The English Department at An-Najah National University organized a lecture on Sunday April 24 given by Prof. Per Andersen and titled: The Growing Mind – Executive Functions and Mental Health in a Developmental Perspective. The lecture was held at the Library Conference Room, the Old Campus and was attended by the English Department students and some faculty members. Prof. Andersen and his colleague Erni Gustafson of Lillehammer University College, Norway are visiting An-Najah National University in a research mission that they organized in collaboration with Dr. Nabil Alawi.

Prof. Andersen discussed the different functions of the brain and showed how the development of each function can lead to either the inhibition or the promotion of the different behaviors and learning activities of children and young learners. Understanding these functions and their development helps students in their learning habits and expectations. The topic of the lecture is both vital and novel in its orientations and approach.

Dr. Ekrema Shihab, the Chairman of the English Department welcomed the guests and commended the activity as a very important step in the international cooperation of research among professors from An-Najah and the outside world. He said that such activities promote mutual understanding and open up horizons for collaboration in research and the exchange of information hoping that the lecture will be a step towards more cooperation between professors from An-Najah and Lillehammer University College.

The lecture was concluded with a very useful discussion between the visiting guests and the students of the English Department who left a very positive impression on the guests.