Job Discussion Forums

[veiledsentiments]

[marianthelibrarian]

Dear VS -

Well, I was referring to attracting study-abroad students from the NY campus who want to have a "middle east experience" while being protected by a cultural bubble, but I see your point. And I doubt the core curriculum would apply to them anyway.

I may be venturing off-topic here, but I have a question:

If it is the case that the state of higher education is so tech-centric (which is what I'm reading into the comments about the liberal arts curriculum), what is your opinion about how satisfying trying to teach anything other than ESL or pure/applied science would be (actually, I do teach applied science, but it's not quite as mainstream as engineering)? I have enough problems getting my US and UK students to crack books on linguistics - if they don't see the content as immediately relevant, they just don't care.

Still considering the offer I've got on the table, but the more I read here, the more unsure I am about whether to take it or not.

Cheers.
ps - I have a sense of humour, really. It's just that my first experience on the board was a little unpleasant.

[veiledsentiments]

Don't worry... I wasn't accusing you of not having one, but only that it can take awhile to get to know the posters here and our little eccentricities. There are some who can be a bit hard on newbies.

I wouldn't advise you not to take a position in the Gulf, but you will be happiest with the situation if your expectations are realistic. Yes, the universities are focused on more practical majors... which is sensible because the government is paying... and the idea is to train a work force to replace the expats. IMHO, the students in the Gulf are even more focused on the immediately relevant... and one of the things that they chafe against is having to learn English.

That said, I have taught both English and business and I found the business courses to be the most rewarding because you do get to see their interest ignite when they begin to understand not only what they are doing, but its benefits. The 'cracking the books' is the hard part because the majority can still not cope with the level of native speaker texts. Teaching accounting, my job was as much to bring the topic down to their language ability - such as teaching vocabulary - as teaching them the concepts. A first step is to stop them from wasting their time translating it all into Arabic since this was first year courses after finishing foundations. You need to show them that it is the concepts, not the language, that is the key. I found it great fun actually...

VS

[Dedicated]

Can we get back to the topic?

It seems that English staff from George Mason are being kept on. My former UK colleagues, a husband and wife team ( both highly qualified and experienced in the Gulf) are starting in June 2009 as VP for Academic Affairs and Director of the English Language Centre.

I have no interest in working in the Gulf, but as they are not registered with Dave's, I promised I would get any up-to-date info for them. I fear they may be walking into a mess.

Sorry to disappoint you, bje.

[veiledsentiments]

They don't need to register to read. Do wish them luck... I fear they may be in for a bumpy road.

VS

[bje]

I'm disappointed, 'Dedicated'! There are a number of people hoping to see you back- either in Dubai or Kuwait.