A multicultural world
Video case study! As a volunteer English teacher, Tahira loves the opportunity walk and talk with people from different cultures and help them to gain confidence and acquire new language skills.
Tahira tells her story in her first language of Dari, with English subtitles.
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Volunteering case study transcript (English)
Hello! My name is Tahira. I am a teacher at Dandenong AMES. The ladies that have children, I go to their homes and teach them.
How did you get involved?
My mother was studying English. I had an opportunity to go with her to AMES and saw ladies there and I said that I also somehow could help. I know English and could teach them.
What do you do?
Firstly you should know English and secondly you should be very sincere in your work.
Do you need any special skills?
From the beginning when I first came, I knew some English. It helped a lot. Then I did the tutoring course at AMES one week, two weeks and I became a teacher in there.
What is it like?
The good thing about being a teacher is that you go and see people of other ethnicities and languages, speak to them. It is a good opportunity that a person can get a stable position.
What is the most challenging thing?
The most difficult thing about this teaching is that we teach people who have never spoken English. You should adjust your self to their mentality (understanding); how things work with them and how they don’t. And then you teach them accordingly.
What do you like most?
The good thing of all is that … you walk and talk with people from different languages and different places. You get familiar with their cultures and it’s something good. Then you also learn. I am very happy.
Do you have any advice for others?
For those who are new to voluntary teaching my advice is that they be gentle with people and think that you have also once been in this situation. What can you do to help them more and more? Your assistance is needed for those who have newly arrived here as it is a new place for them.
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