TEFL Graduate Students Present at Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching International Conference and Exhibition 2019 Held in Dubai

2 min read

DUBAI, the United Arab Emirates – On March 7-9, 2019, graduate students of the Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) program of the American University of Armenia (AUA), Sharareh Konoodi, Hranush Gevorgian, Nona Atoyan, and Liana Gabrielyan, presented at the Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching (ALLT) international conference and exhibition 2019 held at Zayed University, Dubai.

The students had a unique opportunity to introduce their capstone projects to an international audience. They remarked that the overall experience was highly motivating and encouraging to follow their dreams and gain more professional knowledge and experience. Having returned to their busy schedule at AUA, they are determined to continue their studies and are happy to share their experiences and impressions from the conference.

“The ALLT international conference was a totally different experience for me. I presented my capstone project titled “Speaking-Reading English Language through Art and Technology.” The conference gave me the opportunity to share the knowledge that I have gained as a TEFL student with an international audience. In addition, I had the chance to receive their feedback and ideas related to my project,” said Konoodi. She added that the conference was a special opportunity for her to share the new vision of Armenian students for learning English to communicate internationally.

“That was an amazing experience to get acquainted with a new culture and bright people from all over the world, and to represent Armenia and AUA,” said Gevorgian. She added: “After my presentation on the topic of ”New Trends in Teaching and Learning Business English” I received outstanding career opportunities, such as job and partnership offers from Greece and Iran.” Gevorgian also noted that she had received invitations to submit her paper from several international peer-reviewed journals. “The conference, presentations and discussions were equally stimulating and thought-provoking. I returned to my classes with stamina and innovative ideas that I plan to implement.”

“It was my first time taking part in an international conference and introducing my research and co-authored course book “English for Professional Communication.” At first, I was a bit nervous but after several seconds of my presentation I felt how the audience was interested in my work and how they took notes. I was surprised that after our presentation many participants from different countries approached us, congratulated, asked questions and gave useful feedback,” said Atoyan. She stressed that thanks to what she has learned at AUA’s TEFL program, there was no topic at the conference that was new to her.

Gabrielyan noted that it was a great honor for her to represent Armenia in such a high-placed international conference. “It was nice to see how the delegates and organizers visiting our sessions were interested in Armenia. That was a very important step towards my future career in terms of partnership offers and professional networking,” said Gabrielyan. She remarked that due to this exceptional professional and cultural experience she had the opportunity to receive feedback from pioneers in the field. “This conference was a life-changing experience for us in terms of developing professional and personal skills to become future leaders in this field,” remarked Liana.

Founded in 1991, the American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia, and affiliated with the University of California. AUA provides a global education in Armenia and the region, offering high-quality graduate and undergraduate studies, encouraging civic engagement, and promoting public service and democratic values.