The Teach North Korean Refugees
Global Education Center (TNKR) humbly began in March 2013 with 5 tutors and 5
NK refugees being matched together. We held that first session at a TOZ
business center in Gangnam.
Seven years later, TNKR has now
matched 455 North Korean refugees with 1,027 tutors, coaches, and mentors.
Today we held our 102nd Language Matching session at our slightly expanded
office near the Sangsu Subway Station. Instead of just being something that
Casey and Eunkoo did short-term, TNKR is now an official organization in both
South Korea and the USA, we have been featured in media and by other
organizations (just yesterday, we were featured by KOTESOL), and we have fans
and donors from around the world.
At that first session seven years ago, Eunkoo Lee and I matched the students and tutors based on the resumes of tutors and what the refugees had told us. Eunkoo called it the "North Korean Teachers' Project," because the refugees at that first session had been teachers in North Korea who wanted to get jobs in South Korea, but their English levels weren't good enough. I wasn't even thinking about a name, I was dabbling in several different projects and activities, and this was just one of them.
At that first session seven years ago, Eunkoo Lee and I matched the students and tutors based on the resumes of tutors and what the refugees had told us. Eunkoo called it the "North Korean Teachers' Project," because the refugees at that first session had been teachers in North Korea who wanted to get jobs in South Korea, but their English levels weren't good enough. I wasn't even thinking about a name, I was dabbling in several different projects and activities, and this was just one of them.
At the session today, as they have
for most of our history, the students chose. And did they ever choose! Instead
of being matched with one tutor each, to study with once a week as we tried
back in 2013, the refugees on average today chose 3.8 tutors with the
expectation they will study a minimum of twice a month with each tutor.
One student had told us during both
her initial interview and orientation session that she planned on selecting two
tutors. Instead, she chose five. She is returning to TNKR. She chose a couple
of tutors the first time around, and she is now down to just one tutor. Now she
has her own faculty.
Another student made it clear that
she planned to study all day every Sunday. And by all day every Sunday, it
sounds like ALL DAY EVERY SUNDAY.
The other students made it clear
that English will be a priority for them over the next couple of months, and
their lives. They are students and employees who have lost opportunities or
struggled because of English.
Some people still expect us to
organize camps and workshops for the students, but the students make it clear:
They want to study and learn English. They have already learned
about social opportunities, other organizations chase them to join social
integration and socializing opportunities; they have come to TNKR to focus on
improving their English in a focused way.
A few months ago we had one student
ask us point-blank if there were any workshops or seminars. We explained that
wasn't our approach, that we treat the students as individuals and build a
community of support around each student.
The refugee's response: "GOOD!
I have been hearing that about TNKR, but I didn't really believe it. When I
join with an organization, they keep trying to pull me to seminars, workshops,
camps, BBQ picnics. I need to focus on studying English in a serious way."
* * *
A key pillar of TNKR is refugee
choice. Unlike seven years ago when Eunkoo and Casey chose, the refugees have
been choosing for themselves ever since.
Today:
Two refugees chose five tutors each.
One refugee chose four tutors each.
Three refugees chose three tutors
each.
Our process goes against the cult of
expert-ism in education. Professional educators are amazed to learn we don't
have a mandated curriculum (we have offered one to TNKR students, but the
refugees pass it up, and they have many options outside of TNKR to study with a
set curriculum). Others are dismayed that we don't put tutors through numerous
orientation sessions, teacher training, or require professional certification.
We do occasionally reject some
applicants, but we are willing to allow most applicants to stand before
refugees to present themselves. A key component is that refugees can choose
tutors, but they can also un-choose them later. Many students have later
evaded tutors who have tried to use them as vehicles for learning about North
Korea, weren't serious, or had other issues (usually determined by the refugees
but we demand transparency from tutors and we don't allow separate
conversations between tutors and students). In that way, TNKR is like a
self-cleaning oven, with refugees determining which tutors they want to
continue studying with.
By allowing people to choose, it is
true that they can make bad decisions. Bad decisions are made by people all of
the time, but it is better for the costs to be on the shoulders of those making
the bad decisions, not third-party people who bear no direct cost.
Allowing refugees to choose makes it
clear and gives the first signal to the students that they have responsibility
for their own education. I still vividly recall the refugee who said that TNKR
was "American freedom." They could choose based on superficial
characteristics, but they would also bear the consequences if they chose
poorly. Was she okay with choosing? "Yes! For the first time in my life,
it is truly up to me!"
It has been said that a man can put
on his own coat better than someone else can put it on for him. The refugees
again put on their own coats. It is truly up to them.
* * *
That
was only possible because the tutors agreed to accept two students each. Some
tutors joining TNKR for the first time naturally want to focus on one student,
but the choice dynamic would be lost. At a standard session, we have seven
refugees choosing among 11 tutors agreeing to tutor two students each. That
means 22 learning opportunities. We picked that number because we had observed
that refugees on average chose three tutors each (but we may need to up that
number a bit, because lately they have been trending to almost four tutors
each).
It is
also valuable because some tutors who have worked with only one student have
come away seeing that one student as being representative of all of North
Korean refugees, if not all of North Korea. There's an old saying, "Beware
of the man who has read only one book." The same is true of a volunteer
tutor who has helped one North Korean refugee, everything is based on that one
person.
When
they have two or three students, they can see a variety of interests, motivation
levels, desire and preparation. For the students, they can experience a variety
of learning styles which can help them also become better self-learners. Some
tutors want refugees to explain in advance their exact learning styles, rather
than recognize that many of the students are now developing those
learning styles with English. Some students want us to tell them initially how
they should study English, but after a few months of studying with tutors, they
start to develop their own styles. Many of them will even develop multiple
styles based on studying with multiple tutors, and being able to compare and
experiment.
We make
it clear to the tutors that they could be chosen twice, and that after every
tutor has been selected that we will allow them to be chosen for a third time.
That happened six times today! We have to be very careful not to make the
tutors feel pressured to be selected a third time, but the tutors were all in
on this.
Understandably, most of the
attention is focused on the refugees, but of course we need enough volunteers
willing to give their time to focus on the particular learning needs of the
students. And to do so in a serious study atmosphere. It is easy to get people
to join a picnic or camping trip, or even to show up for a few hours of
language exchange or chit-chatting, but it is not as easy to get people to
commit to three months of tutoring in a serious and focused way at least twice
a month with each student who chooses them.
* * *
This particular group of volunteers
also did something special: they paid TNKR's rent this month! That's right,
collectively, they raised and donated more than 1 million won (about $900) for
TNKR. One tutor, John, donated about half of that.
Doing this during a pandemic is even
more incredible.
Because they are all Members or have
made initial donations on the road to becoming members, I can speak to them
about how they can help build TNKR without them feeling that I am threatening
their eligibility to remain in TNKR. Without Members supporting TNKR, then we
could not continue with our current operations, have a place to meet, expand
operations, or even have dreamed of moving to this office.
We may set a one million won ($900)
goal collectively for volunteers who join TNKR each month. That means every bit
raised can help cover the rent and make the session possible.
Four of the nine tutors in the room
today have set up fundraisers to support TNKR.
Two are returnees:
Two others are first-timers:
TNKR is about active participation
from volunteers. We are not UNICEF or some other huge organization that can
just plug volunteers in as needed. It isn't enough for observers coming up with to-do lists for others or saying what others should do.
We need people who come to us to help us build the organization.
We need people who come to us to help us build the organization.
On his way back home, Jeffrey
visited a study center to record the step-by-step directions for tutors and
students. We were then able to share that with the tutors who joined last month
and will be able to share it with the tutors who were at today's Matching
session.
The members of our Academic Team
started as volunteer tutors, but have now taken up leadership roles.
Janice Kim, Academic
Coordinator
Daniel Cashmar,
Volunteer Advisor
India Meyers, Assistant
Academic Advisor
* * *
Our next Matching session for TNKR
Members will be May 23rd.
To get prepared, we will have
Orientation Weekend May 9-10 (applicants can attend either session).
We are also willing to consider an
additional session for non-Members, upon request by refugees. But looking at
the number of choices the refugees made today, it is highly unlikely they would
have wanted another session. (TNKR is like a teacher buffet for many of the
students, but like any buffet, you can't overdo it.)
In February and March, we were open
to an additional session for non-Members, but refugees let TNKR co-founder Eunkoo
Lee know they had selected enough tutors.
As they were leaving, Eunkoo asked
the refugees how they felt. They made it clear: "I am so satisfied."
They enjoyed the process. Some had already chosen which tutors they wanted even
before they arrived at the session. Some decided on the spot, and of course
some chose more than they had anticipated. They said they were ready to get
started with the tutors they had selected today, and that they didn't need any
more tutors for a while.
A few months ago, I thought I had
found a way for Members to get preference (by having them at the first Matching
session) while also giving some non-Members a chance to join (by having a
follow-up session a few days later if requested by refugees). The students made
it clear to Eunkoo: They prefer Members, that they sound more committed than
non-Members. Also, because TNKR has limited grant money to cover costs at study
sessions, Members are eligible for TNKR to cover costs at study sessions,
meaning refugees (and TNKR Members) can avoid hidden costs of tutoring.
For this session, I dropped the
possibility of having a follow-up session for non-Members, and it turned out to
be the right choice. Tutors agreed to accept more students, the refugees
expressed satisfaction about how many tutors they had selected. A few tutors
were still available to be chosen a third time, but the refugees said they were
done choosing, they were ready to start studying!
It was a special Matching session,
our first in-person session of 2020. One session (for Track 3) was already
scheduled in advance to be online, so the global pandemic was not related to
that. However, for our last two Track 1 Matching sessions, we decided to hold
them online because of health concerns. Refugees were saying they were okay
with meeting in person, and the group today really made it clear they were
okay. Students from the last two months didn't get the wide range of choice
because we lost the interactive component to Matching sessions.
We are now gearing up for our next
Matching session. I do wish we could be like a big well-funded international
organization holding one or two sessions per year, and spending the rest of the
year writing proposals and fundraising. However, Eunkoo is already getting
pressure from refugees to hold the next session. I was the first to arrive at
the TNKR office, at 8:05 AM. Before 9 AM, we got our first telephone call of
the day--from a North Korean refugee who wants to study English with TNKR. Yes,
Sunday morning, 9 AM, calling our office.
Instead, we will be recruiting
tutors the next few weeks, interviewing students, helping this group from today
with getting settled into tutoring, and still keeping up with other groups to
make sure they continue taking this entire education exercise seriously so the
choices refugees made and the time we all (volunteers, donors, staff) put into
this won't be futile.
* * *
www.lovetnkr.org/donate
(check out TNKR's donation options)
www.lovetnkr.org/members
(become a TNKR member)
https://give.lovetnkr.com/en/fundraisers
(set up a fundraiser for TNKR)
* * *
Refugee
selections from TNKR's 102nd Language Matching session
For the drive-by commentators who
comment without knowing the context, we leave it up to students to decide if
they want to show their faces. It doesn't matter to us one way or the other if
they choose to do so. We only allow photos at our office to avoid
misunderstandings and to make sure refugees never feel pressured or obligated
to take photos with volunteers.
* * *
www.lovetnkr.org/donate
(check out TNKR's donation options)
www.lovetnkr.org/members
(become a TNKR member)
https://give.lovetnkr.com/en/fundraisers
(set up a fundraiser for TNKR)
* * *