My first classes at UCQ were on Sunday January 6th 2013, so today I've
spent one entire week with my students, for a total of 10 contact hours.
All of them want to enter the Bachelor's degree programme in Nursing of
the University of Calgary in Qatar (UCQ). Most of them are women, but
to my relief no-one of them seems to mind working with a male partner
when I do pair work in class. The English of my students leaves a lot to be desired,
at least for academic studies, but they are well aware of that and are
keen to improve. And isn't it heart-warming for any teacher to have a
motivated group of learners? They seem to be more than willing to engage
in discussions and informal chats. Sometimes they slip into speaking
Arabic but I have told them that the only person allowed to speak Arabic
in class is me - and since my mastery is slightly limited (euphemism!),
it won't help them. They have enough of a sense of humour to teach me a
word or two when they attack an English text about some impossibly
spoiled teenager ("Miss, do you know what 'spoiled' is in Arabic?").
For teaching purposes I need to remember to cover my shoulders and knees, but my wardrobe should be able to cater to those cultural requirements. The last day of the working week, Thursday, is 'casual day', which means that staff are allowed to wear jeans. I would not know if my female students come to UCQ in jeans, because most of them wear the long black robes ('abayas') and cover their hair with black scarves. I am very glad that no woman in my class also covers the lower part of her face, let alone hiding her face altogether. To me that would seriously impede communication, as I remember from my teaching in Jordan a few centuries ago when one student was totally covered up in black.
I am glad that I have students from Qatar in my group, but they are the minority. The others are from Iraq, Iran, Palestine, Lebanon and Somalia. The challenge to upgrade my students' English is huge, but at least I already like them - it's going to be great to spend the semester with them.
For teaching purposes I need to remember to cover my shoulders and knees, but my wardrobe should be able to cater to those cultural requirements. The last day of the working week, Thursday, is 'casual day', which means that staff are allowed to wear jeans. I would not know if my female students come to UCQ in jeans, because most of them wear the long black robes ('abayas') and cover their hair with black scarves. I am very glad that no woman in my class also covers the lower part of her face, let alone hiding her face altogether. To me that would seriously impede communication, as I remember from my teaching in Jordan a few centuries ago when one student was totally covered up in black.
I am glad that I have students from Qatar in my group, but they are the minority. The others are from Iraq, Iran, Palestine, Lebanon and Somalia. The challenge to upgrade my students' English is huge, but at least I already like them - it's going to be great to spend the semester with them.
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