culture early.”
Alhurra's Al Youm TV also visited Mr. Elsharkawy's class and interviewed him in Arabic. The following article gave an overview of TCLP, and the video features Mr. Elsharkawy leading an interactive lesson covering vocabulary for fruit and colors. In a brief interview in Arabic at the end of the video, Mr. Elsharkawy discusses how he is teaching Arabic language and sharing culture through TCLP and how this opportunity is available to K-12 U.S. schools. Mr. Elsharkawy describes also how he mixes in cultural lessons to his language classes, including teaching about Arabic geography, history, architecture and math.
Voice of America News produced a video and article that captures the enthusiasm of student's and teacher's for the Arabic program at H.D. Cooke Elementary. It also follows Tamer’s own professional growth and personal experience while on TCLP. In this way the video shows both sides of the exchange. It also mentions how Mentor Teacher Flora Lerenman was able to apply for the program and bring TCLP to her school.
During his year in Washington, DC, Tamer has developed district curriculum materials for Arabic, implemented a CLP project, and met both DC Mayor Muriel Bowser and Arizona Senator John McCain.
To read the full articles and view the videos please follow the links below:
Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/a-muslim-teacher-is-visi…
Al Hurra: http://www.alhurra.com/content/us-teachers-critical-languages-program/3…
https://www.facebook.com/alyoumshow/videos/10154120910897910/
Voice of America: http://www.voanews.com/media/video/3336797.html
http://www.voanews.com/content/using-culture-to-teach-arabic-to-us-scho…
https://www.facebook.com/QFINTL/posts/10153962491657107