An Interview with Mostafa Rahbar

Mostafa Rahbar graduated from the University of Tennessee with a B.S. in broadcasting and an M.S. in foreign language education.

He has worked as a producer/director of documentary films in Iran, and has translated several books (English-Persian) for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

He began teaching at ELI in 1980.

What is your native country?

I was born in Iran, but I came to the United States at a young age to study.

How did you learn the English language?

I started to learn English when I was a child. My parents were in contact with Peace Corps volunteers in Iran, and very soon I learned English by speaking to them and reading books.

How many languages do you speak? Describe how being multilingual has helped you in your career and personal life.

In addition to English, I speak Persian, Semnani, which is a very ancient Indo-European language, also referred to as a proto Indo-European language, Spanish, French, and some classical Arabic. Being multilingual has definitely helped me in my career, and I also feel that it has influenced many other facets of my life.

For instance, when I teach students from different language backgrounds, I know what problems they have and how best I can handle their problems. Needless to say, it has helped me tremendously in my travels to many parts of the world. I believe that a person's collective experiences in life enrich his/her life, no matter what those experiences may be.

What did you do prior to working at ELI?

Prior to working at ELI, I had been working as a producer/director of documentary films for the National Iranian Radio and Television educational station for four years.

What was the focus of the documentaries that you directed in Iran, and why did you choose those subjects?

The focus of my documentaries was ancient Persian history, ecology, and English instruction, which I hosted and narrated myself.

You have been an ELI instructor for more than 25 years. How did you become involved with ELI, and what is your most memorable ELI experience?

I returned to the United States in 1980 and have been working as an instructor ever since. I had taught English in Iran for a U.S. State Department binational center with several thousand students before I returned to the United States. I applied for a job at the ELI and started working here.

Your biography mentions that you did some work with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization? What type of work did you do for UNESCO.

I translated many books from English into Persian and from Persian into English for UNESCO while I worked for the Center for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults. My books were published in Iran, Japan, and The United States.

What do you enjoy most about UT?

I enjoy working at UT because I am in an educational environment, and teaching young people keeps me young at heart.

What are your other interests besides teaching?

I am very interested in art. (I also) I love cooking, photography, sonography, music, and painting.

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English Language Institute
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Email: eli@tennessee.edu