Moroccan Center For Arabic Studies
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 My First Gallery I teach two two hour lessons of English every Tuesday at the local school by the grand mosque of the Medina in Rabat. The first is an all-girl group of students where I can focus more on issues of gender identity, and the second group is co-ed bunch of students eager to learn the language, where I also talk about cultural difference and respect. |  Protesting in front of government for an end to the death penalty. As part of my internship for Amnesty International I was asked to participate in the rally in front of parliament in protest of the death penalty which is still implemented in Moroccan law. Around 50 participants took to the street and shouted chants, holding signs of victims around the world who had suffered injustice and wrongful death and drawing major media attention to the cause, with several front page articles the national newspapers. It was an incredible experience to have been a part of, with a range of people, Moroccan and international, coming together for the same cause. |  Protests in Rabat For a time that I have been in Morocco there was a protest every day. From the offices of Amnesty International on the main street of Rabat I could hear the bustle of protest, with melodious chanting, yelling and then finally the screams as the public avoided the police batons. These demonstrations are not like the Arab Spring in that they are not against the King or for democracy, but rather are a sign of disenfranchisment young people feel having completed their studies but with no job in sight. The employment rate for graduates is extraordinary, but recent students are not the only ones to suffer, with a diverse group of young and old often coming together to show their dissent. Their slogan: dignity=work, these protests demanding both in the face of poor governance and economic growth. |  The difficulties of teaching English in Morocco I thought it would be helpful for those preparing to teach English abroad to get an idea of what to expect in some situations and how to overcome them. I had a particularly difficult time yesterday engaging the students with an incredibly chaotic and distracting class and with one girl swearing at me, so I decided to film a video diary, which will be part of my documentary that will be completed once I return home. Teaching English is an incredibly rewarding experience, but in Morocco there are certain issues to be aware of, including the bad relationships between students, physical and verbal violence, constant tooing and froing from the classroom, incessant talking and listening to music instead of learning. In previous lessons I had been much relaxed about what subject matter we learnt, but because of the lack of focus I made sure this week I had a much more succint lesson plan, but still faced the same issues. |  Welcome to Rabat, Medina !
Hi, this is a short video i filmed showing the area around Rabat which our volunteers work and live as well as some of our local children who work with and were willing to star in our film! |
