Details

    Arabic Lessons

We understand that our participants will have varying levels of capability when speaking Arabic; thus, we established the three following learning tracks for Arabic classes:

• Arabic for Beginners: For those who have little to no experience speaking Arabic. Teaches students colloquial spoken Arabic in the Palestinian Dialect.
• Intermediate Arabic: For those who are able to speak some Arabic but cannot read or write. Teaches students the above in addition to the alphabet and how Arabic letters are tied together to form words.
• Advanced Arabic: For those who speak and understand Arabic fluently and have some ability to read and write. Teaches students how to speak, read, and write Classical Arabic

Being that you are a Palestinian born outside of Palestine, we are assuming that your parents did not leave their native homeland by choice and rather unwillingly abandoned their homes due to the grave difficulties that they faced under occupation and war. Thus, your parents, as well as their descendants (you) are technically refugees. You are a refugee because the reason you are living in a foreign state is due to the fear of persecution in your homeland simply for being born an Arab.

Thus, all participants will be living with host families in the Dheisheh Refugee Camp. These families will adopt you as a family member and care for you as one of their own. They will allow you to penetrate the local social-life by inviting you to family events, such as weddings, funerals, clan meetings, family-visits, etc. They will help you improve your Arabic language skills through daily practical use, and accommodate your every need.

If you would prefer to live alone, you may also stay in a private guest house, or if you have family in the Bethlehem area, you may also stay with them as well.

    Dheisheh

The Dheisheh Refugee Camp is in South Bethlehem in the West Bank. It lies on 1.5 square kilometers (430 dunums) and is home to 2,682 families, and more than 12,451 people. The camp was created as a temporary refuge in 1949 for 3,400 Palestinians from 45 villages west of Jerusalem and Hebron who fled during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

Though initially living in tents, towards the end of the 1950s the UNRWA started to build very simple living units: A single room of 10 square meters, 10 cm thick and 2.45 m high walls, a corrugated steel roof and a floor made of rough concrete. Refugees soon after began to build their own houses so as not to live in the UNRWA's shacks any longer. The refugees were given the land that they settled on, and built houses in the exact locations where they first planted their tents; thus, there is no central planning for the camp (i.e. a grid system) and the camp is characterized by a maze of very narrow streets.

The camp is right next to the villages of Al-Doha, Al-Khadir, and Irtoss. Moreover, it is a 5-minute drive (or 20 minute walk) from the center of Bethlehem or the heart of Beit Jala, and a 10 minute drive from Beit Sahour. The main road that links Hebron and Jerusalem intersects the camp; moreover and both cities are only a 20 minute drive from the camp. There are multiple 24-hour taxi-cab offices on the main road of the camp.

The people are generally well-educated, secular nationalists, and can be described as very welcoming, hospitable, and humble. The camp’s rich human capital has resulted in a well-flourished civil society – in fact, the Dheisheh Refugee Camp was the first area in the Bethlehem Governorate to have an internet connection, and today almost every home in the camp has a computer online. Another, achievement is that the Camp has more non-profit, non-governmental civil institutions than the entire Bethlehem governorate.

    Internships

Your internship will be geared towards your individual field of concentration or interest, so that you may hone your skills and put your classroom knowledge to practice. Moreover, the international experience that this program offers is definitely noteworthy for your resume/CV and can help you become more networked in the international business, non-profit, NGO, relief and development sectors. Also, PCNSS is always ready to provide its Alumni with letters of recommendation.