AsiaNet-Pakistan Premier Editorial Content and Press Release Distribution Service
Islamabad, June 22, 2012 (PPI-OT): The U.S. Embassy hosted Thursday an orientation for 40 Pakistani public school English teachers, half of them women, at a local hotel. The teachers will travel to the United States for six weeks of intensive training as part of the U.S. government-funded Teaching Excellence and Achievement (TEA) program.
The teachers were selected from hundreds of Pakistani public secondary school teacher applicants. The TEA program provides educators a unique opportunity to develop subject expertise and enhance their teaching skills. Participants will engage in group training seminars and internships at U.S. secondary schools. The U.S. Department of State pays for all travel, living stipends, health insurance, and tuition for the entire period of study.
U.S. Embassy Cultural Affairs Officer, Brent Beemer, encouraged the teachers to take advantage of the opportunity granted them and to return to Pakistan prepared for a challenge: “to teach your students to write and speak excellent English, nothing less.” Beemer told the teachers that the TEA program is part of the U.S. government’s commitment to education in Pakistan, and in particular the enhancement and encouragement of its teachers. “With 70 percent of its population under age 30, the future of Pakistan, and its role in the world, is dependent on the success of its children in school right now.
The job of educating that generation relies on teachers like you, and what an opportunity. Imagine tens of millions of educated, multi-lingual young Pakistani men and women serving as soldiers, politicians, diplomats, engineers, lawyers, doctors, scientists, businessmen, and teachers: what a great nation and a great world they—through you— will build.”
For more information on educational opportunities to study in the United States, students and parents can contact the United States Educational Foundation of Pakistan (USEFP) at http://www.usefpakistan.org/.
USEFP, a bi-national commission established in 1950 by the governments of Pakistan and the United States, is one of 51 ‘Fulbright Commissions’ located throughout the world. Since its inception more than 61 years ago, nearly 4,000 Pakistanis and more than 800 Americans have participated in USEFP- administered exchange programs.
In addition to the Fulbright program, USEFP administers a number of scholarship programs for undergraduates, teachers, journalists, and other professionals. In addition, USEFP offices in Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi assist students interested in applying to study in the United States by offering free advising services. USEFP also runs testing centers in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi administering the TOEFL, SAT, GRE, and other standardized examinations.
For more information, contact:
Public Affairs Section
Embassy of the United States of America
Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5
Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: +9251-208 0000
Fax: +9251-227 8607
E-mail: webmasterisb@state.gov