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Tran, Andy (陳瑞豪)
Overall I feel that I have really developed as a teacher and as a person. The students at Ruifang are very sweet and I genuinely consider myself very lucky to be able to teach such cooperative students. But also trying to incorporate creative teaching strategies was a huge challenge, so I am really grateful to the trainers at Chientan, Claire, Max and Sunnyah who all helped inspire our lessons. By seeing how well the students responded, I believe that it was effective in helping the students build up their confidence in using English and also letting them have fun and gain a memorable experience. This also explains why the general trend in education is moving towards using creative, student-based learning.
The work schedule with teaching from 9am -4pm and then lesson planning all the way until 9pm was very intense but I relied on my motivation and passion to teach these students. Now I really admire the amount of work that teachers do outside of the classroom!
I have also learnt to appreciate what I have, and my life in Sydney. It’s very inspiring to be a part of an environmentally-conscious community which has encouraged me to change my habits. I’m also not as afraid of insects anymore. And being a part of the Ruifang community for 2 weeks has already made me feel like this is my second home that I can return to any time in the future.
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Tong, Anna (童安娜)
My time at 馬光國中 is one of the best highlights in my life. The program allowed me to experience many first times such as my first time teaching English at a rural school. It was also my first time bonding so closely with the students and other teachers within only a few weeks. It was my first time to go shrimping, visit Taiwanese night markets, ride a motorcycle, etc. I was able to quickly bond and work with like-minded people as well as teach lovely students. The staff and Taiwanese volunteers were extremely passionate and supportive of our ideas and teaching. During the program, we also had many opportunities to bond with the students such as going on field trips to see how pop rice and sesame candy were created. As a final year student I also discovered the importance of building strong rapport with students. It was exciting to see them develop their confidence in practising English despite their insecurities. I didn't expect myself to enjoy this program so much! I also had many opportunities to engage in the Taiwanese culture during the last week of the program. I am extremely grateful everything and I am looking forward to visiting Taiwan again!
Parents Reflection
My time at 馬光國中 is one of the best highlights in my life. Not only was I able to experience the Taiwanese culture and teach English to Taiwanese students, I also made lifelong international friends. I highly recommend this program to anyone who is seeking for personal development, new challenging and rewarding experiences and making lifelong friends!
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