Program Reviews

We visited the old town of AlKhalil with our best man who explained everything about the actual situation.

My arabic lessons were very nice and funny as well with my teacher. I learned to write and ready and many other things.

The Staff is very nice and friendly and they help you with everything you need.

Th Palestinian people are amazing and i found my second family here, most of the time I spent with the locals, so I know very well how they are, best people. It is safe and you dont have to worry about anything. The food is amazing.

Cant wait to come back, i reccomend it to everyone

Following my time at the Excellence Centre in Palestine (which was absolutely incredible), I wanted to continue learning Arabic and so I messaged Rafat and learned that I could take online lessons.

I have been taking remote Arabic lessons with Saja who is a really patient and approachable teacher. She really pushes me to do my best and I’ve learnt so much.

I’ve taken Arabic lessons remotely before and gave up after a few but with Saja, I’ve persevered as I really enjoy them and I’m learning so much. I recently travelled to an Arabic speaking country utilising my Arabic so I’m extremely happy that I continued learning.

Thank you Habibti ❤️💕

If you want to improve your Arabic skills with the help of superb teachers, whilst enjoying a very welcoming atmosphere and delicious food, the Excellence Center at Al Khalil/Hebron is your place to go to!
All the programs offer an interesting experience to learn Arabic and get to know Palestine and its people.
There is ample possibilities to come with personal suggestions, which allows to create your own experiences.
The adventure can sometimes be challenging, but you will be in a safe environment!

I thoroughly enjoyed my time interning at the Excellence Center in Europe. I really appreciate the kindness and openness from the other interns at the center. Teaching English was a new experience for me but one I genuinely grew from. I was able to be flexible in planning lessons and in understanding the individual level and learning styles of every student I engaged with. Additionally, learning German was also very fun. I learned in a very different way than what I am used to but it was efficient and I was able to learn a great deal in a short period of time.
My favorite part of the internship was getting to stay and get to know my host family in the afternoons and on weekends. They were absolutely amazing. I had the unique opportunity of getting to spend quality time with them such as being a guest speaker for one of the girls’ English classes, getting invited to a family dinner, and learning more about the country. Although the host home was far, it was a beautiful and peaceful city to be in.
As a part of the internship, the ability to meet and speak with refugees in Germany was also very important to me. It was a great experience overall that I am thankful for. I appreciate getting to learn about migration patterns and the reintegration process. Adding on, getting to visit and chat with refugees from Syria in Halle was also interesting.
Looking into the future of the internship program, I do however have a few suggestions. For one, I think the internship program needs a bit more structure. For example, all interns should use a running Google document where they are writing down the activities and lesson plans of every student. As interns complete the internship, they can then share this document with whoever takes over. This would allow for students to stay on track and for interns to not be confused once they start the internship program.

My name is Aram and I'm an American volunteer doing the Internship program while studying German.
The most memorable part of the Center was the chance to meet people and make friends from around the world, even people who aren't directly connected to the Center, such as the myriad of university students. I especially loved the chance to interview refugees, and hear their extremely varied experiences. The staff are very friendly and supportive, and relate to you as friends. My German teacher Muaz is excellent. He knows exactly how to challenge you and get you out of your comfort zone, while keeping lessons relaxed and engaging. In general, the quality of teaching I have seen here is quite high.
Note that it is sometimes difficult to obtain housing near the center. Many of the volunteers end up having host families as much as 50 minutes away from the Center. This can make it difficult for many to participate in social events, and can be frustrating for these volunteers.
Many may lament the lack of structure or active assistance in teaching. Personally, I find the ability to design our own curriculums freeing and exciting. One thing that would have been nice, however, is to have advance knowledge of what age our students are and what their basic level in the language is. This would help with planning our first lessons. I found this got better as more volunteers arrived and we had the chance to shadow many of our new students' classes before taking them on.
More generally, there is a certain lack of structure at the Center. Again, personally, I don't mind this, although more advance notice with regard to activities would be nice, given our largely self designed schedules.
I urge any considering coming, to make the most of your time here. Whether here for a few weeks, or two months as I was, the time will fly by. I profusely thank the Center for all the experiences and opportunities I have had, and I hope to be back.

My name is Leiko and I am from Japan. I did the program teaching English and learning Arabic at the Excellence Center for one month. I joined this program during my summer vacation of master's study.
At excellence center, besides Arabic lesson, I usually joined English club. There are two types of English club: for beginner and for advanced person. The center offers two days and three days a week respectively and while giving students informal English lesson with other volunteers, I could learn how to teach English effectively with fun. I also joined informal English lesson at Al-Arroud refugee camp. Al-Arroud refugee camp located between Hebron and Bethlehem. At the camp, I taught English with other volunteer twice a week to about 50 students at a local community centre, replacing a school that had closed due to a strike.
As part of my learning Arabic, I took Arabic lessons three hours a week, and my class had
usually two people, so it was based on our level and curiosity which was very helpful. All
teachers in here are so nice and kind, they teach and talk to participants during and outside of the class.
The environment is very good in terms of people, opportunities, and location. Not only the
people at the centre, but also the people of Hebron are very kind and welcoming. They help all the time, and they treat us as one part of their family. The location of center was also nice which is in a main street and the street has plenty of place to eat, cafes, stationaries, supermarkets, ATM, and so on.
The center offers us many short trips. I visited old city and went to historical mosque called Al-Ibrahimi Mosque, traditional Kufiya factory, and glass factory. Also, with other volunteers in the center, I’ve visited other cities in Palestine like Jericho and went to Dead Sea and Red Sea.
Host family which center arranged to us were also very nice. I live in a house 15 minutes’ walk from center which was nice location and host families and neighbors were so kind. They sometimes offer me traditional food and they showed me their job place and shared me with Arabic culture.
Before I came here, I was a little scary of safety because of many terrible news and severe political situation. However, Hebron is quite safe and peaceful town and there was no problem even I walked alone after 21 or 22 o’clock. During one month in Hebron, I’ve never felt fear or heard threaten situation from other volunteers as well.
The hospitality of the Palestinian people is what we like most about Palestine. They often
approached us on the street, and at small local shops they served us tea and coffee and told us many stories. It is a precious memory that not only on the street, but they invited us straight to their houses and served us food and tea.
My experience at the Excellence Centre made me realise how important it is to examine the current state of education in Palestine and the extent to which what is reported in the news is presenting the current situation. I highly recommend visiting the excellence centre, as there are many things you can't understand unless you are there.

I had an amazing week at the Excellence Center. I felt very welcomed and liked bonding with everyone at the common breakfast every morning, and I had a lot of fun overall with the activities (football game, city tour,...). The team was caring and made sure that I felt good at the center and in my host family.
It was very helpful to have classes with only one or two students that way we were able to go at our own path, and the classes were adapted to our level and expectations.
Would 100% recommend the intensive German Programm!

My name is Anna and I´m an English teacher from Russia. I volunteered at the Center for 2 weeks and I really enjoyed the time I spent there. What I loved the most is that Center not only gives you the opportunity to meet new people and study languages, but also provides you with plenty of extra activities!

We had parties, football games, city tours and many other things to do. All the volunteers also made a presentation about teaching methods and I it was really interesting to exchange experience and discuss things together. So, I really enjoyed everything! The only thing which makes me upset is the fact that the 2 weeks are over and I need to go home.

The other important aspect I would like to note is that the Center treats people like people and Rafat with his team help everyone as much as they can. I was happy to be the part of the team and I hope I helped some people too.

My name is Thomas and I am from the Netherlands. I have been at Excellence Center for six weeks and I followe the Intensive Arabic lessons. The lessons were way more varied than I would have expected and offered a broad approach. I thank my teacher Mamom for that with all my heart.In the Netherlands, I focused on speaking, but here also writing and reading were addressed. The lessons have really improved my understanding of the language and they also made me more conscious of what I saw on the streets when it comes to culture, history and habits. Last but not least: I also really have laughed a lot.

Already in the online contact with the Excellence Center, I got the impression that people here will see you as part of their family. That actually was how I experienced my time here. The minute you start to speak a bit of Arabic, you become their "habibi" right away.

In my weekends I have gone to Ramallah, Nablus, Bethlehem and Jericho. On Friday, I would do a long hike on the countryside, and Saturday I would go into the cities and experience life there. It is a suggestion I would gladly to give to you, because you will also need some rest from all the impressions you will experience. I also had the honour of going to families with interesting stories to tell about how their life is here. Palestine is a special place with so much richess that my six weeks will not be enough. The good thing is that that means I have to come back one day. I am looking foreward to that moment.

I have never felt so safe as I did in Palestine. When you are on the streets, people will offer you coffee or food. Everybody likes to have a fun experience with you, because you are from abroad. I remember occassions when children asked me ten times in a row where I am from. That is what I liked most: the kindness of the people. Some people were able to speak English with me, but most of the time we both had to find a way to communicate with each other. That is a very good way to learn a language by the way.

Palestine, but also its people and the Excellence Center team, all have found a special place in my heart. In order to get an everlasting impression of its richess, I would gladly advise you all to come as well. You surely will not regret it. Not in the least because of all the wonderful people that I have met here and I know you will meet here as well.

My name is Veronica. I am from America and I did the Teaching English and Studying Arabic program at the Excellence Centre for three months. On top of teaching, I cooked in the Center’s kitchen, led an English Club, participated in a few excursions, and made so many friends.

The staff at the center are friendly and hospitable, and I immediately felt like I was part of the family. I started teaching on my first day, helping another volunteer with an intermediate English class which I ended up taking over for the remainder of its run time. I quickly got to enjoy speaking with my students and learning more about their lives.

The daily breakfasts and group activities make it really easy to get to know the other volunteers well, and people plan excursions to explore Palestine outside Al Khalil almost every weekend. My first week I joined a group going on a day trip to the Dead Sea, and in the last three months I was able to see Jerusalem, Nablus, Ramallah, Tel Aviv, and Eilat too. On top of weekend trips I got to experience multiple excursions through the center such as teaching kids in Arroub refugee camp and speaking with Human Rights Defenders in the old city. One day we went on a very memorable day trip to Mar Saba Yatta; another we had a barbecue in beautiful Loza with some of the Arabic teachers on our day off. During Ramadan we had Iftar at the center at least once a week.

I learned Arabic with my amazing teacher Maryam, who I am really going to miss. The other Arabic teachers are lovely too and would always answer questions or help me if I needed, especially Ma’mon who let me join in a few of his lessons too. I am very happy with the amount of Arabic I was able to learn while I was here and got plenty of practice every day.

I lived with a host family near the Old City who were so kind and friendly. I had my own room and felt very comfortable and like I was part of the family too—I was able to get more Arabic practice and chat with my host sisters who speak English too. I felt very safe and happy here, even walking in the old city. Honestly, my favorite thing about my experience here has been the people. Hospitable does not even cover it; they are so welcoming and kind. Everywhere I went everyone was so kind and offered me food or help with anything I needed.

One day, I was walking while on a break from the center and stumbled upon a lovely garden, where a woman was sitting. She waved me over, and even though I hadn’t learned much Arabic yet, she sat me down and proceeded to feed me lunch complete with fruit grown in the garden and coffee afterwards. Two hours later, after showing me her daughter’s wedding photos, giving me her grandchild to hold, and giving me a tour of her garden, I had to go back to teach a class. We managed to communicate through the immense generosity that I have found in countless families here in Al Khalil. This is the number one thing I will remember about my time here.

I cannot recommend coming to Al Khalil enough. The Excellence Center provides invaluable help in getting here, connecting foreigners to the local community, and providing an environment where you can meet many many new people. It is a truly unique experience. The overall feeling here is of family, for better or worse, complete with some of the chaos that comes with it.