Past Events

Connect with youth and adult leaders from around the world! A 2-day virtual conference (April 14 & 15).

Jennifer Geist and Anas Ghanim will be doing a live session and we will have one pre-recorded session with a QFI Alumni. They will discuss topics relevant to students today who want to maximize their service-learning experiences and mentorship opportunities. Topics include meaningful connections from local to global; developing cross-cultural communication skills; global perspectives on career readiness; long-term view of service-learning work; tips for students on cultivating mentors; and a lively Q&A!

QFI Frühlingskonferenz 2021/QFI Spring Conference 2021 in Germany

During the first Spring Conference organized by QFI in Germany, we would like to address Arabic teachers and present ideas and tools for teaching Arabic. The conference is in cooperation with Expolingua, Fachverband Arabisch and Verein der Arabischlehrer*innen.
Arabic teachers will contribute to various topics:
• How do you teach Arabic script online?
Paula Roetscher: Salzmannschule Schnepfenthal, Erfurt University
• Learn to read Arabic online
Aicha Hamdani: Interkulturelle Waldorfschule Berlin, Arabischlehrer*innen Verein e.V.
• Lesson planning for Arabic classes
Dr. Peter Konerding: Bamberg University, Fachverband Arabisch
• How do I integrate Arabic culture in Arabic lessons?
Shahir Nashed: Salzmannschule Schnepfenthal, Arabischlehrer*Innen Verein e.V.
• Teach Arabic vocabulary in a fun way.
Paula Roetscher: Salzmannschule Schnepfenthal, Erfurt University
• Participants will learn more about Arabic calligraphy from Berlin artist Daniel Arab and discuss with the team of the Bonn school project the challenges and opportunities of founding a bilingual (German-Arabic) school.

Each session will last 30 minutes. Breaks will offer the opportunity to meet other teachers and exchange ideas. Participation is free of charge. The conference will be held on Zoom.

Give Something Back to Berlin (@GSBTBerlin) is organizing a musical hour: Introduction to Arabic Music – a performance and Conversation on the Oud and Baglama, two-stringed instruments central to Arabic folk music.

Register here.

The Chicago Arabic Teachers Council (CATC) invites you to participate in its annual conference, which will focus on connecting Arabic language classrooms to the wider world. Panel sessions will showcase opportunities for Arabic instructors to collaborate with local and international communities to enrich their teaching. 

Conference Schedule:

Friday, May 21

11:00 am – 12:30 pm CDT: Keynote Lecture, “Crossing Boundaries and Building Bridges: The Role of Arabic in the 21st Century” by Mohammed Elmeski (Arizona State University)

12:45 pm – 1:45 pm CDT: Panel Session, “Connecting with Local Communities,” featuring Dr. Azar Maluki (Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project), Samira Alhamwi (Syrian Community Network), Sarab Al Ani (Yale University), and moderator Aidan Kaplan (University of Chicago)

Saturday, May 22

10:15 am – 11:45 am CDT: Panel Session, “Connecting Arabic Students Across Schools,” featuring Tahreem Akhtar (Qatar Foundation International), Fadi Abughoush (Lindblom Math & Science Academy), Iman Hashem (California World Language Project, Occidental College), and moderator Noha Forster (University of Chicago)

12:00 pm – 1:30 pm CDT: Panel Session, “Connecting with International Communities,” featuring Ronnie Malley (Chicago Public Schools, Global Voices Initiative), Lisa Roberts (STEAMuseum), and moderator Lena Krause (Beacon Academy)

For registration and more information, please visit: https://voices.uchicago.edu/catc/2021conference/

Join QFI and the British council as we celebrate the winners of the Arabic Speaking Competition for our schools. The celebration will be broadcast on Teams LIVE.

You and your students are welcome to join and see some of the winning students and other distinguished guests celebrating the importance of learning the Arabic Language.

Register here. 

Finding teaching and learning materials for young Arabic heritage speakers is difficult when few textbooks from trusted publishers are available. How do teachers cope with diverse student backgrounds, and how can they take the variety of dialects into account? What makes the old-fashioned textbook so attractive, and how does the content of non- European teaching material correspond to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)?

Three Arabic teachers from Germany will present their favorite Arabic teaching materials for young heritage speakers and discuss what it means to adapt teaching material to a familiar language learning environment.

Join the Expolingua Online Seminar discussion with Safaa Al Jazzar from the Arabic Heritage Program in Bonn, Asma Zarrug of Heidelberg University, and Shahir Nashed from the language specialist school “Salzmannschule.”

Register here.

“TAMAM” is an exciting educational project of the Museum of Islamic Art in Berlin where German educator teams from mosques and the Museum of Islamic Art in Berlin developed teaching material about Islamic Art and Culture. The material and exercises are divided into the categories: Connected Worlds, Shared Heritage, Equal Rights, Present, and Religious Diversity.

In our online seminar, we will explore how the teaching material can be adapted to work in the Arabic language classroom. We will be looking at two exercises in particular.

Introduction: Shirin Haacke, TAMAM Project, Museum of Islamic Art Berlin.

Exercise 1: “Present – Do you think you are what you wear?”, presented by Paula Roetscher, Arabic teacher at Salzmannschule, Schnepfenthal.

Exercise 2: “Religious Diversity – What’s Islamic Architecture to you?”, presented by Shahir Nashed, Arabic teacher at Salzmannschule, Schnepfenthal.

You can find more information about the project in German, English, and Arabic here: https://tamam-projekt.de/en/who-is-tamam/

Please register for the online seminar here: https://www.expolingua.com/myexpo_calendar_detail.php?eid=tamam_kultur

The Online Seminar will be held in German.

Shubbak presents the first episode of a new interactive webinar series supported by QFI for children and young people ages 12+ highlighting the creativity and innovation of Arab artists.

Over 30 minutes, two artists explore identity through the themes of heritage and migration.

The educational session will include a FREE live interactive webinar for KS3 + KS4 students with exciting visual artists, it is hosted by Arman Nouri and featuring graphic designer Farah Fayyad (Lebanon) and visual artist Rand Abdul Jabbar (Iraq).

al musiqa – Arabic Music in History and Today

What was the sound of Arabic music like a hundred years ago? What traditions are behind Arabic music and what instruments shape it to this day? These and similar questions will be answered during the first of three events of “al musiqa – Arabic Music in History and Today”. “From Oud to E-Guitar” focuses primarily on the instruments of the Eastern Mediterranean. Sean Prieske and his guests Husam Al-Ali and Jamila Al-Yousef demonstrate the richness of this musical culture with a variety of examples and show how Arabic music has influenced modern European music.

This event is tailored for music teachers and students in upper secondary school and the general public.

In GERMAN.

Learning Arabic in fun and interactive ways while still teaching media competency? How can you help your students use social media in a meaningful way and critical while learning vocabulary, grammar, listening skills and pronunciation?

Resources, ideas, exercises and techniques will be presented by:

• Paula Rötscher, Salzmannschule Schnepfenthal, Arabic lecturer at Erfurt University
• Simone Britz, Arabic Lecturer at the German Foreign Office and at the German-Arab Friendship Association (DAFG).

Please register at this link.

This event, partnered with Expolingua, will be in GERMAN.