Page 13 - ELG1601 Feb Issue 433

ELmiddle east supplement
February 2016 Page 13

Bridging a cultural divide

Jancis McGrady on a programme promoting interfaith understanding

or the past seven years
an innovative project
Fbetween the British Coun-
cil and Al Azhar in Egypt has
helped promote interfaith and
cultural dialogue by providing
over 1,500 young people with
the language and cultural skills
required to communicate their
Islamic faith in English.
For Yasmeen Abd El-Azeem
Hekal, one of the first female grad-
uates, ‘Learning English is an open Courtesy British Council Egypt
window to know a lot about other
cultures, ideologies, and to have
access to the outside world. And
the first and foremost thing for me
is to introduce the true image of BUILDING BRIDGES Graduates celebrate at Al Azhar, the oldest degree-granting university in Egypt
Islam – it is a universal mission by
Al Azhar throughout its history.’ Tayyeb was concerned that while working towards Celta through at Durham University.
Al Azhar plays a vital role in his university was producing grad- a structured continuous profes- He said, ‘More than anything,
Egyptian and Islamic society. The uates with high levels of Islamic sional development programme. English has helped me understand
grand imam of Al Azhar, together scholarship, these graduates were In addition, the programme the Western mindset. For instance,
with the grand mufti of Egypt, is unable to share their understanding has expanded to work in a pilot many conservative Muslims usu-
responsible for the official reli- of Islam beyond the Arabic-speak- project for ten Al Azhar insti- ally think of England as a Christian
gious matters of the country. As ing world. Dr Al-Tayyeb therefore tutes offering an Islamic Studies country (I used to think this way
the head of Al Azhar, the grand approached the British Council, the stream at secondary level. As too). And yet when I went there
imam is responsible for the ‘Al Institut Francais and the Goethe well as delivering methodology I was astonished by the religious
Azhar body’, which comprises Institute in Cairo with a project to through training and classroom pluralism that Britain enjoys.
Al Azhar Mosque, Al Azhar Uni- create a dedicated language centre observations, we are also piloting ‘Similarly, many Westerners
versity and educational institutes for undergraduates of the Islamic alternative methods of assess- think of Muslims as “hardliners”,
spread across the country. Studies faculty. ment for the Islamic stream, with but when I had proper contact
Founded in AD 970, Al In 2008 the British Council a view to expanding this across with many of them in England and
Azhar University is the oldest opened a small language cen- the Al Azhar system in future. elsewhere, I felt I could bridge the
degree-granting university in tre staffed by a team of three. Since the start of this pro- gap between these two cultures.’
Egypt and a revered global cen- The 100 top students from the gramme, average entry levels to The connection between the
tre of Sunni Islamic learning. Islamic Studies faculty began a the university language centre British Council and Al Azhar is
Tens of thousands of students programme of general English at have risen from broadly A0/A1 therefore about much more than
from around the world study CEFR A0 and A1 levels. to A1/A2. A further fifty teachers just language training. It is about a
there, and around a tenth of the The centre has expanded year in secondary schools across Egypt relationship of mutual respect and
Egyptian school population on year, and currently has over have completed TKT training and trust, a relationship where ideas
(approximately 18,000 children) 600 students, who follow a pro- are expected to begin an online and knowledge can be exchanged.
is educated in the Al Azhar sys- gramme of general English and programme of study in early 2016. This idea of mutual understand-
tem. Graduates of the Islamic English for religious purposes, Graduates from the programme ing and respect, and an awareness
Studies faculty become imams, and the majority of students now find work within the Al Azhar of each other’s culture is just as
teachers, lawyers and commu- graduate at B1 or B2 levels of body and are also well placed to important for global communica-
nity leaders. proficiency. Classes are deliv- apply for scholarships for over- tion as any language. n
The language project is a joint ered by a team of 32 Egyptian seas study. Mohammed Gamal
initiative launched in 2007 by teachers who have completed graduated from the centre in 2012 Jancis McGrady is Al Azhar
Sheikh Dr Ahmed Al-Tayyeb, the Cambridge Teaching and was awarded a Chevening project manager at the
grand imam of Al Azhar. Dr Al- Knowledge Test (TKT) and are scholarship for an MA in theology British Council Egypt

Another revolution in Iran

Matt Salusbury assesses the impact of an innovative coursebook series

he recent British Coun- graduates was leaving the country sector the textbooks that came Prospect may not achieve much
cil publication English to join the worldwide Iranian dias- before Prospect tended to include without accompanying reform
Tlanguage teaching in the pora, ‘resulting in an estimated government-approved phrases of traditional national univer-
Islamic Republic of Iran: Inno- loss of $50 billion to the nation’. such as, ‘You can break your sity entrance exam resources
vations, trends and challenges This makes it all the more urgent fast as soon as the sun sets,’ or and personnel – Iran’s English
(http://tinyurl.com/BCenglishi- for Iran to provide ‘rich educa- ‘The 15th of Sha’ban is a reli- teachers need an upgrade of their
ranreport) notes that ‘there is tional opportunities’ to keep its gious celebration,’ Prospect is methodology skills and Eng-
currently a thirst for English’ in graduates in the country. revolutionary. It is a full-colour lish proficiency for Prospect to
the country, with learning English The big news in Iranian ELT publication with photos, while its work. Some commentators have
becoming a ‘fashionable trend’. is the Prospect ‘communica- monochrome state-school text- already pointed out the ‘impos-
Several of its contributors tive language teaching’-based book predecessors had cartoons sibility’ of a culture shift from
comment on the ambivalence English language coursebook instead of photos. Teachers have the grammar translation method
of the state towards English in series for Iranian state secondary also become accustomed to teach- used since time immemorial to
the Islamic Republic. It’s seen schools, still in its early stages. ing dialogue line by line rather Prospect’s communicative lan-
as ‘the language of enemies … English is compulsory from the than playing the whole audio guage teaching. Surprisingly
on the one hand and as a tool for age of thirteen. The coursebook clip of the conversation from the though, it was English teachers
progress on the other’. series emphasises encouraging beginning. from the poorest-resourced rural
The publication is not a report, teachers to promote students’ Even the ‘focus on the personal schools and from the low-income
but is introduced as a ‘volume’ communicative skills and mini- domain’ – the frequent use of ‘I’ neighbourhoods of Tehran who
by its editor Chris Kennedy, who mising mother-tongue use. It’s and ‘my’ in Prospect – was an initially responded most posi-
then hands over to numerous co- still too early to tell how much innovation. Teachers at a workshop tively to the new national state
authors who are big names in impact the first two levels of six on Prospect in Tehran commented school coursebook.
Iranian ELT. It’s a bit of a mixed have had – Prospect 1 for the first that they liked the way this new As we go to press, the UN has
bag – I found myself skipping year of secondary school was focus on the individual showed just lifted sanctions on Iran. Pay-
over the part about ‘learning released in 2013, with Prospect 2 ‘respect for the students’. ments to and from Iran via the
journeys’ and the ‘metaphors for launched the following year. Prospect 2’s units include global Swift banking system are
teachers’ diagram with arrows In the main pirated US text- ‘My nationality’, ‘My abilities’, now possible again, which means
pointing to the words ‘light, sun, books are in use in Iran’s thriving ‘My city’, ‘My village’ and ‘My among other things that the
moon, star, candle, fire, lantern’. private-school sector, where hobbies’. Another novelty is the Gazette can finally pay its Iran
The publication is particularly English is taught from primary lack of an explicit grammar sec- correspondent for articles written
frank about how ‘the chang- or even pre-primary, with the tion; ‘Grammar teaching’ won’t in October 2010. The door is now
ing situation in Iranian society is reputation of the English pro- feature until the forthcoming open for foreign investment in
transforming English’. As of 2011 gramme being a big draw. Prospect 3. Iran’s English language teaching
an estimated one in four Iranian But while in the state-school There is already concern that sector. Watch this space. n