IT and English language training for blind people in “Aspiration for Light” center in Hanoi

Duration of the project: 3-6 months (starting as soon as possible) with possible extension

Volunteer project: The project is managed in collaboration with Nguyen Dinh Chieu and “Aspiration for light” center in Ha Noi, Vietnam. Established in 1999, the center aims to provide vocational training, cultural education, exchange of ideas and organized cultural performance for blind people in Hanoi and other provinces of Vietnam. Head and founder of the “Aspiration for Light” center is a blind man, Nguyen Dinh Tuan, a guitar player. Being blind himself, he understands quite well the wishes and aspirations of the blind people.

General purposes of the center “Aspiration for Light”:
- To help the blind people integrate into the community
- To give them opportunities to take part in different activities, exchange of ideas, deal with complexes, and improve their self-confidence in life
The main goals include improving their education level, Braille language training, vocational training for the members, support their integration in the economic and social life of the community, creating jobs.

The members of “Aspiration for Light” are blind people from 16 to 30 years of age, coming from Hanoi and other provinces. They have low education level: 80% haven’t finished primary school, most of them haven't joined any official vocational training before. They come from poor families and speak Vietnamese only.

The project's objective is to pilot an innovative scheme providing the blind people with IT and English language training, as well as job placement support in order to facilitate their socio-professional integration upon leaving the center. The scheme will demonstrate the important role of volunteerism and public-private partnerships for development.

Volunteer work:
• The volunteers will help blind Vietnamese students gain mobility and independence in Hanoi by aiding them in their daily tasks and studies. This could include helping them to take transport, attend classes, go shopping, read books and other activities essential to daily life.
• To teach English and IT to blind people in Nguyen Dinh Chieu and “Aspiration for light” in Hanoi.
• To create intensive and comprehensive language and IT training curriculum for students.
• To monitor and evaluate the students’ progress. To provide an assessment of the English language skills of the students.
• To encourage the student to learn English, for example, by organizing leisure activities in English (cinema in English, audio books, etc.), by providing self-study materials.
• To cooperate with Nguyen Dinh Chieu and “Aspiration for light” center in developing a plan for learning the essential IT terminology in English.
• To cooperate with “Aspiration for light” in developing a plan for teaching IT for teenagers in the Youth houses in Hanoi.
• Basic care for the IT material: computers, printers, network.

Work arrangements:
• The working place is the center of Hanoi.
• It is envisioned that the volunteers would devote at least 5-6 days/week (working hours are flexible).
• The volunteers will be strongly encouraged to join the other voluntary activities of the hosting organisation (workcamp management, project in the Fisher village and in hospital, social activities, etc.)
• The volunteers will receive basic accommodation and food in the Youth Houses in Hanoi (dormitory room with other long-term volunteers).
• The local host will organize social activities for the volunteers in collaboration with Vietnamese volunteers.

Qualifications and experience:
- Commitment to volunteerism and considerable experience as a volunteer (especially in teaching, if possible with blind people)
- Ready to share the lifestyle of local people (basic accommodation, transport by bus or bicycle, local food).
- High motivation and to be ready to face language and cultural differences.
- Fluent in English (French or Vietnamese is an asset).
- Ability to read Braille is an asset.
- Previous English teaching experience is an asset.
- Good knowledge in IT (Word, Excel, research of data on Internet, PowerPoint)
- Self-organized and able to self-manage the work without daily supervisor.
- Strong inter-personal skills and experience in working with a wide variety of people, cultural sensitivity, etc.

Language: English

Enrollment: Interested candidates should send detailed resume along with their enrollment form. The pre-selected candidates will have an interview by phone or Skype.

Location: In Nguyen Dinh Chieu and “Aspiration for light” center, Hanoi

Age range: 18 and over

Participation fee: $590 CAD

Extra fee: $250 US per month
The extra fee is intended to support the hosting organization who does not have sufficient funds. It is due upon arrival on the project.
 

IT and English language training for disabled teenagers in “Hold the Future” center in Hanoi

Duration of the project: 3-6 months (starting as soon as possible) with possible extension

Volunteer project: The project is managed in collaboration with “Hold the future” center in Ha Noi, Vietnam. Established in March 2002, the Center aims to provide vocational training and employment opportunities for disabled teenagers in Hanoi and the Northern provinces of Vietnam.

General purposes of the center “Hold the future”:
- To help the disabled people integrate into the community
- To give them opportunities to take part in different activities, exchange their ideas, deal with complexes, abate the pain, and improve their self-confidence in life
The main goals include improving their education level, vocational training and searching for stable and suitable jobs for them.

The members of “Hold the future” are disabled people from 16 to 30 years of age, including many kinds of disabilities: blind, deaf, mental illness, difficult in motion, etc., coming from Hanoi and some neighboring provinces. 50% are female. They have low education level: 80% haven’t finished primary school, most of them haven't joined any official vocational training before. They come from poor families and speak Vietnamese only.

The project's objective is to pilot an innovative scheme providing the disabled people with IT and English language training, as well as job placement support in order to facilitate their socio-professional integration upon leaving the center. The scheme will demonstrate the important role of volunteerism and public-private partnerships for development.

Volunteer work:
• To teach English and basic IT to disabled teenagers in “Hold the future” center in Hanoi.
• To create intensive and comprehensive language training curriculum for students.
• To prepare the teaching materials for the students.
• To monitor and evaluate the students’ progress.
• To provide an assessment of the English language and IT skills of the students.
• To encourage the student to communicate in English (for example, by providing self-study materials, games, discussions, songs, etc.).
• To cooperate with “Hold the future” center in developing a plan for learning the essential IT terminology in English.
• To help the disabled teens in their daily activities such as going to the center, making simple hand-made products, organizing leisure games and trying to encourage them to be more self-confident to communicate with the others, learning English and IT from the volunteers.
• To cooperate with the local host in developing a plan for teaching IT to teenagers in the Youth houses in Hanoi.
• Basic care for the IT material: computers, printers, network.

Work arrangements:
• The working place is “Hold the future” center in Hanoi.
• It is envisioned that the volunteers would devote at least 5-6 days/week (working hours are flexible).
• The volunteers will be strongly encouraged to join the other voluntary activities of the hosting organisation (workcamp management, project in the Fisher village, social activities, etc.).
• The volunteers will receive basic accommodation and food in the Youth House in Hanoi (dormitory room with other long-term volunteers)
• The local host will organize social activities for the volunteers in collaboration with Vietnamese volunteers.

Qualifications and experience:
- Fluent in English (French or Vietnamese is an asset).
- Good knowledge in IT (Word, Excel, research of data on Internet, PowerPoint)
- Previous English coaching/teaching experience is an asset.
- Strong inter-personal skills and experience in working with a wide variety of people; cultural sensitivity, and ability to work on sensitive topics.
- Commitment to volunteerism and considerable experience as a volunteer
- Ready to share the lifestyle of local people (basic accommodation, transport by bus or bicycle, local food).

Language: English

Enrollment: Interested candidates should send detailed resume along with their enrollment form. The pre-selected candidates will have an interview by phone or Skype.

Location: In “Hold the future” center, Hanoi

Age range: 18 and over

Participation fee: $590 CAD

Extra fee: $250 US per month
The extra fee is intended to support the hosting organization who does not have sufficient funds. It is due upon arrival on the project.
 

English classes for disadvantaged, poor and street children in Hanoi

Duration of the project: 3-6 months (starting as soon as possible) with possible extension

Volunteer project: The children who come to Youth House are from “Fisher village”, which consists of more than 40 families living on temporary ragged boats by the Red River (a small part of the village is on an island). Their lives are extremely difficult: the surroundings are badly polluted, they don’t have tap water, electricity and they have to clean the water from the Red River by alum and use it. Thus the rate of diseases and drownings is very high. All families have more than 5 members while they don’t have jobs, so it is very hard to feed the whole family. Their children, all of whom are badly malnourished and illiterate, have to collect rubbish, sell collected fruits, vegetables, lottery results or catch shrimp overnight.

The children going to Youth House are disadvantaged, poor and street children from 3 to 16 years of age. They have low education level: near 90% don't know words, none of them have joined any officially vocational training before. They come from very poor families or have no families at all. The children speak Vietnamese and very basic English, learnt from former international volunteers.

Youth House School is a small non-formal education center for disadvantaged, street and poor children. It is also a friendly place for local young people and international volunteers to come to explore their cultural diversity with lots of youth exchanges, music performances, photos exhibitions, classes for the children and fun leisure activities. Teachers and volunteers are needed to give classes to the children and cook meals for 20 children every day.

These activities are combined with projects intended to help disadvantaged people at Fisher village, who are very old and poor and live in slum-boats on Red river, by giving them free food, supporting medicines for their disease, providing water filters, toothpaste, second-hand warm clothes and free hot shower in winter, etc.

Volunteers will join a team of local young people to manage the projects and participate in daily activities at the school. You need very high motivation, good communication skills and to be able to be independent in your work.

The children are encouraged to go to the Youth House regularly for free basic education and extra nutritious food. Their awareness of education has raised, which can help them get a simple job and a better future, and ensure their independent and self-sufficient living. The scheme will demonstrate the important role of volunteerism and public-private partnerships for social development.

General purposes of the Youth House:
- Giving free lunch to disadvantaged, poor and street children.
- Helping children to integrate into the community
- Giving them opportunities to take part in different activities, exchange ideas, deal with complexes, and improve their self-confidence.
- Improving their education level. At present, the main activity is teaching basic Vietnamese, English, math, drawing, etc.

Volunteer work:
• To manage the projects and participate in the daily activities at the school.
• To cook and give out free food, support medicines to the ill; provide water filters, toothpaste, second-hand warm clothes and free hot shower in winter, etc.
• To teach basic English, French and/or other languages to the children at Youth House. Volunteers also need to train and instruct Vietnamese volunteers to be English tutors for the children
• To create friendly communication environment
• The volunteers can also teach other basic subjects to the children (with the help of local volunteers)
• To help the local host in developing a plan for teaching essential IT to children and young Vietnamese volunteers in the Youth Houses
• Basic care for the IT material: computers, printers, network.
• To build up special English teaching manuals for children for long-term application (in the Youth House and in the Foreign language center of the Ministry for Education and training of Vietnam)
• To organize fun games in English or other understandable foreign languages (with the help of Vietnamese tutors) for the children

Work arrangements:
• The working place is the Youth House in Hanoi.
• It is envisioned that the volunteers would devote at least 5-6 hours/day, 5 days/week.
• The volunteers will be strongly encouraged to join the other voluntary activities of the hosting organisation (workcamp management, project in the Fisher village, social activities, etc.).
• The volunteers will receive basic accommodation and food in the Youth House in Hanoi (dormitory room with other volunteers).
• The local host will organize social activities for the volunteers in collaboration with Vietnamese volunteers.

Qualifications and experience:
- Fluent in English (French or Vietnamese is an asset).
- Previous English coaching/teaching experience is an asset.
- Strong inter-personal skills and experience in working with a wide variety of people; cultural sensitivity, and ability to work on sensitive topics.
- Commitment to volunteerism and considerable experience as a volunteer
- Ready to share the lifestyle of local people (basic accommodation, transport by bus or bicycle, local food).
- High motivation and to be ready to face language and cultural differences.

Language: English

Enrollment: Interested candidates should send detailed resume along with their enrollment form. The pre-selected candidates will have an interview by phone or Skype.

Location: In Youth House in Hanoi, Vietnam

Age range: 18 and over

Participation fee: $590 CAD

Extra fee: $250 US per month
The extra fee is intended to support the hosting organization who does not have sufficient funds. It is due upon arrival on the project.
 

Teaching English and organising games for children in the National Pediatric hospital of Vietnam

Duration of the project: 3-6 months

Volunteer project: The National Hospital of Pediatrics (NHP), accepts many pediatrics patients from all parts of the country. The hospital consists of 22 departments, with the number of treated patients amounting up to 1000-1200, ages raging from infancy to nearly 17 years old. The majority of them are afflicted with difficult-to-cure ailments, such as hematologic, nephrologic, etc. Treatment time is often long, depending entirely upon patients’ conditions, special cases may last over 5-6 years. Time spent in hospital can vary from 2 to 4 weeks. Most patients come from low-income class, parents working in agriculture sector, living rather poor life. There are up to 300 patients who are in desperate need of regular assistance.
During treatment period, the patients do not have access to learning or participating in common leisure activities. The hospital itself is deficient in organizing psychology-care activities for little patients. Although 7 recreation rooms have been successfully established, catering for patients of the 22 departments, those are still lacking in facilities and toys, not meeting demands from patients. In addition, there are only 2-3 personnel on duty, so these facilities are open to people in need once or twice a week.
Pediatrics patients have full rights to healthy development, both physically and spiritually, like other people. They also have desire to communicate, play and receive knowledge. The efforts made by all doctors and nurses in the hospital are not likely to meet all patients’ needs. Furthermore, patients' families are often in need of financial aid and help with caring for their relatives there.

The volunteers will participate in a project which is granted by the World Bank for winners of “Innovation day in Vietnam” 2006. Volunteers will act as teachers and tutors for children who have to spend so long and difficult time in the hospital for their treatment. They are expected to share the feelings and difficulties with the children by listening and understanding their stories. They can join Vietnamese volunteers in other daily activities of the projects like teaching the children to draw, sing, origami, study, etc. Volunteers also need to teach and instruct Vietnamese volunteers to be English tutors for the children. Try to create friendly English communication environment both for Vietnamese tutors and children.

The project's objective is to ensure the fundamental rights to physical and spiritual growth for pediatrics patients, like communication, knowledge, amusement, creative games, and physical exercises, as well as to support children’s families in problems like finances, management, caring.

Volunteer work:
• To build up special English teaching manuals for children for long-term application (in the Youth House and in the Foreign language center of the Ministry for Education and training of Vietnam)
• Teach the children basic English, to help them integrate in school easily after their treatment in the hospital is over
• Organize fun games in English (with the help of Vietnamese tutors) for children in the hospital’s playground, such as singing, drawing, drama performances, magic shows, etc.
• Talk with the children and their relatives to review the last English lessons
• Help the families take care of their children
• Help Vietnamese volunteers to build playrooms, playgrounds and play libraries

Work arrangements:
• The working place is the National Pediatric Hospital of Vietnam in Hanoi.
• It is envisioned that the volunteers would devote at least 5-6 days/week (working hours are flexible).
• The volunteers will be strongly encouraged to join the other voluntary activities of the hosting organisation (workcamp management, project in the Fisher village and in hospital, social activities, etc.).
• The volunteers will receive basic accommodation and food in the Youth House in Hanoi (dormitory room with other volunteers).
• The local host will organize social activities for the volunteers in collaboration with Vietnamese volunteers.

Qualifications and experience:
- Good command of English.
- Experience in working with children and teaching.
- Experience in taking care of children, or being a nurse, a doctor or a teacher is an asset.
- Love children, highly enthusiastic and responsible in work.
- Have abundant understanding about stories, games, songs and collective activities.
- Creative, self-organized and able to self-manage work without daily supervisor.
- Strong inter-personal skills and experience in working with a wide variety of people, cultural sensitivity, etc.
- Commitment to volunteerism and considerable experience as a volunteer.
- Ready to share the lifestyle of local people (basic accommodation, transport by bus or bicycle, local food).
- High motivation and to be ready to face language and cultural differences.

Language: English

Enrollment: Interested candidates should send detailed resume along with their enrollment form. The pre-selected candidates will have an interview by phone or Skype.

Location: National Pediatric Hospital of Vietnam

Age range: 18 and over

Participation fee: $590 CAD

Extra fee: $250 US per month
The extra fee is intended to support the hosting organization who does not have sufficient funds. It is due upon arrival on the project.
 

Foreign language study program for disadvantaged students

Duration of the project: 3-6 months (starting as soon as possible) with possible extension

Volunteer project: The program runs jointly with the PSC (Phonetics Solution and Cultural Communication Center), an agency of Vietnam Ministry of Education and Training. PSC center is the first center majoring in training the phonetic system and communication culture in Vietnam. PSC center is proud of being the only center that has permission of the Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam.
PSC center has various training programs such as: phonetics, listening and speaking English, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, etc, international communication in English, commercial English, English for children. Besides, PSC center organizes many exams to provide TOEIC, TOFEL, IELTS certificate. PSC center has many teaching materials from well-known universities in the world.
In order to attract more and more students and contribute to the phonetics and communication culture of Vietnamese, PSC Center has scholarships and reduced study fees for the poor students.
With many experienced teachers both from Vietnam and from many other countries, the main purpose of the center is students’ success and social development of Vietnam.

Volunteers will teach English, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, French, Spanish, Italian, etc, 5-6 days a week to poor students at the center. The students are selected from the excellent students who desire to learn foreign languages and exchange cultural programs, but they don’t have an opportunity to access a communication environment where they can practice their language speaking skills. Your task as a volunteer is to pilot an innovative scheme to teach the students foreign languages, so that they can get a good job after graduating from universities.

Volunteer work:
• To teach to the young students in PSC center one of the following languages: English, French, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, Spanish.
• To create intensive and comprehensive language curriculum for students.
• To monitor and evaluate the students’ progress, to provide an assessment of the language skills of the students.
• To encourage the students to learn foreign languages, for example, by organizing leisure activities in the chosen language (cinema, audio books, etc.).
• To co-operate with the PSC center in developing a plan for learning foreign languages by young Vietnamese.
• Optionally, to organize language trainings in the Youth Houses in Hanoi for members of the hosting organisation, one or two evenings per week.
• To be independent in teaching and preparing teaching materials.

Work arrangements:
• There are around 20 students in one class and working hours can be negotiable.
• The working place is PSC center in Hanoi
• It is envisioned that the volunteers would devote at least 4-5 hours/day, 5-6 days/week.
• The volunteers will be strongly encouraged to join the other voluntary activities of the hosting organisation (workcamp management, project in the Fisher village and in hospital, social activities, etc.).
• The volunteers will receive basic accommodation and food in the Youth House in Hanoi (dormitory room with other long-term volunteers).
• The local host will organize social activities for the volunteers in collaboration with Vietnamese volunteers.

Qualifications and experience:
- Experience in teaching is a priority.
- Very good command in the language taught (English, French, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, Spanish, etc).
- To be able to communicate in English or Vietnamese.
- Self-organized and to be able to self-manage the work without daily supervisor.
- Basic knowledge in IT (Word, Excel, research of data on Internet, PowerPoint)
- Strong inter-personal skills and experience in working with a wide variety of people, cultural sensitivity, etc.
- Commitment to volunteerism and considerable experience as a volunteer.
- Ready to share the lifestyle of local people (basic accommodation, transport by bus or bicycle, local food).
- High motivation and to be ready to face language and cultural differences.

Language: English

Enrollment: Interested candidates should send detailed resume along with their enrollment form. The pre-selected candidates will have an interview by phone or Skype.

Location: In PSC center in Hanoi, Vietnam

Age range: 18 and over

Participation fee: $590 CAD

Extra fee: $250 US per month
The extra fee is intended to support the hosting organization who does not have sufficient funds. It is due upon arrival on the project.
 

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