Al-Senafi, Basemah (PhD alumna)

Currently I am an English Language Instructor at Kuwait University and have been teaching there for the past 7 years. I earned my MA in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) from California State University, Los Angeles and my BA in English Language and Literature from Kuwait University.

The topic of the research that I would like to study is “Assessing Young Learners” for it is a new and growing field in Kuwait and I would like to contribute to that field.  My main research objective in assessing young learners is implementing a new English language teaching syllabus for primary schools in Kuwait where the assessment of students’ progress will be classroom based where teachers are the ones who prepare the tests and tasks. To also look at the power of assessment over teaching and learning in Kuwait. This will help teachers understand their own students’ progress, strengths and weaknesses and how to help them individually by using the information from the assessment as a basis for future lesson planning. The reality is that the Ministry of Education in Kuwait is the sole provider of the curriculum, syllabus and tests, which then distributes them to all the schools of Kuwait. With that in mind, various problems arise that have not been into consideration by the Ministry or the government in Kuwait including and not limited to learning difficulties, individual students differences, authentic communication and practice, etc.

Moreover, I am personally excited about this research since I’ve been schooled in both Kuwait and the USA in primary education and graduated from high school with an IGCSE certificate. Thus, being schooled in different schooling systems has given me a privilege to constantly evaluate students, have a better understanding on what teaching styles and/or behaviors they’ve been exposed to, to ultimately know how to reach them in the classroom.

Looking forward to meeting everyone in September.