Yarmouk University and the International Research and Exchange Council (IREX) signed a memorandum of understanding, at the University’s liaison office in Amman to coordinate joint efforts for developing, presenting, sustaining and marketing the early education project (ASAS) at the University’s Faculty of Educational Sciences. The memorandum was signed by the University’s President, Professor Islam Massad, and the director of the Early Education Program (ASAS) at the International Research and Exchange Council, Dr. Cameron Mirza, in the presence of the Dean of the Faculty of Educational Sciences, Dr. Ahmed Al-Sharifin, the first director of teacher preparation programs at “ASAS,” Dr. Saeb Ali Khasawneh, and the project coordinator at Yarmouk University, Selin Nino.

Massad affirmed the commitment of Yarmouk University, through the Faculty of Educational Sciences, to develop a classroom teacher program plan and legislation related to accepting students based on the needs of the Jordanian, Arab, and regional labor market. This plan, he explained, aims at providing qualitative education for students and enhancing the scientific and academic reputation of the University in implementing the specialty of classroom teacher and other specializations that provide the Ministry of Education with qualified teachers. He then pointed to the University’s plan to market the early education program (ASAS) and attract high-quality students to join the program, pointing out the University’s keenness to actively participate in the committees that lead the development of policies and instructions related to the program, as evident in its endeavor to develop its faculty members.

For his part, Mirza confirmed that (ASAS) is a project funded by the United States Agency for International Development, which aims at developing the classroom teacher program at the Faculty of Educational Sciences at Yarmouk University by enhancing the institutional performance of the University, developing curricula and teaching-learning materials, enhancing practical training, and supporting the University’s infrastructure.