English teaching volunteers share Taiwan experience after month-long trip ends

Taipei, Aug. 1 (CNA) Over 500 young people from 22 countries completed the government-organized month-long English teaching program in Taiwan on Thursday, in which they built connections with Taiwanese culture and helped broaden local students' global horizons.

The program recruited 502 volunteers, aged 17 to 25, who taught English in over 80 elementary and junior high schools around Taiwan, said the Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC), which ran the program.

This opportunity gave volunteers the chance to explore Taiwan's culture, history, and scenery, the OCAC added.

One volunteer teacher, Joyce Han, from New York, said at a Thursday event in Taipei to wrap up the program that although some younger students initially struggled with English, they picked it up quickly.

She said she was touched when "a little girl handed me a note with 'I love you' written in Chinese."

Despite Typhoon Gaemi disrupting their schedule and leaving volunteers stranded, Han, who taught at a school in Taichung, said she still hugely appreciated the teaching opportunity.

"What I enjoyed most about Lishan is the beautiful scenery there," she said, adding that she also ate a lot of peaches, the signature fruit of Lishan, Taichung.

Others noted that the most valuable thing they had learned was how to work together with other volunteers.

"I think I improved my Mandarin, but also communicating and working with other people with different working styles and mentalities," said Eleanor Smith-Perez, a 17-year-old student from London.

Another volunteer from London, Sasha Erenburg, said she had wanted to come to Taiwan to learn about the culture because her Mandarin teacher is Taiwanese.

"I've never been to Taiwan or Asia, so I kind of wanted to see it," she said. "Also it was easy for us to apply because all expenses were paid."

Meanwhile, Sydney Lee, a 19-year-old volunteer from California said she liked the bus rides and seeing how different the scenery was from the U.S.

Anne Hsu, a 17-year-old volunteer also from California, noted how much she liked Taiwanese food, especially the mangoes.

OCAC head Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) expressed gratitude to participants during the event, saying they had helped Taiwanese children gain a broader worldview.

Hsu noted that although Gaemi had impacted some of their schedules, the threat of typhoons is a real aspect of life for children living in the mountains, rural areas and coastal parts of Taiwan.

Maljeveljeve. Tiudjalimaw, an official at the Council of Indigenous Peoples, said at the event that three volunteer teams served in Indigenous communities in Hualien, Taichung and Pingtung.

She added that some local children now aspire to study abroad following the experience.

The OCAC English teaching program has been held annually since 2006 and to date, more than 7,000 "overseas youth" have been recruited to help teach Taiwanese children English.