The U.S. Consulate in Medan officially concluded a teacher training program aimed at enhancing the competence of English teachers and prospective teachers, held at Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Utara (UMSU).
The closing ceremony of the training, part of the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) program, took place on Monday (June 2) at the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education (FKIP) Hall, UMSU, located on Jalan Muchtar Basri No. 3, Medan.
The event was attended by Joshua Gonzalez, Head of Public Affairs, Culture, and Education at the U.S. Consulate in Medan; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dewi Kusuma Nasution, M.Hum., Vice Dean I of FKIP UMSU; Firman Ginting, M.Hum., Head of the English Education Study Program; and Magdalena Rojas Lynch, one of the instructors for the program.
The MOOC initiative is a large-scale online learning program designed to strengthen the capacity of English teachers and teacher trainees, particularly in teaching English to young learners. The program ran from April 28 to June 2, 2025, at UMSU.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dewi noted that the program was implemented in three cities across Indonesia—Ambon, Bandung, and Medan—with UMSU serving as the host institution for the Medan program, facilitated by an English Language Fellow assigned to the region.
A total of 30 participants from diverse backgrounds—ranging from English Education students to in-service English teachers from Medan and surrounding areas in North Sumatra—took part in the course, titled Teaching English to Young Learners.
“Participants completed course materials independently and attended five in-person sessions to discuss effective teaching methods and strategies,” explained the Vice Dean.
On behalf of FKIP UMSU, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dewi expressed deep appreciation to Maddie, who played a crucial role as both mentor and host of the MOOC program. Her dedication and contributions were instrumental in ensuring the success of the participants throughout the training.
As a token of recognition, FKIP UMSU presented certificates of completion to all participants who successfully completed the program.
“Congratulations to all participants. May this experience serve as a valuable asset for your academic and professional development in the future,” said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dewi.
The program is expected to significantly enhance the teaching capacity of English educators, especially in adopting effective approaches for teaching young learners.
