Univ. of Algiers…part Deux

(Photo: Bouzareah Campus of the University of Algiers)

Transportation to the Bouzareah campus has been challenging. Today, I missed the buses in the morning and waitied nearly an hour to go to Bouzareah, which made me tardy for my 8:30 class. Not a big deal considering that the teachers were on strike and many classes were as a result cancelled this first week.

The teachers were making what they called a “Protestation”, en francais, in favor of higher wages. I’m told the salary for a university teacher with a master’s or doctoral degree that has a full time schedule is approximately $400 per month. Even though Algeria is a developing country, prices are in general high, so that is the main reason for their request that salaries be raised.

As far as the conditions of the institution, they seem to be in line with what one finds at public universities in developing countries. Many are burdened with an enormous amount of students and demand for programs, but not equipped with sufficient infrastructure and wo/manpower to meet those needs. However, that cannot halt the learning and Algeria is making an effort to do the most with what it has at its disposal. The Bouzareah campus is aimed at those studying the Arts and Sciences. I understand there are somewhere between 12-15,000 students attending classes there, several thousand of which are in the English department.

This year I am teaching 4 courses for the University of Algiers : 1 general English course aimed at Translation and Interpretation Students at the Fac. Centrale’s Translation Department and 3 specialized courses to 1st year students at the English Department of the Bouzareah Campus. These 3 are Phonetics, Oral (Speaking and Listening), and Writing. The English Department offers a Licence, the equivalent of a B.A., a Maitrise, the M.A. and a Ph.D., so there is a lot going on. As last year, there will be a large number (50+) of students in the classes. These big numbers should provide me with an ample representative sample of Algeria’s university students.

The faculty members have been quite hospitable and helpful in providing me with assistance and orienting me for the courses I will teach. Most are multilingual- French, Arabic, English, and perhaps Tamazight, - and have done very impressive work in Algiers and/or abroad, i.e. England, France or the USA. I look forward to getting to know them and collaborating on projects.

I did make it to my second class for Mondays and 5 students showed up. Two were actually in the section for that particular class, but the others happened to be from different groups of different classes that I will teach. It was nice to finally meet some of the students and they were pleasantly surprised to have an American teacher there.
(Left: Main Building at the Fac. Centrale)
My other classes at the Fac. Centrale or Central Campus in downtown Algiers, will begin next week. There I will teach 3 hours a week to a group of 2nd year students in the Department of Translation. Khadija, a doctoral student there that works and teaches for the department as well, has helped orient me there. She helped me arrange my schedule and get set up for Arabic classes at the intensive language center at that campus. She also gave me a brief tour of the school. Interestingly enough, the Central Campus dates from 1909 and was the first university in Africa. Several prominent French philosophers studied there and one senses a distinguished aura of academic legacy as one walks among the stately buildings making up the campus. At a 9 or 10-story building behind the grand university library and beyond a botanical garden plaza, I will be teaching the students in a classroom that is on the top floor. Khadija likes that room because it is conveniently adjacent to a smaller linguistics library and for the majestic views over the campus below and the port beyond the rest of downtown. She also suggested it because the large number of stairs guarantees that only the very motivated students will make the effort to attend class.

(Right: Lecture hall in Main Bldg. of Fac. Centrale- not my classroom, btw)