Letter from the Editors

Khanh-Duc Kuttig, Department of English, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany
Bridget Schvarcz, Unit of English as a Foreign Language, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
Vu Tran-Thanh, School of Education, Durham University, Durham, UK

Dear Colleagues,

Welcome to this special issue of our newsletter, where we zoom in on the vibrant landscape of teacher education in the Middle East. This region, with its rich cultural heritage and linguistic background, presents unique challenges and opportunities for teachers and teacher educators. This issue aims to highlight transformative initiatives and teacher professional development opportunities that are shaping the future of TESOL in this part of the world.

In this issue, you will follow Michelle Benegas on her journey to Bahrain, where her experiences as an English Language Specialist provide a personal and professional perspective on the cultural dynamics and educational challenges in the Gulf region. You will also explore the diverse range of professional development opportunities for teachers in Qatar, as Okon Effiong discusses how these initiatives are enhancing skills and fostering collaboration among educators. Amira Salama’s article on the Africa ELTA Conference, held recently in Cairo, Egypt, reveals how a bottom-up approach to teacher development is empowering educators and highlighting the voices of African ELT professionals, showcasing the transformative impact of this approach across both the African continent and the Middle East. Finally, you will also learn about the impactful work of TESOL Arabia through a conversation with Melanie Gobert, who shares insights into how the organization supports English language educators and promotes professional growth in the UAE and beyond.

We hope you find these articles as enlightening and inspiring as we have, and that they provide valuable perspectives on the power of teacher professional development that are relevant not just in this region but across the field.

Best wishes,

Bridget Schvarcz, Khanh-Duc Kuttig & Vu Tran-Thanh

Khanh-Duc Kuttig teaches English language in the Department of English at the University of Siegen. Her work focuses on language development in pre-service teacher education and she is currently building a corpus of classroom interaction as part of her doctoral project at the Heidelberg University of Education in Germany. She is currently Chair of TESOL’s Professional Development Professional Council.

Bridget Schvarcz, PhD, is the head of Unit of English as a Foreign Language, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and lecturer in the MA in TESOL program at Tel Aviv University. She has also been working as a teacher educator for the Israeli Ministry of Education, Department of Professional Development of Teaching Staff, for the past 13 years. She has served as chair of the English Teachers’ Association of Israel (2020-2023) – a proud TESOL affiliate.

Vu Tran-Thanh is a doctoral researcher at the School of Education, Durham University, UK - under the scholarship of the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK Government. Prior to his doctoral studies, Vu worked as an ESOL teacher and teacher trainer in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He founded and directs TESOL Research Collaboration Network, a learning and supportive community for early-career researchers in language education in Vietnam.