Unable to hold an in-person summer camp this year, a doctoral student has designed a virtual camp where disadvantaged students can not just learn about, but also practice biology, music, programming and more, free of charge.
Born in Taichung’s remote Sinshe District (新社), Chou Chiao-chi (周巧其) knows what it is like to lack certain resources and the time to use them.
Chou recalled how many of her classmates had to collect mushrooms for their families after class, earning only NT$12 to NT$16 per basket.
Photo courtesy of National Tsing Hua University via CNA
To help students experiencing similar conditions, she spends most summers holding summer camps for disadvantaged children.
Many might view the shift to online classes this year due to the COVID-19 outbreak as a blow, but Chou saw an opportunity.
“This is a chance to expand the multicultural knowledge of young people in remote areas,” she said.
Chou’s vision has culminated in a virtual summer camp with six classes on an array of topics that focus on experiential learning.
Ten teachers from Taiwan and the US are to offer six two-week courses throughout the summer, starting on July 19.
The first course is to be led by Chou, now a doctoral student in National Tsing Hua University’s Department of Life Science.
Each student is to be sent petri dishes before the course begins to cultivate mold and study the microorganisms inside, after which they are to create small science projects based on their observations.
Chou has invited two fellow doctoral students from Tsing Hua and Stanford University to supplement the curriculum.
A course on fashion design aims to introduce the students to fibers, fabrics and modes of expression.
Each participant is to be sent a package of easy-to-use paper materials for the class, and would be encouraged to collect materials around their home, such as bamboo, to try weaving.
In another class, experts from New York University and the Kaohsiung City Wind Orchestra are to lead students in creating ringtones, jingles and popular music on computer software, while students in another course are to create their own animated characters by using Autodesk Maya.
In the last class, a University of Taipei doctoral student is to bring theater training to the virtual classroom as the students learn how to recognize the muscles of the human body, practice balance and choreograph to music.
Registration is open until Saturday next week for children aged 12 to 14.
Due to limited materials, each course is limited to 15 students from remote areas and low or middle-income families, as well as those with special circumstances.
The courses are open to children of frontline medical workers in gratitude for their service.
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