The Importance of Azfa Teacher Training
Did you know teaching Persian as a foreign language was not considered by the ordinary people and experts a field needing special expertise until recently? They described teaching Persian to non-native speakers as “sweet” or “interesting” but not a field requiring expertise. When we approached them to brief them on nuances of teaching Persian to foreigners, most of them asked: “Is there any person on earth wanting to learn Persian? Why should the burden of the costs of preparing and publishing books for teaching Persian to non-native speakers and educating experts to teach Persian as a foreign language be on our shoulders?” Contradictory views about teaching Persian literature and teaching Persian language also existed among experts and in the academic circles.
Today, teaching Persian to foreigners has been recognized as a subject in need of special skills and expertise among academicians and experts though still not among ordinary people. Nowadays, those who teach Persian literature acknowledge that no individual could be a Persian language teacher to non-native speakers unless s-he has received the related education on the subject.
Teaching Persian Needs Expertise. Why?
The number of those who want to speak Persian as a second or foreign language is quite high. These non-native speakers are either interested in the language or have to learn it as a necessity. The latter group makes up the highest number of non-native Persian language learners of whom some are living in Iran and others are out of the country. For instance, learning Persian --the official language of Iran-- is a must for children of Iranians living in border villages, towns and cities of the country (they usually speak in their mother tongues which are not Persian) or it is a need for Iranian immigrants who want to pass on their native language to their children. Therefore, educating teachers who are experts in teaching Persians to non-native speakers and compiling resources on the latest developments of language education are musts.
No university out of Iran offers a subject on Persian language education. Though there are few universities that recommend students to take units on Persian language to help them in their fields of study. Therefore, Saadi Foundation, which provides those interested in Persian with expertise and skilled teachers, can make learning Persian language more attractive and broader.
Majority of foreigners learn Persian as third or fourth language. This fact will give teachers a chance to design lesson plans for their students better. One of the challenges facing the foreigners’ language learning is the Persian writing system, which is in the Perso-Arabic script. Experts believe the Persian writing system can be learned easily if its rules and principles are identified and taught skillfully.
If we know the motivation of a non-native speaker for learning Persian, it can help us to design lessons targeting the needs of each learner. For example, students of the Middle East studies could have lessons oriented towards their field of study while the daughter or son of an Iranian family living abroad can take lessons based on her/his needs.
Saadi Foundation has been offering face-to-face and online teacher training courses, especially now after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic era.
