Giggly Princesses

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Clarissa

October 11, 2023

One thing that I’ve noticed about language instructors we get from Muslim countries is that they are all princesses. They behave like giggly, adorable, spoiled 5-year-olds. One doesn’t know how to react because one doesn’t want to hurt their feelings but neither can one babysit them like they expect. For reasons of my personal psychology, I react badly to childish adults, so it’s a sore trial for me every time.

Obviously, nobody ever offers us male instructors of Arabic so I don’t know how they are.

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7 responses to “Giggly Princesses”

Avi

October 11, 2023

“nobody ever offers us male instructors of Arabic”
I wonder whether in Arab culture being a language instructor is considered either feminine or beneath a man’s dignity.
Can anyone familiar with the culture provide further information on the subject?

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1. Clarissa
  
  October 12, 2023
  
  I don’t think it’s the issue of supply but of demand. I can’t imagine the Department of Homeland Security agreeing to bring over a bunch of young Muslim men. Who needs the risk?
  
  Another country from which male candidates aren’t invited is Russia.
  
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  1. methylethyl
    
    October 12, 2023
    
    Huh. I wonder if this is new. I had a calculus teacher in college who was a Lebanese national. He was hilarious. But there’s a lot I didn’t know, as a student– no idea if he was Christian or Muslim, not sure if he was there as a foreign worker or if he had become a citizen or permanent resident, and… it was before 9/11, so policy may have changed since.
    
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cliff arroyo

October 12, 2023

“nobody ever offers us male instructors of Arabic”

I’ve known a few ‘native speaker’* instructors of Arabic in Poland.
The women were not giggly princesses at all (although that might stem from being or having been married). They dressed modestly (covering up a bit more than is customary for Polish women) but none wore hijab.
The men were maybe a bit… stiff (by Polish standards) and could be a tad… prickly (a delicate sense of dignity) but generally not hard to get along with at all.

If there’s more than one Arab around from different countries then intra-arab prejudices can start being a problem (the biggest being Eastern prejudice against North Africans).

I’m thinking this is an age thing? I’ve also had some experience with Fulbright (teaching assistants, alas no more….) who were always young American female recent graduates (BA). Fortunately all adulted up to the position well after a short period of adjustment.

*though they’re usually supposed to be teaching Modern Standard Arabic which no one really speaks unless they have to…

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Anonymous

October 12, 2023

My university has also gotten Fulbright teaching assistants for Arabic and we have had three male instructors. One was from Libya, he seemed kind of crazy and was apparently a horrible teacher. One was from Egypt, I believe he had a PhD in English literature, had already spent time in the UK, and was going to be stepping into an Assistant Professor role when he returned from the year. He was very bright and very polished. The third was from somewhere in the Gulf and also seemed to be very in tune with western ways.

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1. Clarissa
  
  October 12, 2023
  
  Are you a state university? I’m wondering what causes the difference because we are never offered a single one.
  
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  1. Anonymous
    
    October 12, 2023
    
    Yes, I am at a large (over 30,000 students) public university. I’ve never been directly involved in how Fulbright TAs get here, so I don’t know what sorts of candidates are offered. But the Arabic program is on the same floor of the building and I am involved various language pedagogy/general pedagogy stuff on campus and so I meet a lot of them. But to put it into context, we’ve had at least a dozen women over the years for Arabic and only the three men.
    
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