Fulbright Teaching Excellence and Achievement Program – Media Literacy Cohort

The U.S. Embassy in Tajikistan announces applications to the Fulbright Teaching Excellence and Achievement Program – Media Literacy Cohort, a program of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and administered by IREX.

The Fulbright TEA Media Literacy Cohort brings international secondary school teachers to the United States for a six-week program to take coursework for professional development at a host university, observe and share their expertise with U.S. colleagues, and develop action plans to promote media literacy and critical thinking skills in their home schools, classrooms, and communities.

Fulbright Teachers support people-to-people diplomacy throughout their time in the United States, in U.S. host classrooms and communities.

All participants have opportunities to observe, co-teach, and share their expertise in U.S. secondary schools.

The Fulbright TEA Media Literacy fellowship provides:

  • J-1 visa support
  • A Pre-Departure Orientation (PDO) held in Tajikistan
  • Round-trip airfare to and within the U.S.
  • A Welcome Orientation and End-of-Program Workshop
  • Academic program fees
  • Housing and meals
  • Accident and sickness medical coverage
  • Transportation to local schools (as needed)
  • A daily allowance for incidentals during the university academic program
  • Travel allowance
  • Opportunity to engage in alumni activities

Program Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must:

  • Be full-time, secondary-level teachers of English, English as a Foreign Language (EFL), social studies, civics, history, global studies, media studies, communications, journalism, law, math, science, or related fields at institutions serving primarily a local population are eligible for the program;
  • Have earned a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent education and experience;
  • Have five or more years of full-time teaching experience;
  • Be citizen of and resident in Tajikistan;
  • Earn a minimum score of 500 on the paper-based TOEFL or 61 on the internet-based TOEFL;
  • Have experience or interest in the field of media literacy and critical thinking;
  • Demonstrate a commitment to continue teaching after completion of the program;
  • Secondary-level teachers include both middle and high school teachers serving students between approximately 12 and 18 years of age;
  • Submit a complete online application.

Educational administrators (such as representatives or officials of the Ministry of Education) and school administrators who do not teach at least fifty percent of their time, full-time teacher trainers, university faculty, private English Language tutors, and teachers from schools primarily serving expatriates are not eligible.

An independent review committee will be convened to select participants for the program through merit-based competition. IELTS/TOEFL scores are not required at the time of your application. Semi-finalists will be invited for the interview.

Final decision will be made by the Bureau of Cultural and Educational Affairs of the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C.

The application form must show the individual work of the participant. Plagiarism that renders the language, thoughts, expressions and ideas of another author as your own work without proper permission is unacceptable. Any type of plagiarism in the applicant’s application form or essay serves as a ground for immediate disqualification from the program.

At the beginning and end of the program, meetings will be held for all participants in Washington, DC.

Application Deadline:  February 7, 2021

Please submit online applications at https://fulbright.irex.org

Refer to online application guide (PDF 1 MGB) for detailed information on how to complete application.
Program Announcement (PDF 280 KB)
Program Information Sheet (PDF 230 KB)

For additional information contact:
Sitora Kasimova, U.S. Embassy, Public Affairs Section
Email: EnglishProgramsDushanbe@state.gov