English language teachers from around the world will share their expertise at a Jeddah conference organized by the Saudi Arabia Association of Language Teachers (KSAALT) and the professional body TESOL International Association.
The forum on April 27-28 will feature 50 international and local speakers, publishers, universities and institutes, with visitors from Saudi Arabia and abroad. The conference chairs, Amreen Najmi and Fatima Azam, said they are delighted the event is being held in Jeddah.
“We are providing a platform for more than 50 presenters and international speakers to share their expertise,” Najmi said.
“There will be workshops, poster presentations and lectures for teachers from kindergarten to universities — a truly enlightening learning experience.”
The conference will look at improving English language education in Saudi Arabia in line with Saudi Vision 2030, the reform program supported by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Speakers will review the latest technology and look at recent developments in interactive teaching.
This year’s forum will include a pre-conference course on teaching strategies for young learners and the use of technology. The course will be run by the British Council, Master English, IDP Education and Oxford University Press.
Sponsors for the conference include Garnet Education, Alpha Publishing, Pearson Publishing, Oxford University Press, the British Council, Macmillan and IDP.
A participant in last year’s conference, Bushra Latif, said: “It gave me new ideas to use in my classroom and made a difference to my teaching style. Any teacher will benefit from this conference.”
Malikah Sisay, the past president of KSAALT TESOL, said: “Since 2008, the annual conferences have attracted from 300 to 500 English language teachers. The conference this year will continue to provide quality workshops for participants while incorporating Saudi Vision 2030.”

Arab News