For the second time this year, KDI School students volunteered as 1-day teachers at elementary schools in Sejong City. As part of an initiative to stimulate more interaction between international students at KDI School and the local community, six international students visited Jongchon Elementary School on May 16 and 17 during the first half of 2016 and Areum Elementary School and Dowon Elementary School during the first half of 2016 while seven international students visited Dowon Elementary School and Areum Elementary School on July 12 and 15 during the second half. KDI School plans to hold more volunteer sessions in October to continue its commitment to the local community in Sejong.
The Globe interviewed three students (Ibrahim Haail ABDUL RAHMAN, Emmanuel Uduak EKANEM, and Jullianny Bayarone BATRES GONZALEZ) who volunteered in the 1-day teacher program.

1. Can you introduce yourself to our readers?
   Haail: My name is Haail. I’m a 2014 MPP Student from the Maldives and a National Institute for International-Education Korean Government Scholarship Program (NIIED-KGSP) scholar.
   Emmanuel: My name is Emmanuel and I’m a 2014 MDP candidate from Nigeria. Like Haail, I’m also a NIIED-KGSP scholar.
   Julliany: I’m Julliany and I’m a 2016 MPM student from El Salvador. I actually participated in the NIIED-KGSP program in 2011 and started studying my first Master’s degree on Korean Language Education, graduating in 2015. 

2. Can you describe the activities you did as part of the volunteer program?
   H: I was asked to share some information about my country to the students. I also explained how I managed to reach to KDI School. One of the most important goals of the presentation was also to encourage students to study hard and think outside the box.
   E: I basically provided and shared various cultures and lifestyles from my beloved country (Nigeria) using Korean. After that, there was a discussion session between me and the students as they sought to know about Nigeria.

   J: As a volunteer, I prepared a presentation with basic information about my country, such as the location, language, currency, touristic places, and so on. Also, I had time to explain who I am, how I came to Korea, why I was studying at KDI School, and my future dreams. Particularly in my case, I taught the children about my country’s language and traditional dance. At the end of the presentation, I handed out some traditional cookies and candies during the Q & A session.

3. What did you learn from the program?
   H: I came to know that Korean kids are very active in class and are very eager to learn new things. The questions they brought up were very inquisitive. The Korean government provides great facilities and the schools were equipped with great facilities for students.
   E: I learnt how to be more patient as I taught elementary school students. It also reminded me again that global sustainable development goes beyond just economic development or environmental security.
   J: I thought I was going to deliver information that was completely new to students. However, once I started my presentation, many of the children replied to the questions so confidently, which made me think they already knew about my country. It made me so happy to know that children learned about El Salvador in advance and were looking forward to hearing about the country from a native.
4. Were there any challenges?
   H: There were some English words or descriptions which were a bit difficult to explain in Korean in some situations. Other than that, there weren’t any difficulties.
   E: The only thing I could call a challenge is the fact that I first had the fear of how to teach or discuss in Korean. However, I was able to overcome that fear with time and the warm reception we received from the school.
   J: The main challenge maybe was to use vocabulary and information at an easier level for elementary students. For that reason, my slide presentation was full of images and pictures rather than graphics and words. I would also like KDI School to open this opportunity to more international students. I would suggest international students who cannot speak Korean get a friend who can speak Korean to interpret during their presentation. That could be a good idea to involve more international students, and to let children learn about more countries.

By Marian GRASS (2015 MPP, Egypt)