In order to support the development of the Dongdaemun community and create a harmonious community environment, KDI School has been taking the social responsibility of supporting the Dongdaemun Community Welfare Center. The Dongdaemun Community Welfare Center is located in Jaegi dong, Dongdaemun Gu, and is aimed to help children, the elderly, and social groups that need care in the community. The English Teacher Volunteering Program focuses on teenage middle school children.

From March 2009, 5 international students have been teaching English and sharing their diverse cultures with the children her twice a week. Ernest Otoo (MPP, Ghana), Zhonglei Liu (MBA, China), and Vanessa Jimenez (MPP, Philippines) lead a class together each Friday evening, while on Saturday afternoons, classes are delivered by Viniana Namosimalua (MPP, Fiji) and Mary Sol Dela Cruz (MPP, Philippines). Volunteers have been delivering the English courses with a systematic and progressive approach. First of all, as a foundation, children are taught daily expressions through short conversations in which students and teachers take turns reading. After getting used to basic communication skills, students then get short stories, which are usually written by famous writers in easy to understand English and have attractive content as well.

Volunteer teachers explain the meaning of words from the article, and then discuss it with the kids for their understanding and further application. To enhance the curriculum, volunteer teachers also make use of audio materials, and take students on field trips outside of the classroom, such as on picnics.

The majority of the children are 12 to 16 year old teenagers, and most of them come from lower income or single-parent families. Volunteers understand this situation and try to give them a lot of encouragement during the lessons. “Because of hurt from family or lack of resources to communicate with foreigners, some children are a bit introverted,” said one of the volunteer teachers, ”so, at first it takes some time to get familiar with each other. But they are all very brilliant kids, and when they open their minds and get close with us, we find very big dreams inside their hearts.”

At the same time, the volunteers are trying to make the English classes light and happy. They communicate with the kids about issues in their daily lives, helping them solve concerns involving their studies and life in general. One volunteer teacher said that “We don’t limit our studies solely to English. We also introduce them to our nations and share with them our cultures. Many kids show great curiosity in that. That’s a lot of fun.”Also, in May KDI School Library staff members and volunteers invited the children to visit KDI School, where they were shown the classrooms, library, and also watched a movie in the conference room. Sometimes, volunteer teachers also have dinner together with the children, and at those times the children have the chance to teach their foreign teachers about Korean food and culture. Therefore, “Instead of a relationship between teachers and students, we’re more like friends,” said one volunteer.

The children also like the experience of having foreign teachers. Some children said that at the beginning they were scared of talking with the volunteers because of their different skin colors and languages. However as time goes by, many children are becoming familiar with these foreign friends. As one volunteer teacher expressed, “We have 4 or 5 kids who join class regularly. We hope they will introduce their friends and welcome more kids to come into our Family.”

Besides organizing the volunteering program, KDI School has been providing financial support to the Dongdaemun Community Welfare Center. From 2006, the faculty and staff members of KDI School have been gathering funds by rounding off their monthly salaries. In December 2008, KDI School donated a total of 5,225,360 as an emergency welfare fund to the Dongdaemun Welfare Community Center. We sincerely hope that the program will continue successfully into the future and attract more children to participate. We also hope this program may serve as a catalyst for more activities and contributions from KDI School to our community, city and society.

By Zhonglei LIU (2009 MBA, China)