Geographies of MENA

 My brief presentation on MENA Geographies was part of a MENA Institute for in-service teachers sponsored by the MENA Program at Bridgewater State University and sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education.

July 5 update: We did not capture a recording of this presentation. Fortunately, my colleague Dr. Jabbar al-Obaidi -- who was one of the organizers of the event -- has invited me to give the presentation again on his InFocus program on Bridgewater TV. This gives me the opportunity to include a few amendments to the original presentation. Return to this post for a link to the program and its recording. 

Qahua for Educators

 I am most grateful for the opportunity I have had to speak about coffee at 12th International Conference on Education and Educational Technology. I last presented to this group in July 2017, when it was held in Tafila, Jordan. My participation today is online, though I look forward to presenting again when the conference is held next year in Morocco.

My presentation Qahua: Arabica in the Arab World discusses the absence of coffee cultivation in the region that developed coffeehouse culture as we know it and that gave coffee its scientific name. Because the focus of the conference is on teaching technologies that have been effective during the global pandemic, I devote some attention to how coffee lends itself to teaching and learning, and how challenges to learning at a distance can be overcome.