Dr. Susan Barduhn carries out training in Turkey as English Language Specialist

Announcement Date: December 20, 2019

Barduhn is one of three SIT TESOL professors in prestigious U.S. State Department program

Dr. Susan Barduhn, professor emerita of SIT Graduate Institute in Vermont, was selected by the U.S. State Department for a two-week English Language Specialist project focusing on professional development for English teachers at three universities in Turkey. She also gave the opening plenary speech at the TESOL Turkey conference in Eskişehir.

Dr. Barduhn's project is one of just 130 that the English Language Specialist Program supports each year. The program is considered the premier opportunity for leaders in the field of teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) to enact meaningful and sustainable changes in the way that English is taught abroad. SIT TESOL Professor Dr. Elka Todeva and Professor Emerita Elizabeth Tannenbam are also EL Specialists.

Dr. Barduhn has had an extensive career supporting, supervising, advising and training teachers. She taught English in Colombia, Portugal, and Spain, then spent eight years in Kenya creating and directing the first language institute in sub-Saharan Africa, followed by 15 years in London, before returning to the United States as a professor and chair in the MA TESOL department at SIT Graduate Institute.

She is past resident of IATEFL (International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language), and currently an educational consultant for Consultants-e and TransformELT, among others. In addition to English Language Specialist for the U.S. State Department, she is a Fulbright Specialist, a consultant for the British Council, and an SIT TESOL Certificate trainer of trainers. She is also a member of the World Learning Global Advisory Council. A published author and acclaimed public speaker, she is frequently invited to give keynote addresses at conferences around the world.

Through projects developed by U.S. embassies in more than 80 countries, EL Specialists work directly with local teacher trainers, educational leaders, and education ministry officials to exchange knowledge, build capacity, and establish partnerships benefiting participants, institutions, and communities in the United States and overseas.

Dr. Barduhn's most recent project took place at three major state university prep programs in Turkey: Uludağ University in Bursa, Yildirim Beyazit University in Ankara, and Osmangazi University in Eskişehir, which received hands-on training from Dr. Barduhn. At the conclusion of each two-day visit, administrators were better informed about how to support their university's Continuing Professional Development Unit (CPDU); teaching staff were more familiar with the importance of CPDU and felt less trepidation about playing an active role in their own program's CPDU; and CPDU staff were exposed to a range of CPDU models and began analyzing and revamping their own CPDU.

Since 1991, the English Language Specialist Program has sent hundreds of TESOL scholars and educators abroad to promote English language learning, enhance English teaching capacity, and foster mutual understanding between the U.S. and other countries through cultural exchange. On assignment, EL Specialists may conduct intensive teacher training, advise ministries of education or participate in high-level educational consultations, and offer plenary presentations at regional, national or international TESOL conferences. These projects are challenging and those selected represent the best of the U.S. TESOL community. In return, the program provides professional development opportunities to help participants experience different cultures and build skills that can greatly enhance their TESOL careers back home.

English Language Specialists are counted among the more than 50,000 individuals participating in U.S. State Department exchange programs each year.

Last month, SIT Graduate Institute and it's TESOL MA program received an award from the State Department as the institution that has produced the most participants for the English Language Fellows program.

Visit the SIT Graduate Institute website for more information about the SIT TESOL program

For more information about the English Language Specialist Program visit elprograms.org/specialist; call 202-632-6452; or e-mail [email protected].