A free English class for children run by a non-government organization in Ho Chi Minh City is now taught by a 13-year-old girl.

“Get ready! The teacher is coming!” the kids of the free English class at the Cultural House of Ward 12, District 5, often tell each other when seeing Vu Anh Vu, a seventh grader, come to the classroom.

Vu, a student of Canadian International School in District 7, is carried by her father to the cultural house to teach the kids at 6:30 pm every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

The free English class is run by the Volunteer House Vietnam, a non-government organization dedicated to teaching the language to poor and underserved children who do not have access to English learning.  

VHV said that it aims to offer each of the provinces and cities nationwide at least one similar class by 2020.

With Vu’s guidance, kids started babbling away in English but then they became more comfortable making self-introduction, giving a family description, and singing English songs, which all makes the class atmosphere increasingly dynamic.

“At first, some were really stubborn and mischievous while others were reluctant to speak out, which somewhat disappointed me,” the teen teacher said. “But they have become more confident in class.”

As “all in English” is the rule in the classroom, the kids can practice and improve their speaking skills with basic conversations and games, helping them engage more with the foreign language and gain confidence in communication.

Ngo Thuy Vy, a student from Hong Bang Middle School in District 5, said, “I always attend the class as I find it interesting to study there.”

Vy added that her mother did not have enough money to enroll her for any English courses.

She said that she had asked her mother to sign her up for the class because it was free, and she found herself “no longer hesitant when speaking English.”

“I always take my child to this class to learn English,” Nguyen Thi Cam Phuc, a parent whose kid studies in the class, said, adding that the class has provided a great access for children to English learning.

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