Teaching Summer Institutes FAQ
A. General
Q: What are the distinguishing features of TSI (Teaching Summer Institutes)?
Our volunteers devote most of their time in training teachers English and Computer knowledge and new teaching methodologies, who will then pass their studying experiences on to hundreds of A-level students, compounding the effect of the teaching by the volunteers and maximizing our social impact.
Volunteers are encouraged to create their curriculum that suits the needs of local teachers - the need of necessary skills for effective teaching, creative teaching methods and different ways to motivate and inspire their students to learn.
Apart from training teachers, volunteers also participate in forums with young local students, acting as their mentor and to share with them their life in university. The institute itself also serves as a platform for the cultural exchange of students from east and west.
Q: What is the role of Hong Kong volunteers in the Teaching Summer Institute projects?
Hong Kong volunteers will be involved in teaching English as well as Computer Literacy and other subjects as stated in the application, along with volunteers from the United States and China. The challenges that volunteers encounter in adapting to teachers' needs vary by site. Hong Kong volunteers will often play the important role of interpreter as they have a good command on both English and Mandarin.
Q: Why should you participate in the TECC Teaching Summer Institutes?
In surveys completed by our past volunteers, they would give an average rating 9 out of 10 for TECC TSI and would strongly recommend this program to their friends and other students.
We have quoted below some reasons given by them for your reference:
1. A great opportunity to practice Chinese while teaching my native language (from a US volunteer)
2. This is a golden opportunity to work with an amazing network of college students from outstanding universities in Beijing (Peking University, Tsinghua University), Shanghai (Fudan University, Shanghai Jiaotong University), and Hong Kong (HKU and CUHK)
3. Sustained contact with students -- Even though the institutes are only two weeks long, students keep in contact in following years and visit.
4. Instead of just Beijing and Shanghai, I got to experience a lesser known part of China.
5. Meet people from all walks of life and gain a better understanding of other cultures.
6. Student-based organization allowed for great flexibility.
7. So many new and unforgettable experiences! (food, transportation, language...)
Perhaps you may add a few to this list after taking part in the TSI this year!
B. Arrangements in relation to TSI
Q: When and where will the institutes take place?
Our teaching institutes span over the summer holiday from end of June to August.
Each institute lasts for about two weeks, and each TECC volunteer will attend only one institute. TSI have been held at the following provinces in the past years: Anhui, Gansu, Yunnan, Sichuan, Ningxia, Guangxi, Guizhou, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shanxi.
The teaching period for each summer institute is subject to the decision of the local government. Details will be released in early June.
Q: How many TECC volunteers will be at each institute and how many middle school teachers?
Each team will be composed of 2-3 Hong Kong TECC volunteers and 10-15 TECC volunteers from the United States, Shanghai, or Beijing. There will be approximately 80 middle school teachers participating in the programmes at each institute.
Q: How will I get from the airport to the institute?
Each volunteer might choose to depart from Hong Kong or his own home town / current location, all volunteers will be met in a specific point near the site according to the decision of the site-in-charge. It is up to volunteers' decision on the mode of transportation.
The local transportation will be arranged by our Chinese counterparts; volunteers will be informed with the exact arrangements in the pre-departing briefings.
Q: What do volunteers do in the institute?
Volunteers are fully occupied on each day by hours of instruction and activities specifically designed for the program participants (i.e. local teachers) by each team. Usually, volunteers will give teaching sessions from morning to evening (around 9am-5pm) from Monday to Friday.
Apart from the teaching sessions, volunteers will organize activities and forums for students during lunch times and after school upon discussion among volunteers and negotiation with the school on site.
After a day of teaching and activities, each team return to their residence to evaluate the program of the day and to brainstorm possible solutions tackling problems they have encountered. They will also prepare for the program on the following day.
During weekends, they will be able to go for family, hospital visits as well.
Q: Is the trip safe?
We give top priority to the safety of our volunteers. The Chinese teams will conduct site visits in February each year to ensure that the living conditions are satisfactory with the local government giving the necessary support. And volunteers are requested to purchase their own travel insurance before departure.
Q: Do I need to pay for participating in the TSI?
For details about application fee or fees that would incurred to participate in the Teaching Summer Institutes, please refer to the FAQ for expense by clicking the link on the left navigation column.
C. Application
Q: Who is eligible to apply for TSI?
All full-time undergraduate students currently studying in the following tertiary institutions in Hong Kong are eligible to apply (except exchange students):
Hong Kong Baptist Uniersity
City University of Hong Kong
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
The Hong Kong Institute of Education
Lingnan University
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
The University of Hong Kong
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Hong Kong Shue Yan University
The Open University of Hong Kong
Q: If I am a mainland student, am I eligible for applying for the program?
If you are a full-time university student, you will be eligible to apply through TECC(HK). If you are currently an exchange student, you are advised to apply the program through our mainland counterparts, TECC(BJ) or TECC(SH).
Q: If I am not available for the interview, am I still eligible?
The interview on 21st / 22nd April 2011 is a MUST to the application, where applicants' communication skills and organization skills will be assessed. In addition, it is the time to match the applicants' preferences with the available program sites and periods. Phone interviews or other channels alike will not be considered.
The workshops are important to prepare volunteers for the teaching sessions on site. Only with strong reasons will volunteers be exempted from attending the workshops. The dates for workshops will be announced soon.
Q: How could one apply for TSI?
We accept applications through email only. Please click the following link to download the application form. Send us the completed application form and curriculum vitae (optional) according to instructions contained therein.
Q: What kind of applicants are we looking for?
We welcome energetic and socially-minded students who have a passion to perform social service in China. Participants must be open-minded to diversity, be able to thrive in a team setting and can think on their feet. Multilingual applicants are preferred.
Q: How do we prepare for the teaching summer institutes?
A pre-departure briefing will be held shortly after the list of successful applicants has been released. The volunteers will be briefed on further trip details. They may also go through a series of meetings as a team to develop planned curriculums for their specific institutes, with guidance from current TECC Hong Kong committee members and TECC alumni of past institutes.
D. Deposit Refund Policy
After the date and site have been confirmed and accepted by the participants, the deposit (HKD 500) will be collected along with other fees.
The deposit will be refunded to the participant in the form of cheque by mail or any other means as TECC(HK) thinks fit within one month after the completion of evaluation workshop according to the policy as stated below -
FULL REFUND will be offered if the volunteer falls within any one of the following situations:
(a) Successfully completed the programme and submitted ALL the reports and receipts and attended all the orientation day, workshop, evaluation or any other compulsory activities required; or
(b) Switched the site and time as first offered owing to personal reasons 2-weeks prior to the starting date of their previously accepted site, with the completion of (a); or
(c) The site accepted by the applicant become unavailable due to reasons that TECC(HK) cannot control, and the participant was unable to switch to any other sites.
NO REFUND will be offered if the volunteer falls within any one of the following situations:
(i) Failed to finish the programme, including the submission of reports and receipts as required or not attending all the orientation day, workshop, evaluation or any other compulsory activities required; or
(ii) Withdrew from the programme after they have confirmed their offer owing to personal reasons; or
(iii) Switched the site and time as first offered owing to personal reasons within 2-weeks of the starting date of their previously accepted site.
PARTIAL REFUND may be considered under the discretion of TECC(HK), which will be decided upon the consensus of TECC HK chapter on a case-by-case basis with reasonable grounds.