English camp grows green shoots

Mustard Seed English camp is seeking expat teachers to volunteer for underprivileged children on July 13-14.

Brad Curtin, who leads the expat volunteers at the weekend camp, said that they were hoping to get about 30 foreign teachers involved on Saturday and about 10 for the next day.

The teachers will lead lessons planned by camp organizers on the first day, and the camp is seeking people who can lead special classes for Sunday.

“On Sunday we try to get teachers to teach special subjects,” he said. “Last year we had a drama class and a puppet class and then a dance class. This year there have been drama and singing and cooking so far.”

Curtin has been helping at the camp since Mustard Seed organizer Kim Ja-kyung asked him to help find volunteers for the first one five years ago.

It also led to the creation of expat volunteer group Peace Love Unity Respect’s “Teach Your Seoul” program.

“We gathered the volunteers and we did the camp and then we realized that these kids could use some regular teaching,” he said.

Teach your Seoul now visits two child care centers on alternate weekends.

Mustard Seed was started by Kim Ja-kyung and 11 other mothers to support underprivileged children in Gwanak-gu in Seoul.

The group, which is funded by its members, started giving online English tuition to about 120 children at five child care centers in the district, and has since added support for three centers.

“Korean parents spend a lot of money on expensive private English lessons for their children, as English competence has become top priority in Korean education,” Kim explained.

“In this respect we believe that providing equal opportunities for picking up English to those children already suffering from poverty and insufficient care from their parents is desperately needed.”

The English camp is one of two annual English events the group runs for the children, the other being a speech contest.

As well as English, there is a strong emphasis on food. Kim said that lunch on the first day last year was cooked by teachers at a culinary institute in Suwon who volunteered for the task. Pizza company Papa Johns has also sent down a pizza truck to the camps to prepare pizzas in front of the kids, charging the organizers a knock-down rate for the food.

Curtin said that the camp gave the children social as well as study opportunities that other kids might take for granted.

“Because the kids are underprivileged they don’t get the opportunities that the regular kids get at hagwon,” he said.

“Other kids get to hang out with their friends at hagwon, it’s part of their social rite. So they get that chance to interact with each other and get to play with each other and learn stuff too.”

To get involved, visit the Mustard Seed English Camp 2013 Facebook page or email jakyungk@hotmail.com.

By Paul Kerry (paulkerry@heraldcorp.com)