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Jung, Melody (鍾劭韵)
AID summer has truly been one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Although I've been to Taiwan many times in my life, even going to school there for a year, AID allowed me to see Taiwan in ways I've never seen it before.
Although the first week at Chientan was supposedly more work than fun, it was still amazing to see how fast our group became close to each other. As a group of eight girls, we bonded over everything from school to shopping to social life. We were a combination of a wide range of personalities and backgrounds, but we balanced each other out and got along perfectly. In the a few short days, we were already as close as lifelong friends. There wasn’t a moment without laughter or smiles, and by the end we had so many inside jokes it was like we spoke our own language. One glance, and we’d know exactly what the other is thinking. Throughout the four weeks we were together, we shared many unforgettable memories of trying new foods, haggling at the night markets, playing tennis with the kids, and crying when we had to say goodbye.
Our teacher was the most amazing woman in the world, she gave us the guidance we needed, but also so much freedom to what our teaching plan would be like. She provided us with everything we could hope for, and made our stay at Houbi Elementary feel like a second home. She was open to all our ideas and did everything she could to make them become reality. There's no way we could ever thank her enough for the time and effort into making sure every single one of us was happy and comfortable. Her love for the students was evident in all the fun activities she had in mind and the energy she poured into making this program as amazing as it was.
Our elementary school was located in Houbi, a small town in northern Tainan. The people there welcomed us from the moment we stepped off the bus. Everybody was so kind to us, waving hello as we passed by, stuffing free food into our arms. They welcomed us with smiles and warmly chatted with us about our lives in America. One local bakery offered us free tea and snacks every time we visited, and they even let us take the kids on field trips to their shop to bake cookies.
Our students were just as friendly and welcoming. They excitedly greeted us each morning, often showing up at school and hour before class starts just to help us set up. During class they were enthusiastic and eager to learn. They were cooperative during clean up, and tidied up after themselves without complaint. But nothing can compare to the time we spent with the kids after school, taking part in their usual lives. We joined them in their tennis practices after school, and they took us around to the best food in the nightmarket. Soon, it became a daily routine for us to go with the kids to buy boba after school. In the short two weeks we got to know each student personally, and become not only their teachers, but also their friends.
Leaving the kids at Houbi was such a difficult thing to do. The whole class was crying and hugging us, not letting us leave. Seeing that they became so close to us in just two short weeks really made all the late nights of work worth it. Although it is hard to say whether we’ll see these kids ever again, with the technology of today, chatting them is just a mouse-click away. Even if we never get to meet again, I hope they’ll remember that we taught them that English can be fun.
Tour week was another adventure altogether! It was a reunion of everyone we met the first week, and this time everyone came with stories to share. During the tour I got to see parts of Taiwan I’ve never seen before. I had no idea Taiwan had so many gorgeous mountains and forests! Sun Moon Lake and Sitou just took my breath away. I also loved all the hands on activities we got, like the paper fan making or tea making experiences. I think the tour really was an amazing opportunity to get out of the cities and into Taiwan’s beautiful nature spots.
A big part of what made the tour so exciting was my bus group. They were such an energetic group and made every stop and every bus ride exciting and full of laughter. One of my fondest memories is of our bus group dancing the YMCA in the middle of the National Palace Museum; the shocked expressions of the other tourists were priceless! But all this wouldn’t have been possible without our amazing counselors. They not only took great care of us, but also were incredibly friendly and fun to talk to! I know they stayed up late every night for meetings and I’m truly thankful for all the work they put into making our trip as amazing as it was.
So then what was the worst part of AID? Saying goodbye. The tears just wouldn’t stop and everyone just couldn’t bear to leave. After a month of spending every second with all these amazing people, it was painful to say goodbye. But I’m so glad I was chosen for this program and I will always remember my month here and the lifelong friends I have made.
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Chia, Michael (賈麥克)
Participating in AID has definitely been a memorable experience. The first week at Chientan has been more helpful than exciting. It gave us different effective methods and activities we could use with the kids. Even though my partner and I couldn't use many of the activities and methods because of age appropriateness, we were still able to gain insight from the ideas to find age appropriate activities that our students would be interested in. We also learned from Chientan that in order to be effective we need to be organized. Organization and preparation for each day helped us a lot. The 2 weeks teaching the kids went by really fast and I wish we had a longer time period because 2 weeks is hard to teach them anything. But I had fun and enjoyed the 2 weeks at the school with the kids and the teachers. The teachers there were a great help to all of us and very accommodating. The weekend trips with them were amazing and so much fun too. As for the tour, it was also pretty fun. Very hot at some places but still cool being there and experiencing something different and unique in Taiwan, like the aboriginals' dancing. Overall this program has been an amazing opportunity for me to learn, make friends, and most of all positively impact others while having fun!
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Wen, Joyce (文及恩)
To be honest, I had no idea what to expect coming into AID Summer. I was a bit nervous, and all I hoped for was that the people in my group wouldn't be horrible, that the food would be decent, and that the kids I taught wouldn't hate me. Oh and how could I forget? That I wouldn't die from the crazy heat and humidity!! Really, it was impossible to gauge what kind of an experience this would turn out to be, and I even dreamt about AID the night before the program started. But now, after that month spent in Taiwan with the most amazing group of people I've ever met, it's hard to believe that it even happened. Everything is so surreal when I think back upon it, like it was a dream or another world. I can tell you one thing though, AID turned out to be a life-changing experience for me, one that surpassed all expectations, and was more than I could ever ask for.
Where do I even begin? Well, the first week at Chien-Tan was definitely my least favorite! This week can be characterized by trying to stay awake in lectures and eating meals in 10 minutes. But even then, it was the beginnings of a lifelong friendship among my teaching group - the B1-2 Crew - awhhhh yeah! :) Michelle, Karen, Jennie, Clement, Andy, Yubo, and Spencer, I love you guys!!!! Group time during the evenings was always my favorite part of these days, especially with our teacher Yvonne, who was hilarious. And how could I forget? It was during this first week that I learned new games like Pulse and Bananagrams!!
Anyway, it was when we flew over to our school, Hot Spring Elementary in Taitung, that things got a little more interesting. Everyone was so warm and welcoming, plus we got the luxury of staying at a hot spring resort! Soon, it was the first day of teaching though, and that was quite nervewracking. The kids were extremely rowdy at first, but even by lunchtime that first day, they had already started to settle down. Teaching was hard work, but very rewarding, especially as we grew closer with our students. Luckily for us though, after the long days of teaching, it was all playtime! Whether it was drinking our daily boba milk teas in the office while discussing teaching plans, or water polo in the hotel pool, or late night runs to the convenience store and the local shaved ice shop (thank you Kevin and your motorcycle!), everything was FUN. It was also tiring though, which is no surprise, when you consider how late we stayed up talking, and how little we slept! And though the days were long, the two weeks teaching flew by in a second. It was so difficult to leave Taitung, for it had already become home to the eight of us. It was so sad too, because that last day at school, we had our closing ceremony and everything was so hectic afterwards, that we couldn't really say goodbye to our kids, the kids we had grown so close to over the course of these two weeks. But time doesn't stop for anyone, and soon we were off on a train to begin our tour of Taiwan.
The first couple days of tour were difficult to adjust to, only because we were so used to our small group of eight, our hotel rooms, and our easy access to mango shaved snow!! But soon, that all changed especially with the help of our wonderfully awesome counselors, Andrew, Katy, and Rita, and all their hilarious jokes. Go Xiao Bai Chi and Bus Five!! :) Tour was a bit crazy, with all the sites that we went to, and honestly, the days became a blur. I don't know how we managed to fit so many things into one 24-hour day! It was an amazing blur though, and of course, it was over all too soon and we had to say goodbye.
So AID Summer. It was one of the best summers of my life filled with incredible experiences. Never will I forget the people I met during this time, and I hope to see them all again one day very soon. <3
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Chang, Karen (張承懿)
I cannot think of a more meaningful way to have spent my summer. During the AID program, I gained so many valuable experiences, made lasting friendships, visited beautiful landmarks of Taiwan, and made an impact in the lives of young elementary school students. It was a month that I will always remember.
At first, I was very nervous about participating in the program. I had never been away from home by myself for such a long period of time. But after a few days, I realized that I had nothing to worry about. There was always someone at my side to guide and help me. Our school teacher, our counselors in yellow shirts, and, of course, my seven wonderful group members.
During the first week of training at Chientan, I worked for several hours each night with my group to develop our teaching plan. However, when we arrived at our assigned school, Hot Spring Elementary, we soon realized that our teaching plan was too advanced for our students’ English skills. We had to quickly modify, and, for some lessons, completely change the curriculum to better fit their abilities. We encountered several other challenges as well, such as the keeping the children interested and engaged while learning as well as teaching to a class with a wide range of knowledge and skill sets. But through creativity and collaboration, all of us pulled through and managed to create an educational, meaningful experience for our students.
Throughout the two weeks of interacting with the children, they became more than just our students; they became our friends. During breaks between lessons, they would always insist that we come and play with them. They also gave us small gifts and presents. They even married all of the teaching partners (we were all in boy-girl pairs). On our last day together, all of our kids sent us off sadly with promises to keep in touch, despite the daunting distance that would separate us. Each student left a lasting impact on me, and I hope that we were able to do the same for them.
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Huang, Kevin (黃琛瀚)
July 2012 will forever hold a special place within me. When I first heard of this program, I didn't think it would be anything special. I just wanted to go to Taiwan and tour. Honestly, I wasn't looking forward to the teaching portion. Because of the recent disorganization of the AID program coordinators, I had almost lost interest in the program.
My first impression of the camp was pretty poor too. When I arrived, the Chien Tan campus was swarming with people. Granted I was a bit late, but the whole place was just filled with people. The counselors told me there was only one key and it was taken, so after I was told my room was on the 5th floor, I had to carry my luggage up five flights of stairs as the lines for the elevators went out the building. After an excruciatingly long time, I finally reached my room and surprise surprise - the room is locked. We only get one key, and the person who has the key isn't here. Great. As people kept trickling by, I had to sit around waiting for the key holder to show up. Eventually, the rest of my roommates arrived, and not a single one had the key.
A woman came up to us and asked us if this was room 1517. We answered yes, and she told us her son was downstairs waiting in line for the elevators. We basically spent about half an hour just chilling outside our room before the guy came with the key. Immediately we delegated the responsibilities of holding the key to someone else, because this guy was obviously not capable of handling keys.
I didn't really get close to my roommates until we got to our school in Nantou. By then, we were really close friends and we talked about a lot of stupid things. As for the rest of the group, (i.e. the girls) we bettered our relationships through the game of Monopoly Deal. If you've never played Monopoly Deal, just know that it's a very vicious game, or at least when we play it.
Going to AID Summer was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I made tons of new friends and the eight of us stationed at Nantou have sort of become a pseudo family. Despite hard times and pulling up all nighters making up the lesson plans for the next day, we are all there for each other and I'm glad to have met such great people. I'll also never forget the kind faces of our students, eager to learn English. The day we left, the students chased our bus as it was leaving. It was kinda funny at first, but then it was like someone was cutting onions in here.
Thank you AID for making this program. Thanks for putting me with such an awesome school, and thanks for sending us to an even more amazing school. Though the place was basically Creepy Crawly Central, the giant snails, the lizards, cockroaches, and huge spiders in the showers were what made 國姓國中 special.
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Yang, Joyce (楊仲暄)
I can't believe it's almost all over. Since I'm not able to go on the tour, I thought I'd give my two cents about my summer now. AID was an unbelievable experience for me. Going to Houbi was honestly one of the most memorable and impactful experiences of my life. Waking up every morning at 6:30, preparing a lesson plan every night, and interacting with such cute (albeit sometimes very strange and adamant) students has been life changing. I've met people who live in completely opposites spheres of the world from me. Taiwanese people are amazing. That is the sentence that would sum up my experience here. I've grown to love my country of birth. It's beautiful and heartfelt and generous and giving and kind. I've visited Taiwan before of course, but this time trumps all previous visits. Going to the small town of Houbi has opened my eyes to things that I would have never known otherwise. People down here are so kind and family oriented. The kids are family, every one knows their neighbors and the person who sells them groceries, breakfast, etc. This type of rapport I would have never experienced had it not been for this program. I've seen the nicer side of human nature, the kindness of strangers that makes your day just that much better. Thank you for giving me the summer of a lifetime. It won't be forgotten.
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Wang, Alex (王經文)
Aid Summer 2012 was definitely an experience I will never forget. To be honest, I was scared out of my mind when I first got to Taiwan. My Chinese is terrible and I was worried I wouldn't be able to communicate with anyone. To my relief all the kids spoke English so they could help translate in case I ever had any problems with understanding the instructions. I stayed one day extra at Chien Tan because I wanted to adjust to the jet lag and to make new friends. Surprisingly there were less than 20 kids staying one extra day but at least I could meet some people. Check-in was just a disorganized chaotic event. Kids running around trying to figure out what to do, parents and relatives worrying where their kids are, and a few lonely students standing around waiting for the event to start or for someone to greet them. When I finally got to my room I began meeting my roommates. There were 6 guys and we were all teaching at Xuejia Elementary School! They all seemed pretty cool and chill so I was very happy with my roommates. I was dreading that my roommates might have been weird or a little bit awkward.
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Wu, Josephine (吳孟涵)
Even though the AID Program ended about two weeks ago, memories of that month in Taiwan are still vivid. My choice to participate in the AID Program was the right choice after all. Upon hearing that I had been accepted into this program, I was ecstatic yet hesitant. I was afraid. I wanted to go back to Taiwan, but I was afraid. I was scared of meeting new people and of teaching. After all, we had to create a teaching plan with I had to experience at all. Little did I know that we would be taking classes to teach us how to teach; though long and tedious, I gained more insight on how to teach.
Surprisingly, I was able to bond with my group, B2-4, very well. I don't know how we broke the ice, but through a short one month, we were family. The most valuable treasure I procured from this trip is their friendship.
Truth be told, I am not very fond of kids. However, after teaching 3rd and 4th graders for two weeks, I have come to realize how sweet and caring they are. Despite my multiple blunders and miscommunications while teaching, they were understanding. Also, I was forbidden to use Chinese to communicate with the kids, so we could only use acting as a form of communication. Even though one of our most important ways to communicate was cut off, my students and I still bonded. The two weeks at Yude Elementary were more than what I imagined. Every day I was rewarded with smiles from my students. I also remember vividly how they would crowd around me during break and ask me simple questions in broken English. We would even chase each other in the halls; sometimes we even had water fights. Not only did I get to meet younger kids, I also had the chance to bond with the TAs in each of our classes. The TAs were fun and friendly and also joined us in our weekend tour; they became family as well. Taking on the teacher role has made me realize how tiring that job is. I have come to respect teachers even more. Those two weeks as teacher passed by way too quickly, and we were soon on our way to the tour. My whole group was reluctant to leave. Even though we had rickety and hard bunk beds and unstable air conditioning, we had come to love Yude Elementary.
Though we were always short on time during the tour, I enjoyed going to Sun Moon Lake, Fengjia Night Market, and the numerous other places. I was "homesick" at first, wanting to go back to Yude Elementary, but I eventually got to meet many new people, including the counselors.
Words cannot describe the experiences I gained while participating in this program and the memories will forever be remembered.
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Lee, Margaret (李玫珊)
I have many family members in Taiwan, so this was not my first time visiting Taiwan. However, this was my first time in Taiwan living apart from all my relatives, so there was apprehension added to the excitement of this trip. What would it be like, living in Taiwan for a month without any family? Would I be able to get along with everyone? Would my future students like me? Would I be a good teacher? I entered Chientan on July 1st feeling anxious but ready to get started. My experiences at this program were completely beyond anything I could have expected, both while living at the elementary school and while on tour. But first, my fellow volunteer teachers. I can’t believe that I’ve only know them for less than a month, because it feels like I’ve know them for years. I’m not a very outgoing person, so I was a little shy about meeting my roommates. I figured that we would all probably get along pretty well but that in such a short period of time, no serious friendships could be formed. I seriously underestimated the powers that living together and working together 24/7 have. On the first day, we all got along pretty well, but didn’t really know each other. By the end of the week, we were having pillow fights and midnight ramen parties, and would only get closer once we arrived at Houbi Elementary.
Living at Houbi Elementary for two weeks was an entirely new experience for me. Before this program, whenever I visited Taiwan I always stayed in big cities like Taipei and Kaohsiung. Houbi is the exact opposite, an isolated town that can be traversed by foot in less than 30 minutes. After getting off the bus, the eight of us were met by the principal, who took us to where we would be staying: the school’s two 1st grade classrooms. Home sweet home for the next 2 weeks. We slept on tatami mats, piled our stuff everywhere, and ate constantly. Breakfast at 7 AM. Lunch at 12. Drinks and snacks at 4 PM after class ended. Dinner at 6 PM. Fruit at 8 PM. Nighttime snacks at 10 PM. The food was never-ending. That’s what happens when you have eight girls with visiting relatives, and really nice parents of the students always coming to give you food.
In America I often do one-on-one tutoring and have also tutored small groups of kids, which I thought would make me more prepared for teaching at Houbi, but teaching at Houbi was very very different. My class had eleven students, which is much less than a normal class, but was definitely enough for me and my partner teacher to handle. For me, one of the biggest differences between tutoring and teaching is that in tutoring, everything I teach is brought to me by my tutees or their parents, so I don’t really need to prepare anything. At Houbi, my partner and I had to write a 2-week plan to teach our students Readers Theater and international cuisine and prepare all the teaching aids and materials ourselves. Even though we’d already written a teaching plan at Chientan, after meeting our students on the first day, we had to scrap our plan and start from scratch because we found out that the plan we had written did not really fit our students’ abilities.
Although I wish we had more than just two weeks at Houbi Elementary, I enjoyed every day of it with my students. Although we were supposed to teach without using Chinese, the levels of my students made it impossible to not use Chinese during class. Once the students figured out that we could speak Chinese, they became more willing to talk to us and had conversations with us during breaks and lunch. Some of the students even visited us after school and at Houbi’s once weekly night market. By the end of the two weeks I knew all my students a lot better and became friends with all of them. Since they got to know us better, the students also became more confident about speaking out loud in English during class. One of the moments I felt to most proud for my students was when they gave their closing ceremony performance: reciting a story in English onstage without microphones for the whole auditorium to hear. I’m so grateful to have had this opportunity to come back to Taiwan to teach, make great new friends, learn more about Taiwanese culture, and experience new things. Hopefully, in the future I can do it again.
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Tsai, Zoe (蔡若宇)
Truth be told, I wasn’t really that into applying for AID this year because I thought that all of the paperwork was going to be a hassle and I was afraid of going off to another country by myself for the first time. But all of that has changed. This summer has truly been a once in a lifetime experience, and I’ve never felt alone at all while I was there. So where shall I begin?
The first week was a little boring because it consisted of training classes all day, but some of the activities were engaging and fun, so they weren’t that bad. It was also a time for bonding with my “group mates,” since we were basically together 24/7. We grew extremely close during that first week through the training classes and during break time. We went on trips to the convenience store together and had ramen parties. And then on our last night at Chientan, we got to go out to Shilin night market! It was extremely fun being out after staying inside every day, and we got to eat a lot of yummy food. My teammates helped make the first week more fun, and it was a good beginning to AID before we left for our school.
When we first arrived at our school—Houbi Elementary—the air smelled like fertilizer, and I knew that we were in the middle of farmland. I eventually got used to this smell over the course of the two weeks because it only came out after every time it rained. We met the principal and other administrators at the school who were going to take care of us for our stay. They took us to our rooms, which were first grade classrooms with tatami mats for sleeping. Our rooms had air conditioning, but the other classrooms didn’t. We had a delicious and simple dinner of dumplings and hot and sour soup. We arrived at Houbi on a weekend, so we spent the rest of the days preparing for the upcoming opening ceremony and teaching weeks, but we did get to attend a Houbi Elementary reunion and go to Hsin Ying night market.
The first day of teaching was sort of awkward because it was the first time that we got to meet our kids. That day, my teaching partner and I discovered which kids were going to be troublemakers and that all of the kids really loved playing Down by the Banks. We had teacher’s aides (TA’s), and they were really nice to us. All of us teachers were extremely tired after class, and the first thing that we did when we got back to our room was lay down and sleep for a few hours. We were afraid that every day was going to be like that, but the rest of the week got easier because I think that we got used to the weather, standing, and teaching. Sometimes, after class, we would go hang out with our students and play sports (basketball, tennis) with them. We ended our first week with a water balloon fight and a scavenger hunt. We decided to make the scavenger hunt something special for our teacher, Cloudia, and one of our teammates, Peggy, because their birthdays were that coming weekend. So we had the kids meet up at the bell tower in the very end of the hunt, and we had them sing happy birthday to our two birthday girls. The kids really enjoyed the hunt, and our TA’s bought slurpees as a prize for them since they got second place. It was a great first week.
The weekend after our first week of teaching, we went sightseeing with another school, Anshi Elementary. We didn’t get very close to the group from Anshi during that weekend though because it was a short period of time, so we mainly stayed closer to our own group. We went to a lake, an old street, a butterfly garden in the mountains, and a hot spring. They had kids volunteering at the butterfly garden, and some of them were our students. It was really nice getting to relax a bit and learn about new things. After we came back in the afternoon from the hot springs, our principal told us that we could go watch a movie in the afternoon. So we hopped on a train to Chiayi, which was more of a big city, and we watched The Amazing Spider-Man. It was lots of fun because we got to go together, just our group, and we went to the 7-11 at the train station after for snacks.
The second week of teaching was more fun because our curriculum was focused around different foods and cultures from around the world. We made a different type of food each day and tried incorporating fun arts and crafts that matched the culture of the day. The first day was all about American culture, so we sang campfire songs and ate s’mores. The second day was all about Mexican food, and we made quesadillas and papel picado (cut paper—it’s like making paper snowflakes). The third day was Chinese/Taiwanese day, so we had dumplings and had the kids make menus with any of the food that they had learned. The afternoon of the third day, our class went on a field trip to the local bakery. We got to make cookies and decorate cakes, and the kids really enjoyed it. The people at the bakery were extremely nice to us and gave us free food during other trips there. They were just one group of people who were very nice to us during our stay. I guess it’s sort of true how they say that people from Southern Taiwan are extremely nice. But back to teaching, the fourth day was Italian day, and we got to eat spaghetti and made mini gondolas and masks (like for a masquerade). Friday was the last day of teaching, so we had our kids practice for their closing ceremony, and then we let them have free time and sign shirts and papers. Our kids performed a Reader’s Theater (where they read a story and all of the kids are assigned a character) for the closing ceremony, and they were the loudest out of all the classes, so my teaching partner and I were really proud of them. We had to give a speech in Mandarin in front of all the superintendents and our students, so I was extremely nervous and felt like I kept repeating myself. One of our “group mates,” Lillian, started crying in the middle of her speech, and at the end, all of us were crying and hugging our students. It was really sad, but our teacher decided to let us hang out with our students later that afternoon and night. We were all extremely sad again when two of our group (Joyce and Lillian) had to leave us because they weren’t joining us on the tour.
The next morning, a lot of our kids came to see us off. They brought us letters and gifts, probably their own possessions that they decided to give us instead. It was really sweet and touching, and some of the kids started crying. Which caused Karen and Melody to cry, that, in turn, caused me to cry. We were such a mess on the bus, but at least we were the first group to get picked up, or else the other people from the other schools might have seen us crying. We picked up 3 other schools and drove down to Kaohsiung, where we dropped off our suitcases to be sent back to Chientan (we had a duffel bag to carry the stuff for tour).
The tour was really fun because we got to visit a lot of places, and we got to bond more with the other groups on our bus (BUS E FOREVER!) because we had different dining arrangements and had to come up with a talent show performance together. I got to visit many places in Central Taiwan that I’ve never been to before, and I made so many memories with the people I was with during tour. We met up with the people on the Southern tour at Fushing Youth Activity Center, and we had the talent show that day. It was quite entertaining, and we slept sort of late that night. We eventually drove back to Taipei and arrived at Chientan again! It was hard to think that our month together was almost over, and my “group mates” and I sort of teared up when we got back to Chientan. The last night, we had a farewell party, and we said good bye to our bus counselors. They let us go to Shilin night market for one last time, and it was really fun being with my friends. We slept really late that night because we had to pack.
The next morning, we all got up around 8, and we picked up breakfast from our bus counselors downstairs. They were supposed to send me to the airport, so I had to meet up in the lobby at 9, but we didn’t actually leave until around 10. I said my goodbyes and gave hugs to the people I had made friends with. I didn’t cry at all that morning because I felt like I would still be able to keep in touch with them. The people from our bus sang the national anthem to us as our bus to the airport was about to leave, and it was really sweet and touching. We named our group the Wolf Pack, and they made the “wolf hand” to us as well.
When we arrived at the airport, it was only 11 in the morning, and my flight was at 4:40 in the afternoon. Some of the other people on the bus were also on the same flight, so we stayed together in the airport, and I got to know them better. After waiting until 1, we went to check-in and got through security. We had lunch together, and then waited for boarding at the gates.
AID has been an unforgettable experience. I made so many new friends and made so many new memories. I hope that in the future I can go back to Taiwan with all the people that I’ve met and be a part of AID again.
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Niu, Michelle (牛采蘋)
I had been to Taiwan several times prior to the program, but with the program, I had an experience that no other trips could replace. To be honest, I originally did not want to go back to Taiwan this summer even if the program drew in many positive responses. Taiwan in the summer was tantamount to boiling myself and providing free food to the myriads of mosquitoes characteristic to Taiwan. Unfortunately, I didn't get into the program I had hoped to get into, thus leaving me with no choice but to accept. I entered the program knowing only three things about it: it was hosted by OCAC, we were to teach elementary/middle school children English and it was supposed to be a fun experience. Having to create a teaching plan that came with vague instructions, however, was not my standard of "fun," especially since it was after AP testing. It was literally mission: impossible.
Given my personality, my primary grudge against the program was isolating me amongst strangers with whom I was to work closely with for the next month. I was described as outgoing by those who knew me, but when there’s no one familiar around, I turn into a relatively impassive person, sometimes to the point where it can be mistaken for hostility. Combine that with my naturally impatient character, teaching kids can’t be good.
Despite my concerns, during the first week at Chientan, I had some change of heart after interacting (miraculously!) with some of the world's best people, especially those in my teaching group. While our first meeting at the dinner table resulted in silent eating with awkward attempts at conversation, we overcame the barrier and became close friends. One month seemed like an eternity at the beginning of the program...but one month flew by all too quickly when the program started. While sitting in two four-hour classes might not sound entertaining, I learned that humans are competitive creatures, and when there's a competition, there's motivation. And that motivation, I quickly realized, had no age distinctions.
I thought (prematurely) that controlling the kids would be a nightmare I'd have to live through the day and then repeat in my dreams, but once I actually started teaching and using "motivation" and "competition," half my worries vanished. It was certainly an exhausting experience that led me to have a new found respect for teachers; no matter how competitive and motivated the kids were, staying quiet and orderly always seemed to elude our grasps. It was virtually impossible to have the children sit and learn for six hours. Periodic chaos was the signal for us teachers to take a break and return to being 8 years old, playing games with the kids. Not a bad deal on retrospect.
Taking them out to release their energy did not solve our problems of chaos once and for all though. As much as we tried to draw in their attention by bribing them with free time or small prizes, there were times where the students remained rowdy and inattentive. Based on our knowledge of Chinese culture, we often had to remind the students to be respectful of the teachers, sometimes even resorting to threatening them with the teacher at the school. However, when all tactics failed, I gave up on being patient and yelled at the kids. It wasn’t my favorite thing to do, but since my Chinese was more fluent than my partner’s, it became my task in the partnership. Although strict teachers are common in Taiwan, I was pretty sure that my reputation as the “strict” teacher would keep the kids away. Man, was I wrong.
The children were somehow attracted to this teacher who acted as the police. They listened to me during class hours and respected the teachers, but whenever it wasn’t class time, be it before school, during break, lunch or free time, I would unavoidably be kidnapped and dragged off by kids. I likened myself to a Christmas tree with the kids as my ornaments. My fellow teachers expressed their wonderment as well, asking me, “How is it that the kids like you so much even though you yell at them?” I could only tell them, “I’m asking myself that same question right now…” Before the first week was even over, I had children asking to add me on Facebook and telling me it was a must to keep in touch with them after the program. I figured it was only because they didn’t want to make me feel left out, but when they were asked to describe me to a different teacher, they replied with “the teacher that’s really good to us.”
It wasn’t just this that left me with an unforgettable memory. There was one day where I had lost my temper—it was a long day and several events had accumulated to the breaking point. It was probably the scariest I had been the whole program. Naturally, I thought that the kids would gravitate towards my teaching partner, at least till the end of the day. However, when we set up for the all-time favorite Duck Duck Goose a short 10 minutes later, the children unanimously asked me to play with them. There was another instance where three boys had made a mess of the playground slide and nearby mud despite being told not to by several people. When I found out, I asked them to spend the remainder of their free time cleaning the slide up. What surprised me was that they willingly did so and ended up cleaning the whole slide.
Experiences such as these truly accomplished the goal of AID: assisting those with disadvantages and learning about Taiwanese culture. While the tour in the last week and over the weekend was indeed a memorable experience that allowed us to bond with other AID members and made up an integral part of my AID memory, I don’t think there is anything more touching than to have my students continue to contact me and learn English through the internet. Mission: accomplished.
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Lee, Spencer (李宇軒)
Coming into the program i didn't know what to expect. Then once in the program everything was planned very nicely and things went smoothly. The way the program is administered, you are placed at tables and into groups and are basically forced to get to know the people around you, especially your teaching group since you were to spend 4 weeks with them. This was a good thing and gives the average person the opportunity to make 7 really good friends. Then at this point it was up to the average person to either get to know the other people or isolate themselves from society. I ended up making friends and the experience was very enjoyable and it was fun to see what kind of person everyone was as they all had to be themselves.
Being in the program has revealed a lot of things that i like and don't like about myself and i have learned Chinese while teaching English to the disadvantaged students. I have also learned that students all across the world have a lot of similarities separated by great differences. The experience was definitely a nice impactful one that was all fun. I would say the program was more for fun than for learning.
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Yang, Lynn (楊珮琳)
When I stepped into the crowd of people at Chien-tan, I had no idea what to expect of the AID program. It was exciting to see so many ABCs whom seemed to share very similar life experiences as American Chinese. Over the next four weeks, I got the chance to meet many of them, and form forever-lasting bonds of friendship, all through the process of preparing and teaching English.
Teaching English at Bin-Mao Middle School was a novel experience. The children, 98% aboriginal, ended up teaching us as much about their Paiwanese culture as we taught them ours. Due to the timing of the program, the attendance of the children varied, and we had to improvise our lesson plans and teaching arrangements to accommodate those who were absent due to Harvest Festival preparation and other summer programs. Nevertheless, we managed to engage them in learning about American food, clothing, music, and overall culture. This piqued their curiosity for English, and spurred many to learn English more eagerly. It was touching to find that children who would not even speak on the first day, greet you in English in the early morning the second week. By revealing to the children that learning English was not just rote memorization for testing, but a practical tool, we encouraged them to view English in a new light. Similarly, the children and teachers revealed to us a culture we could never see anywhere but there. The teachers kindly arranged afternoon trips and activities, such as mountain biking and beading, to show us their world . Teaching at Bin Mao was a rewarding experience in that we left a lasting impression on the children we taught, and carry back unique memories that will remain with us for life.
The touring part of the program was also extremely memorable. The trip, though covering places I had already gone, provided activities that I would never imagined. From rock climbing to paper fan making, the fun continued until the last night. Parting with the volunteers who had taken such great care of us ever since we stepped into Chien-tan was a tearful event, and I will be forever thankful for the sacrifices and hard work they put into making our experience such a great one.
This program was a fantastic experience from which I learned about dealing with people both young and old, Taiwanese culture, and seeing the world through different eyes. This experience will be forever cherished and remembered.
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