Megan Jefferies came to Taiwan to teach English about two years ago. Instead of staying in the big cities, however, she went all the way to Kinmen County and did voluntary teaching at Chong-cheng Elementary School. The amazing interactions with children and friendly people, she said, have made it very hard for her to leave the school.
Enjoying the teaching experience in Taiwan very much, Jefferies, as well as 11 other English teachers from the US and Canada, decided to stay for another year to voluntarily help children in rural areas learn English.
Wearing cheongsams and traditional mandarin jackets, a total of 25 foreign English teachers came together yesterday to share their experience and bid farewell to their colleagues who are leaving for home.
Organized by the King Car Foundation, the Schweitzer English Teaching Program, which was initiated three years ago, brought people from the US and Canada to Hualien, Nantou and Kinmen County, where they volunteered as English teachers in elementary schools.
According to Morgan Sun (
Yesterday, at the end of the semester, the teachers called the experience of teaching English in rural public schools an amazing privilege.
"It's been a wonderful year for all of us not only to teach English in public schools, but also to have the chance to experience a whole different culture," said Benjamin Jacob, a 23-year-old Virginian and the leader of this year's volunteer team.
As one of six teachers in Hualien County, Jacob had through the years travelled to Taiwan four times to teach English. He said that developing a love for this country and the enthusiasm to teach are important for anyone who wants to become a successful English teacher in Taiwan.
Dedicated to continuing her teaching in Kinmen, Jefferies said that her biggest satisfaction is to see the progress students have been making every day.
"When I first went to Kinmen, kids were shy when they saw us foreigners at school. A year later, they would say hello to me, and I am happy to see how kids are becoming more confident in speaking English," she told the Taipei Times.
Sun said that thanks to these voluntary teachers, who not only teach English in the classroom but also spend time with students and community members after their classes, children in the rural communities are able to learn English in a more vivid and natural way.
Encouraged by the program's success, the foundation is planning to bring more foreigners into the program to benefit more children in rural areas. In addition, the foundation also plans to call on young people in Taiwan to join in the efforts of foreign teachers and teach in rural communities, according to Sun.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS