2019
Burkina Faso
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In the summer of 2019, two volunteers - Sami Kandil and Samil Cil - travelled to Burkina Faso once again to teach English to the Burkinabe children. For five weeks, both Sami and Samil taught nearly 100 elementary, middle, and high school students. Click the link below to watch a short documentary on their expedition.
Background
Following the summer of 2018, the College of Horizon International requested a month-long ESL program offered to its students. For many Burkinabe students, learning English means the opening of vast new opportunities, through which they could pursue a future beyond the limits of their land-locked borders. Through such an opportunity, it was possible that completely new avenues may be made available to the Burkinabe children.
There were two driven volunteers for this journey - Sami Kandil and Samil Cil. They prepared for months on end, consulting college professors on how to approach this task, practicing basic French to better communicate with the students, and producing two 200-paged binders of teaching material.
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On the third of July 2019, the two volunteers boarded the plane, not to return for another 40 days. They neither knew what to expect nor how to prepare, but their goal was set and their purpose was unwavering. It was a change that they were after. The slightest bit of good, the slightest bit of ease that they may be able to offer in these poverty-stricken lands. Sami and Samil boarded that plane maybe not truly knowing where it was headed but knowing more certain than ever what they were after.
Samil Cil, known to his students as Mr. Chill, taught nearly 40 elementary and middle school students. He prepared and taught a carefully constructed program to his students. Every day he sequentially exposed them to four specific categories: Vocabulary, Grammar, Writing, and Role-play. Each day had new lectures for each category, with a variety of learning-activities to maximize the learning process of the students.
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Mr. Chill made sure that the students were understanding the lectures by encouraging them to constantly stay active in class. They played games - such as trivia, hangman, and word puzzles - where they were exposed to the language in a different setting from the standard classroom environment.
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In the end, the students showed clear signs of progress in their grasp of the English language. Nearly every student proved a great deal of improvement on their final cumulative exam. Distributing the completion certificates to his students, Mr. Chill had fulfilled his purpose.
Sami Kandil taught over 50 middle and high school students, following a strict curriculum to monitor the progress of the students. Every day he introduced a new subject in daily vocabulary, basic grammar, writing, and conversational prep. Students were taught the essentials to communicating in English, both in written and verbal form.
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Sami made sure that the students were understanding the lectures by encouraging them to constantly stay active in class. They played games - such as trivia, hangman, and word puzzles - where they were exposed to the language in a different setting from the standard classroom environment.
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In the end, the students took final exams that covered the entire program's materials. Every student proved a great deal of progress in comparison to when they first started. Distributing the completion certificates to his students, Sami had also fulfilled his purpose.
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