2018 Volunteer Training Workshop Series
Date: Saturday, January 27, 2018
Location: Asian Centre Room 604
On Saturday, January 27, 2018, UBC Chinese language program hosted the first workshop of the volunteer training series. Over 70 volunteers participated in this event, and it was a big success.
It is widely recognized that exposure to the target language plays a significant role in learning a language. Our department strives to provide as many opportunities as possible for our students to get authentic language experience with native Chinese speakers. The Chinese program makes this effort to integrate the great resource of the UBC Chinese student community with our Chinese learning students. Through this workshop series, UBC Chinese student volunteers are equipped to provide quality tutorials to students learning the language. The Chinese volunteer free tutorial sessions are also a great opportunity of intercultural communication for both sides.
The Saturday workshop included a morning session and an afternoon session. The director of the Chinese language program, Dr. Qian Wang, introduced the program and emphasized important issues as being a qualified volunteer in the Chinese language program. During the workshop, Dr. Qian Wang and the volunteers had an active Q & A session. Volunteers furthered their understanding on key issues such as copyright, privacy, conflict of interest, work ethics, team spirit and collaboration. Dr. Hsiang-Ning Wang introduced the ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) Proficiency Guideline as the start of the professional knowledge training. During the 3 hours of each session, Dr. Qian Wang, Dr. Hsiang-Ning Wang and instructors Kuo Yuchi Laoshi, Zheng Bin Laoshi provided training on how to conduct tutorial with students from Chinese 100 level, 200 level, 300 level and 400 level language courses. The instructors provided all the volunteers with rich training materials and hands-on interactive training modules. There were many positive feedbacks from the volunteers and many expressed that the training was very informative and applicable. They had a clearer understanding on the role of being a Chinese tutor as well as obtaining many teaching skills and methods. The training session made the volunteers become confident in their position and looked forward to start helping students in UBC Chinese courses.
As of Monday, January 29, the UBC Chinese Program has received over 150 volunteer applications. All the applicants are very passionate about this volunteer opportunity and the Chinese Language Program will continue to hold more training sessions in the near future.