Presenting November 5, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment.1 comment so far
I was asked to present at today’s Utah Foreign Language Association conference about innovation in Arabic teaching. I really need a lesson on how to get videos to play from Power Point without closing it and everything freezing? (In other words my big bang in the end wasn’t so big but that’s ok.)
Today made me reflect on my mentor, Dr. Lillian Fodermeier with whom I worked when I first started teaching. I had absolutely no formal training, didn’t even know how to work an overhead projector. She mentored me with her style: simple, no textbook, untraditional as possible. With some hints from my mom and extended family, many of whom are teachers or professors, and a really patient student, Katelin, I began.
I am convinced over again, when I am watching a group of teachers, that if she hadn’t been my mentor and these others, I would have quit a long time ago. I really prefer simplicity.
Three Cups of Tea November 2, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in Middle East.Tags: Afghanistan, Arabic, Greg Mortenson, Middle East, Pakistan, Three Cups of Tea
add a comment
Just finished Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace…One School at a Time written by co-authors Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. Read it in preparation for the forum speech he gave at Brigham Young University last week. Got a chapter short of deadline but finally finished a week later.
To me it’s a very cool story of a guy who was in the right place at the right time and willing to do something remarkable. People must have thought he was crazy in the beginning. He was. For all logical reasons. Yet, it turned out to be exactly what the people of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and America needed.
I work on this side of the ocean trying to help students understand the Middle East. Reading this book makes me feel like I’m part of this big adventure sweeping the country. I just read another article today about a new teacher of Arabic in Memphis, Tennesee of all places.
Before this report becomes all glowing and no guts, I will add a few other things.
1-Something about the writing was jolting me around. Maybe it was because I knew enough of the story, I wanted to get to the meat.
2-I’m a little sad there were so many references to the Nobel Peace Prize. I definitely feel Greg Mortenson is a great candidate for the prize but I thought it was a little tactless to mention it so many times in his own book. Understandably people were quoted referring to it and Mortenson was not the only author of the book. This is why meeting him in person helped me resolve that concern I had. See my post below about his coming to Provo.
3- We all can be dismissive to a certain degree. There were a few times I cringed at some dismissive ways “Europeans” and “Americans” were sometimes sized up in the book, though. Many of the references come from typical stereotypes. American stereotypes of Europeans. World stereotypes of Americans. The thought that kept going through my mind is how many dedicated European humanitarians I’ve met around the world and many Americans are interested in more than the bottom line figure in the bank. (Another concern which was resolved by his presentation.)
Two of my favorite quotes from the book:
“The only way we can defeat terrorism is if people in [Pakistan and Afghanistan] where terrorists exist learn to respect and love Americans,” Mortenson concluded, “and if we can respect and love these people [in Pakistan and Afghanistan]. What’s the difference between them becoming a productive local citizen or a terrorist? I think the key is education.” pg. 268
“…You have to attack the source of your enemy’s strength. In America’s case, that’s not Osama or Saddam or anyone else. The enemy is ignorance. The only way to defeat it is to build relationships with these people, to draw them into the modern world with education and business. Otherwise the fight will go on forever.” –Brigadier General Bashir Baz pg 310
Greg Mortenson October 27, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment, Middle East.Tags: Greg Mortenson, Middle East, Three Cups of Tea
4 comments
Greg Mortenson completely won me over today in his forum address to students at Brigham Young University. I was actually struggling to get through the book, Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace…One School at a Time. However, the reasons I was struggling through it were completely cleared up today.
I made it a field trip. Ustaz Mohamed and I took about 45 students practically running up the hill from Provo High to make it for a descent seat. We even had commandos scout ahead for group seating possibilities.
First, Did you know his book is required reading for a large number of military personel in Afghanistan?
After listening to him speak, I see the unique characteristics that make him so successful in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
1-He ditched the podium mic for a hand-held to speak to everyone, turning around to catch even the establishment.
2-He obviously did some research on the community to whom he was speaking.
Which for example includes: At least 90% or more of the audience was Mormon (of about 5000 seated in the building and probably another few hundred in overflow). At least 1/3 of the audience would have served full time missions to countries all over the world. Many in the audience have built schools in all parts of the world as well.
He talked to us like we are the same kind of people; relating his parents’ missionary experiences to ours, using religious values/terminology that are important to him and us, helping us to understand concepts through our own experiences working with impoverished people, etc. He was so good at speaking ‘our language’ in fact that one of my students leaned over to ask me if he was Mormon.
3-Really I believe this means he’s good at making people feel their contributions to the world are valid and important. Because of his skill in doing this with us, I have no doubt of his skill in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
I got excited today. I like what he did today for us and hopefully these impressionable students that we brought.
KSL News October 23, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment, In the News.Tags: Deanie Winner, International Baccalaureate, KSL News
2 comments
On the KSL 10:00pm news with anchor Deanie Wimmer as a language teacher in Provo High School’s International Baccalaureate program. We are standing on the field in front of the student body during half time of the Provo-Timpview football game. I just watched it. They put a clip of me saying hello in the languages I teach. This was my first time on television news. 
World Travel in Your Head October 21, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment.Tags: Arabic, Chinese, English, Mandarin, Sign Language
2 comments
Someone just asked me what it was like to switch from speaking Mandarin to Arabic in a short space of time. It got me thinking.
A story: When I lived in England, my best friend was Chinese, Song Ran. We spoke only Mandarin together. One day we were in a group of people who only spoke English so I spoke English. As we walked away she said to me, “Don’t speak English again. You turn into an American.”
And that’s the exciting part of languages. Trully when you get to a certain level of fluency, you have to take on part of the culture to sound normal. Think about it in the opposite direction. The more fluent someone becomes in speaking English, the more they seem American, or British if you live there. It happens as you become fluent in other languages as well.
Chinese: When I speak Chinese, honor and saving face become more important. Chinese combines characters in unique ways to make new words so things are grouped together differently in my head than in English. There is no word for ‘yes’ or ‘no’ for example.
Arabic: When I speak Arabic, time slows way down and I must add more religious terminology. There aren’t a lot of specific vocabulary words meaning ’soon’ for example.
Sign Language: When I am signing, sound is drown out and visual cues take on a whole new dimension. I can tell a whole story using linguistic spatial cues and barely even hear the person next to me calling my name.
Juxtaposing those languages close together is trippy because literally my brain jumps from continent to continent and culture to culture. Making language usage like world traveling in your head.
Finding a moderate Arab voice October 16, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in Middle East.Tags: Arab, Middle East, Moderate Arabs
1 comment so far
I am very turned off by extremists in any direction. I came to value moderate views living among Israelis and Palestinians. I saw the futility of bunkering into a position that ultimately leads no one anywhere. The win only creates a loss creating another need to win.
I want to find moderate Arab voices. I didn’t even know they existed but I think I might be starting to stumble upon them. Arabs who can check some of the passion and bring logic and common sense to the table. These are Arabs I am beginning to respect and even admire. I am lucky that my co-teacher Mohamed El Naggar is very moderate and sensible.
As he speaks about the Arab states and their relationship to the West I can feel my perspective slowly changing. Our whole community is lucky to have him visit schools. If Americans in general could see a moderate Arab voice, I can’t even imagine what could happen.
Egyptian Ambassador October 14, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment.1 comment so far
Egyptian Ambassador to the United States Sameh Shoukry spoke at BYU today about Egyptian views of Peace and Politics in the Middle East. My co-teacher, Mohamed El Naggar and I met him and his wife (seated just below in the picture) following the speech. After I was introduced as an Arabic teacher the whole conversation was in Arabic.
I have to admit in the back of my mind I was saying to myself, “Don’t croak. Don’t croak.” But I held the conversation fine. This is a huge success for me.
International Baccalaureate October 12, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment.Tags: Arabic, International Baccalaureate, language study, Provo High School
1 comment so far
I just returned from a weekend training from International Baccalaureate (IB). Provo High School is an International Baccalaureate World School. Some of my Arabic classes are IB hence I am learning their curriculum and strategy.
I’m now ramping up courses, excited about the growing number of students who now have an option to learn on a larger global scale. IB language students are built up, given lots of outlets to show their strengths and not penalized for specific shortcomings in language ability.
As someone who really loves studying and using languages, I always appreciate a chance to build confidence in a new language by focusing on strengths. Long after a couple of my teachers gave up on me, I am still speaking and better than they might have imagined–it’s not always about speed. That’s part of the message I want to convey to language students.
For more information see the International Baccalaureate website. http://www.ibo.org/
Say that again? October 10, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment.1 comment so far
What I meant to say was, “Deaf people have periods…in ASL,” but the last part didn’t quite come out before the class burst out laughing. For some odd reason, lately, we’ve been laughing in class. Not at people of course.
The other day students were hunched over in tears laughing so hard. The Signing Naturally textbook has a unit about complaining. It was my job to help the students complain accurately. I have to admit, I couldn’t hold it in either.
Note: I probably could have phrased it better but ASL does have periods and other grammatical markings. William Stokoe and others have done research into fluent deaf signers with inherited deafness and found evidence of such linguistic structures. But most people, not natively deaf, would miss them without a frame to frame analysis.
Boston Trip 1 November 9, 2009
Posted by bookncurls in A Comment.add a comment