Amazing staff and motivated students

My name is Nicholas McMillan, and I taught English this past Spring semester at An-Najah National University’s Language Resource Center. I came to the LRC as a recent graduate of the University of Tulsa’s English Literature and Language master’s program. After working with many international students studying academic writing at the University of Tulsa, I was interested in making a journey abroad myself to teach and study. While teaching at the LRC, I enrolled in classes in ANNU’s Arabic for Non-Native Speakers Institute, and received an excellent Arabic language education in small, one-on-one class sessions with highly regarded and accomplished Arabic instructors. At the LRC I worked with a small, dedicated staff of university faculty, administrators, and volunteers. The spirited work of the groupensured that everyone, teachers and students alike, were supported and encouraged as they accessed the resources of the center. For example, the center’s staff, with the support of student volunteers, frequently arranged activities such as the Languages Day, foreign language karaoke sing-alongs, and international food sharing feasts in which students from all over the university could enjoy the work of the center and the window to the world that foreign languages provide. I taught a range of courses, from conversation at all levels to courses for administrative staff targeting specific skills. For example, the LRC partnered with the Office of Admissions to provide an intensive English for email workshop. In addition to teaching more general English courses for the university staff, this was a great way to get to know and work closely with employees from all over the university. And, especially, working with ANNU’s students was a real joy. The courses I taught were small, and this meant that I could get to know my students personally as well as see their improvements in English, both of which were greatly rewarding.In addition to witnessing their development as students of English, there always seemed to be a special event around the campus which showcased student’s hobbies or the skills that the students were developing in their major fields of study. I enjoyed attending these events and visiting students in their various faculties to see their myriad accomplishments in fields as diverse as engineering, chemistry, speech language pathology, and translation. I am so grateful for the chance that I had to work with the amazing staff at the LRC and ANNU’s talented, motivated students.  

Nicholas