Vanderbilt is helping launch a college to train teachers in Iraq

With the help of a U.S. State Department grant, faculty from Vanderbilt’s Peabody College will partner with American University of Iraq – Baghdad to launch a college of education.

Iraq’s education system was once considered the best in the region. But after decades of conflict, it’s still recovering. Jawad Ahmad was raised in a rural area north of Baghdad. He says many of his classmates never finished primary school.

“For me, as a kid growing up in the countryside, from my school, I’m the only student who made it to university.”

Now he studies physics at AUIB, and has high hopes for the new teaching program.

Xiu Cravens is leading the Vanderbilt team. She was part of a Vanderbilt delegation that recently visited a girls’ elementary school in Iraq. She says resources there were stretched thin.

“A lot of the schools are having double shifts, because they just — they don’t have enough schools, enough classrooms to accommodate all the students.”

Another potential challenge will be recruiting students to the college to become teachers. And the reason for that is probably more familiar for Americans: low pay.

“Teachers are paid half, if not a third, of the salary level of someone who is maybe a policeman or doing business,” Cravens says.

And the education style is pretty different. It’s more memorization-based than most American schools.

Courtesy Xiu Cravens

Representatives from Peabody College met with students during their visit to AUIB’s campus.

Nancy Dickson serves as director of the partnership between Peabody College and AUIB. She says one of the most important goals is adapting American-style teaching in a way that serves Iraqi students — and making sure graduates get jobs.

“They need to move into a system that is open to learning and seeing different ways of approaching the teaching and learning process.”

Dickson says over the next couple years, the team will conduct learning workshops with school administrators and Ministry of Education officials. They also hope to find a school in Iraq where they can pilot their teaching model.

The U.S. State Department is helping fund this project with a $2.5 million grant. Dickson says she was very aware of the potential negative perceptions about the partnership. It was less than 20 years ago when the U.S. invaded Iraq.

“But upon arrival,” Dickson says, “we really were welcomed.”

Dickson says students intentionally enrolled at AUIB to get exposed to different styles of teaching. Student Jawad Ahmad says that was a major draw for him.

“They provide students with real tools that will help them in their careers.” He says he likes that, at this university, there’s an emphasis on group collaboration and discussion. “They provide you with the skills to be a real critical thinker.”

Ahmad says he’d like to see graduates of the new teaching program eventually working in places like where he grew up.

“I hope that they will help students to see their real potential. I hope that they will support students through their journeys.”

The American University of Iraq – Baghdad plans to enroll its first College of Education students in the fall of 2024. Leaders plan to put a significant portion of the grant money toward scholarships. You can find more information about the partnership here.