'No-distance' English class at SOS Children's Village Vinh

The weaker the student, the more responsible the teacher must be.

The four biological sisters Te Anh, Kieu Anh (4th grade), My Nuong, My Ngoc (3rd grade) are all members of the English communication class for primary school students at SOS Children's Village. 4 years ago, due to unfortunate circumstances, all the sisters started school later than their peers. Also because they were shy and had late exposure to English, their English ability was still limited.

At first, when they first joined the English class taught by a foreign teacher, the four sisters were still shy and hesitant every time the teacher called on them to answer questions. Now, that shyness is gone, and the two sisters Te Anh and Kieu Anh are even the most active members in speaking up and asking questions in class. Kieu Anh also said that she wants to study English for a long time so that she can later communicate fluently with international guests who come to the village and help the children living in the same house.

English class for students at SOS Children's Village Vinh. Photo: My Ha

Teacher Scott David is a teacher.EnglishHe has many years of teaching experience in Vietnam. However, this is the first time he has participated in a volunteer project teaching students of SOS Children's Villages through the connection of Phuong Hoang High Quality Secondary School.

For the first time teaching in this special class, teacher Scott frankly said that compared to many other students of the same age that he had taught in centers, the communication skills and knowledge of the students here were quite modest, even only scored below average. But that was the reason why he thought he had to be more responsible for his students and felt happy and joyful to do this special job.

Talking about his students, Mr. Scott shared: What I feel very clearly is that they really like learning English and are enthusiastic about participating in the lessons fully. Therefore, if we persevere and try together, their learning will improve.

English lessons with the participation of Vietnamese and foreign teachers help students easily absorb the lessons. Photo: My Ha

Teacher Jun - Filipino - English teacher at Phuong Hoang High Quality High School also participated in this class since the opening days.

Through regular contact with her special students, she said: English is not an easy subject. Therefore, we always try to inspire them to love this subject.

At the same time, through each lesson, we try to help students improve their skills, teach them how to learn English effectively, and know how to communicate with foreigners.

I myself am very happy to teach them because it is not often that I get to meet the students at SOS Children's Villages. I am also proud that I have done something useful for my students.

Connecting the spirit of volunteerism

The project “Improving English communication for children at SOS Children's Village Vinh” was officially launched and launched at the end of July 2022. The volunteer implementing the program is Dinh Duy Khoi - a Vietnamese student currently living and studying in Washington, DC (USA). A year ago, during the summer vacation, Khoi had the opportunity to return to Vietnam and visit students atSOS Children's VillagesThrough talking with students in the village, Khoi learned that their biggest dream is to learn English with foreigners to improve their listening, speaking, reading, writing and communication skills.

Extracurricular lesson about traditional Tet. Photo: My Ha

Previously, participating in volunteer activities was a tradition for high school students in the US. So after learning about the wishes of his Vietnamese friends in his home country, the male student, who is studying in grade 11 at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in the suburbs of Washington, DC, connected with his friends and teachers at Phoenix High School for Excellence to build this project.

The charity project was organized with the desire to equip SOS Village children with English communication skills so that they can welcome and interact directly with international delegations as hosts, creating conditions for international integration.

In addition, it will open up opportunities for students to access a treasure trove of knowledge, exchange and learn about new cultures, contributing to developing students' potential and helping them become independent members who know how to contribute to society...

Before the project was implemented, with the support of volunteers who are teachers working at Phuong Hoang High Quality Secondary School, students who registered to participate in the class were interviewed and surveyed to provide the most accurate assessment for classification, placement and design of appropriate and effective learning paths. On that basis, 100 students of the village were divided into 3 classes with 3 different levels, in which class A1 is for middle school and high school students and is taught online by volunteers from Washington, DC. Meanwhile, the class for elementary school students and class A3 for middle school students are taught by teachers from Phuong Hoang High Quality Secondary School and foreign teacher volunteers connected by the school.

In this class, in addition to teaching theory, the classes also focus on communication skills through creating physical games, drawing, singing and giving presentations in English. This is to make learning simple, without pressure, thereby inspiring students to love English.

A discussion about organizing English classes at SOS Children's Village Vinh. Photo: NTCC

After a period of getting acquainted and working with students at SOS Children's Village, volunteer Dinh Duy Khoi shared: When I first started teaching English to students, I was a little confused because we didn't have much experience. Besides, I'm not good at Vietnamese, my students are not good at English, and the internet connection is sometimes unstable, so it's inevitable that there will be difficulties. However, after more than half a year of implementation, I think the online classes have started to be effective and I'm very happy to participate in this program.

In addition to teaching, in the future, if you at SOS Children's Villages wish to study abroad or carry out other extracurricular activities, we are ready to advise and support you.

Students and teachers attend a volunteer English class. Photo: My Ha

The implementation of cross-border English classes has opened up many hopes for students being raised at SOS Children's Village Vinh. This is also one of the few volunteer programs that help students in the village have the opportunity to study with foreign teachers or Vietnamese, foreigners working in their native countries. Previously, many students in the village had the talent and ability to learn English quite well, but what they lacked most was a foreign language environment for them to communicate or they did not have many conditions to attend classes taught by foreigners because the tuition fees were not cheap.

For foreign teachers and volunteers participating in this charity program, the foreign language classes also bring each person their own experiences. It is also a way for them to show their responsibility to the community, to the less fortunate students and to spread the spirit of sharing, multiplying love and hope./.