《跨文化交际》第三、四单元 补充阅读

《跨文化交际》第三、四单元补充阅读

When you finish the following reading, you should be able to:

1. Find out how VSO started and what it does.

2. Analyse the effect of VSO on volunteers themselves.

Focus questions for text

1. Who started VSO and when?

2. Who make up the three-way partnership?

3. What is the effect of the experience on the VSOs themselves?

Text

Norman

The north-western university of xi'an, hosting the annual VSO training conference for the 144 volunteers in China who make up the largest single VSO project in the world. It's a time to meet up with other volunteers … to attend lectures and workshops … and to present the results of their own experience in China.

Ding bao qing ( office manager )

VSO began to erm send teachers of English to China in er 1981 … in that year VSO sent 6 English teachers to er teachers colleges in er remote areas in China … er in the past more than twenty years er VSO's projects in China have been increasing. Now we have altogether about 144 volunteers working in China.

Paul turner (chief representative VSO China)

Well VSO was really the brainchild of erm alec and mora dixon erm who were working in the colonial service in … overseas for Brit ain for a number of years before and after the war er and they joined forces with launcelot fleming who

was the bishop of portsmouth erm and they decided to try and set up a scheme where they could send British youth overseas to assist in the development

p rocess and more specifically to assist in … people in ordinary lives, helping them in terms of being teachers and technicians and assistants erm it was very much an establishment set-up which was established by 'the great and the good' er we had the bishop of portsmouth and alec himself came from rugby which is a very er important British school er and indeed the volunteers who went out er back in 1958 that was the year when it all started er and the first volunteer went from er marlborough college er which is also a very important establishment in Britain and really er there was something of a public school idea and ethos… at the very beginning because the people themselves, the volunteers, er would have gone out between the time that they left school at eighteen and go to university … In those days many people had to wait for … erm … a year or two before they go on to university and this was seen as the ideal time by alec for young people to go and serve but also to learn at the same time. There was a very strong accent er on learning as well as giving er and that's how VSO really started, by a very energetic man erm linking up with the establishment and getting these school leavers leaving - they sent about 4 or 5 people in the first year I believe, and the first one was to sarawak in borneo and also to ghana.

VSO preparing for change

Andy whalley is a volunteer forestry specialist with VSO. He's just arrived in lindi on the southern tanzanian coast and this is his welcome into the community. A desire to share their skills with those in poorer countries and a taste for adventure is what drives most volunteers. However, andy has brought much more than his special skills with him. Forty years experience have shown that the best volunteers arrive with minimal expectations and maximum openness. And preparing for that starts long before you arrive here.

These men and women are preparing for their overseas placements with VSO. At this stage they don't know anyone. The only things they share is the fact that they are going somewhere with VSO … and that they all have fears and anxieties.

Will I have a good social life, will I be able to make good friends …

It worries me am I up to the job because I'm a primary teacher now and I'm

actually going to be training teac hers …

I'm just concerned that I won't be able to fit into the community when I get out there …

One thing that really concerns me is whether I can adapt to the living conditions over there …

Am I up to the job, how am I going to cope with the weather?

I t could be quite a concern not to have the right sort of equipment, the sort … the tools …

Although VSO can't answer all the questions, it is able to pass on some good advice. In the end much of the preparation is down to you, the volunteer, with VSO providing additional workshops and resources. However, there are certain areas where VSO delivers comprehensive support.

Well for me it's difficult because I'm going to cambodia so there's a security issue …

Security and medical issues receive the highest priority. Both provide some comfort as you prepare to arrive in an unfamiliar culture.

Now I've actually arrived, it still seems a bit of a shock that I … I'm here … it's been about a year of planning to actually get here … erm … it's suddenly come about and i'm in the middle of africa …

When you arrive in country a VSO orientation programme will include some basic language training. Progress after that is largely up to you.

You will also be introduced to local conditions and culture, often in a very practical way. After four weeks' initial training, andy arrives in lindi, some days away from any direct VSO support. Partnership lies at the heart of VSO's success. Placements are a three-way partnership: the volunteer, the overseas employer, and VSO. For the volunteer, coming to terms with the reality of the situation is a major step. It's a process that is fundamental to the success of all placements.

Since I've been here it's been quite frustrating trying to get things moving and I

think that's often the proble m with volunteers because … because they arrive at the project site and often they don't … there isn't often a project for them to do and they have to really get … erm … to work hard to try and see where they can fit in , where their qualifications or experience can help working with the colleagues and getting things done …

A lack of facilities is not uncommon in developing countries. Sue fraser is teaching English in Lao.

Photocopying is a problem - there isn't one … well, sorry, there is one but it broke down two weeks after it arrived and it's not likely to be mended so I do without photocopies. We've only had electricity for the last few months so even running a tape-recorder had to be on batteries - no I think i've adapted my teaching style to the fact that there are no resources. Other than the few books that I brought with me that have been very useful it's literally chalk and talk.

The essential element in the VSO partnership is the overseas employer. They make the request for volunteers, and know the kind of person they're looking for.

Priest

Er as a developing country we need such people who er don't make a big noise about it or they don't come and sit on top of us and try to tell this is the way this is the way. They come and try to work with us and try to improve things. Now I think a developing country needs such people …

I appreciate the problem the VSO office may have here in sometimes trying to identify the right person for the right job because you are dealing with two you know very distant countries so sometimes there is a difficulty there … what we look for in most cases is people with different skills and in your situation here … er … I mean people are so specialised in most cases in one thing and that creates a difficulty in most cases but if you have a person with an open mind and who adapts very quickly, sometimes the problem is done away with.

The need for adaptability on both sides is recognised by VSO, the third element in the partnership. VSO will normally lay down broad guidelines for each placement.

What we do is we just make the job des … description just a little bit wider so that once the volunteer arrives in the country he or she can go and discuss with

the employer in what area the volunteer can cover ... That way er the volunteer will also feel a little bit er comfortable to share the skill that he or she has.

Deborah bickler is a VSO programme officer in lao. She's flying up from her office in the capital to visit sue fraser in sekong.

I don't feel we're in the business of holding volunteers' hands. I don't think volunteers come out to have their hands held, they … they often have a sense of adventure, they often you know they often want to give it a go… er … we … we should be there in an emergency. I mean that is a vital part of our job but it isn't it isn't all that our job is about. Our job is really to make sure that the placement works and a lot of our work is done before the volunteer arrives in country, a lot of our work is done in terms of trying to get the job right.

Hello deborah it's nice to see you again - yes, how's it going? - oh not too badly, not too badly - erm we've got a new blackboard … and enough chairs so er …

Paul

Over the years er VSO volunteers increased in numbers overseas er in 58/59 the total that w as sent were er 18 erm by 19 … 64/65 there were 731 VSO volunteers overseas and by the end of the 60s, early 70s, er there were 1,483 volunteers overseas, erm but as well as the volunteers themselves erm in terms of numbers changing erm something else fundamentally happened was that volunteers changing their profile from being school leavers to people who had erm graduate qualifications and often had a reasonable amount of work experience as well. So there was quite a significant shift from the school-leaver volunteer who was there as much for adventure as for anything else er to the more qualified and professionally focussed volunteer who is there very much to do a job in development as well as to learn skills and to share skills, er so this is quite a … significant er change over that er time period … Erm in 1998 er VSO overall had one thousand … almost two thousand people overseas … 1,939 people … erm and it actually cost VSO about 25 million pounds erm to have those volunteers overseas so quite a big operation compared to the erm the er one person in an office operation started back in 1958 so that's the way that VSO has grown over those years.

Norman

The range of skills and jobs done by VSO around the world is much wider than

English language teaching alone.

VSO in sri lanka

Girl

I work with a group of six archaeologists closely every day, I work with them from 8 o'clock in the morning until 5 o'clock in the evening every day and I see my main role as … as opening doors for people to … to go through and so … they … they don't read any foreign journals they don't have any contact with any other archaeologists other than those working in sri lanka. They're using techniques that are very very outdated and my job is to show them that other people are … are …other archaeologists are using different techniques … they are the future archaeologists of sri lanka … they … they'll go on and set up their own organisation in anandapura or in sri lanka.

Man

What we're trying to achieve here is to show that solid waste problems can be addressed on a local scale, small-scale traditional initiatives - they don't have to be based on western technologies. The technology already … already exists in sri lanka … over 80% of solid waste is organic matter most of which comes from fruit and vegetable markets . We've worked with traders in one of the local fruit and vegetable markets in a town of about 20,000 people and we have educated them and increased awareness among the trading group. As a result the traders now separate their garbage before they throw it away, and the ngo that

i'm working for will now collect that garbage and deliver to a compost site and we convert the fruit and vegetable waste into compost which we can then sell.

Norman

The work is immensely satisfying to VSO staff.

Ding bao qing (office manager VSO beijing)

I think my biggest satisfaction to work for VSO is er to see that volunteers are happy because of my work.

Emma renshaw (VSO representative hubei/shaanxi/anhui)

I think the variety is - is very interesting as well erm in a single day we can be erm taking a call from a volunteer about a medical matter, or erm we might be liaising with the university down in xi'an where we do our in-country training … about the arrival of the new volunteers, we might be designing some materials for volunteers erm so it's a it's a real kind of variety erm but I think perhaps the most interesting thing and I think for me the most erm kind of valuable thing about my work is-is that I think it's very worthwhile, and to think that you're making a difference to-to people's lives no matter how small I think is-is perhaps the most rewarding part of the job.

Norman

But perhaps the most important effect is on the young - and old - volunteers themselves.

Des murgh (VSO lanzhou)

… I r eally like Chinese people - I love the people of lanzhou …

Peggy barnes (VSO dali yunan)

… In dali I'm able to share many of my skills and expertise and I'm getting to know the Chinese people - and they're great …

Ken (VSO hunan province)

I feel I'm chea ting … I came here to teach people, but I've actually learnt a hell of a lot more than i've taught …

VSO (weinan )

… Constantly I'm saying to my students what you have in China here is much better than what we have in the west …

John goodern (VSO hunan)

I'm really happy to be in China because it's better than kidderminster.

Andy (VSO )

I learn more than I give. I'm actually taking more than I'm giving to other

people …

Laura wilkes (VSO henan province)

I think the best thing about being in China is not what I teach my students, it's the fun I have with my students, the times we have together, the people I've met, what i've learnt about Chinese culture, Chinesepeople …

Words & expressions

Answers to focus questions

1. VSO was started in 1958 by alec and mora dixon, helped by (among others) launcelot fleming the bishop of portsmouth.

2. The three-way partnership is made up of the volunteer, the local employer, and VSO.

3. They feel that they learn as much as they teach, that they receive as much - or even more - than they give.

Some other possible comprehension questions

1. How many volunteers are there in China?

2. When did VSO start in China?

3. Were its origins in the British private schools or state schools?

4. Were the original volunteers graduates or school-leavers?

5. Where did the first volunteers go?

6. Are the volunteers confident at first, or anxious?

7. What training does VSO provide?

8. What is one important quality in a VSO?

9. Are volunteers younger or older today than they were at the beginning?

10. Are they more qualified or less qualified than before?

Answers to the extra questions

1. 144

2. 1981

3. Private schools (called, confusingly, 'public' schools)

4. School-leavers (ie 17/18 year-olds)

5. Sarawak and ghana

6. Anxious - worried about how they will cope

7. Initial workshops, language training

8. Adaptability

9. Older

10. More qualified and with a broader range of skills

Topics for further discussion

1. The initial impetus for VSO came from 'the establishment' and the 'public school ethos' of Britain, which represents the ruling class, the top 5% of the population with a background of colonialism. Do you think this detracts from the movement's ethic?

2. Why do you think VSO changed from school-leaver to graduate level intake?

3. What do you think are the positive aspects of VSO (a) for the

employer-country and (b) for the volunteers themselves?

4. VSO is now encouraging 'south-south' volunteers, ie volunteers from developing countries working in other developing countries. What are the arguments for this change?

5. Do you think China should have its own VSO system?