2012 Language Institute: Amman, Jordan

 

Note: Information below refers only to the 2012 CLS Institutes and is subject to change. CLS 2013 partners and sites will be announced in the Spring.

Institute at a Glance: Amman, Jordan

Language
Beginning
Advanced Beginning
Intermediate
Advanced
Arabic

Program Dates

Hosting Institution
June 10 – August 12, 2012 American Center for Oriental Research (ACOR)

  • Advanced Beginning: Minimum requirement: completion of one year of college-level Arabic, or its equivalent, prior to the start of the program. Students should arrive in country comfortable with the Arabic script and sounds, basic vocabulary, and basic grammar (such as the jumla ismiyya, jumla fa’aliyya, idhaafa, the root system etc.).
  • Intermediate: Minimum requirement: completion of two years of college-level Arabic, or its equivalent, prior to the start of the program. Students should arrive in country able to speak and write about daily activities and matters of interest as well as their subject of study or research. Students also should have a good grasp of grammar such as identifying and deploying ‘iraab.
  • Advanced: Minimum requirement: completion of three years of college-level Arabic, or its equivalent, prior to the summer program start date. Note: Students applying for the advanced level should arrive in country able to speak and write about a variety of topics beyond their immediate academic subject and have a good grasp of more complex structures of the languages. Students are expected to have begun to delve into authentic texts such as newspapers and streaming video, short stories, and political and social commentaries.
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Alumni Ambassadors

Student Activities

In 2010 and 2011 the CLS students voluntarily participated in a language exchange with Iraqi refugee communities in Amman. Since 2010, nearly 30 students have participated in the language exchange and formed lasting friendships with the Iraqi refugee families in Jordan.

In 2011 CLS student and Ph.D. candidate Dana Moss connected the CLS Program to the NGO Friends of the Earth - Middle East and, through that organization, coordinated a student excursion to visit the Sharhabil Eco-Park in the north of the Jordan River valley along the border between Jordan and Israel. Dana led a group to visit the eco-park, meet with its director, and enjoy a bicycle tour of the surrounding area and communities. Sharhabil opened in 2011 and covers a large area encompassing the Ziglam dam and a wetland area. It is a critical model for environmental re-habilitation in Jordan.

Alumni Highlights

2010 alumna Michelle Ha has begun working in the President's Office at the American University in Cairo as a Presidential Scholar.

2008 alumna Judith Van Raalten is the Executive Director of a local NGO in Jordan, called Leaders of Tomorrow. In 2009 – 2010, she spent the year as a Fulbright Research Fellow to Jordan, working for her NGO and researching the integration levels of young people of Palestinian origin in Jordan.

2006 alumna Melissa Honey was deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan after graduation, where she was able to utilize her Arabic skills. When she returned to the States, she attended the Arabic Summer Intensive School at Middlebury College.