The English department is a part of the College of Basic Education at the University of Sulaimani. It was established in the academic year 2003-2004 to meet the needs of a rapidly growing market, which ushered in a new era of political and economic development in Iraq in general and the Iraqi Kurdistan region in particular. The Department offers a four-year undergraduate major in English language and literature and currently offers morning and evening classes to hundreds of students. It is distinguished both quantitatively and qualitatively. The faculty members are committed to communicative and student-centered teaching and scholarship; many of them have earned their degrees in TESOL or TEFL specialties, and some of them hold academic titles as high as professors. The department also offers M.A. and PhD courses in Applied Linguistics, General Linguistics, and Literature.
The English department was established to prepare competent teachers of the English language who effectively contribute to the intellectual development of society. It also enhances intercultural communication and works to develop the part of the education system related to foreign language learning and teaching. Furthermore, the department looks forward to meet the needs of the labor market in aspects pertaining to foreign language learning and teaching.
The English Department strives to offer internationally recognized undergraduate and postgraduate programs in English language pedagogy. The programs basically try to foster in BA, MA, and PHD students an interest in such concepts as theories, methods, approaches, and techniques of foreign language learning and teaching, as well as concepts pertaining to educational assessment, evaluation, syllabus design, educational psychology, etc. They also help students acquire rudimentary knowledge of levels of linguistic analysis and some English literary works. They also develop students’ language, critical thinking, critical analysis, and academic research skills. The English department in College of Basic Education studies the following:
1- Linguistics Studies include the following branches: pronunciation, phonetics & phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, and stylistics.
2- Literature studies include the following genres: literary texts, poetry, short stories, drama, novels, and criticism.
Upon completing the designed semesters, the graduates will be able to:
The method of study in the department is both theoretical and practical. The subjects are divided into two groups: theoretical subjects and practical subjects. Theoretical subjects include grammar, educational psychology, developmental psychology, and methods of teaching and learning. The practical subjects include writing, reading comprehension, translation, testing, observation, and conversation practice. Moreover, during the fourth year, our students will undergo teaching practice in primary schools, where they will have the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they have acquired in a real-world setting. They will enter classrooms and teach in a practical way. This experience not only allows them to gain practical teaching skills but also prepares them to become effective and successful teachers in the future.
The language of instruction is mainly English. The subjects related to English language and literature, methods of teaching, and language testing are taught in English. Other non-specialist subjects are taught in Kurdish, which comprises 33% of the whole program.
The duration of study at the department of English is four academic years, divided into eight semesters of full-time study.
