Tell us a bit about yourself:
My name is Mona Sukkar. I was born and raised in Kuwait. Teaching definitely wasn't one of my dreams in high school despite being fortunate enough to be taught by spectacular, amazing and unique teachers throughout the three school stages I had been through. Journalism was my ultimate dream, especially as, at that time, I was writing stories and poems and participating in the MOE contests. For me, becoming a teacher was a pure coincidence which I'll adore for the rest of my life. I started my teaching journey in an English nursery, teaching Arabic for one year. I moved to an American school to work as assistant teacher for 3rd grade for three years, then I taught Arabic as a Foreign Language and Islam in English from grade six to grade ten for one year in the same school, in addition to teaching AFL and The Holy Qur'an in institutions for children and adults. In 2005 I moved to BBS to work in middle school as an Islamic Studies teacher for ten years . This is my first year as instructional coach.
Tell us one moment from your teaching experience that was particularly powerful, interesting, or funny:
This incident happened in my first year of teaching at BBS. While I was arranging the desks after the students were dismissed, I saw a sentence( it's boring) on a desk. Apparently a student wrote that. I felt offended because I don't like to be considered a boring person, so I decided to add fun to my lesson plans. I went to the British Council website, translated some of their class activities and educational games into Arabic and applied them in my classroom. My students enjoyed them a lot and that raised their classroom participation and increased their achievement. Later on, due to the massive influential success, I created my own games and activities and made changes to the current ones to fit with the Islamic Studies curriculum. In synchronization with that I read many books about teaching strategies and attended many workshops with a wide variety of educational aspects. The landmark in my teaching career was when I got my master degree in Education. It enriched my knowledge, widened my teaching perspective and imagination and increased my confidence in the belief that the way I was teaching my students was definitely right. Since making these changes, I have never again seen a sentence accusing me of giving a boring lesson.
What teaching and learning goal are you most excited to achieve by the end of this school year? Please explain.
I would like to see all BBS students enjoy and take responsibility in their learning by adopting student based learning in teaching . Surely I want to see that happens in all departments and every subject so BBS students can confront the new millennium fortified with the knowledge they need and deserve.
Do you have any inspirational words that you’d like to share with other teachers?
" And say: My Lord increase me in knowledge". The Holy Qur'an- 20:114
"Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think".- Albert Einstein
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