Shanghai Charities: Stepping Stones--Stepping Stones helps Shanghai’s migrant children to make the most of their opportunities.

Stepping Stones is a non-profit organisation that works to improve the English language skills and confidence of under-privileged children in China. The scheme focuses on the Shanghai schools that host migrant students. They have usually immigrated to the city from nearby provinces with their parents, who are in search of work.

Due to the household registration system, which distinguishes between Shanghai and non-Shanghai residents, and a lack of school places, not all migrant children can attend regular public schools in Shanghai, and for this reason, special schools have been established to educate these children. Unfortunately, these schools cannot yet all provide the same quality of education as the public schools, and do not go beyond junior high school level, so migrant children have to return to their home province for senior high school if they wish to go on to higher education. 

Migrant children are therefore at an educational disadvantage compared with their urban peers, especially when it comes to competing for university places and jobs, where English language competence is a key requirement. Migrant students are therefore more likely to drop out of school and less likely to get well-paid jobs than their urban peers.

Stepping Stones places volunteers in migrant schools and migrant community centres throughout Shanghai to offer a better English language education for these children. Stepping Stones volunteers use their native language skills to give migrant children an early opportunity to hear accurate pronunciation and phrasing, and to practice speaking. Most teachers work with a co-teacher, who is usually a Chinese national, so that they can communicate more easily, and Stepping Stones also provides training to support all teachers and co-teachers throughout their volunteer term. The project is well supported by the children’s other teachers and the schools themselves - Stepping Stones began its work at the behest of the schools’ principals.

Volunteer teachers come from all kinds of professional backgrounds and all regions of the world. The only requirements for volunteer teachers are enthusiasm and a commitment to the mission of Stepping Stones. Most Stepping Stones volunteers teach two consecutive 35 minute classes, which requires a time commitment of around 3-4 hours per week including travel and class preparation time.

Amanda Austin is a Stepping Stones volunteer. She intends to continue as long as she lives in Shanghai.

Since I’ve been a volunteer teacher, it has without a doubt become the highlight of my week.

I spend an hour or so before the class creating a lesson plan. I like to include activities that will challenge and entertain my students – I want to give the children a creative way to learn. Many students in China are used to rote learning; an alternative approach can help them to learn in an entirely different way, and the change can be an incredible stimulus.

Their reading and writing tends to be much stronger but, although speaking out can be terrifying, this can really open up a quiet student. It encourages them to try. As someone learning Mandarin right now, I know how difficult it can be to make the first steps, to speak the language without fear of mistakes. When a student raises his hand to answer in English, it’s the mark of huge progress.

Stepping Stones also appreciates volunteers’ skills and dedication beyond the classroom. There is plenty of scope to make a significant impact as a fundraiser, an accountant, or by using past experience working with websites and the net. Volunteers’ contributions can be tailored directly to needs and interests.

I serve as a board member for Stepping Stones. My background and experience is with non-profits, so a volunteer position on the board was the perfect fit for my area of expertise. My husband and I are expecting our first child and Stepping Stones has been incredibly understanding: the school where I teach is near my home; I do much of my work for the board from home; and I will take a few months break when the baby arrives. Stepping Stones works hard to ensure that its volunteers have a positive experience with their programme – this condition is even part of the mission statement.

Working with Stepping Stones has been a rewarding opportunity on so many levels. Although my lessons are designed with the children in mind, I end up having a huge amount of fun, and I probably learn as much from my students as they do from me.

As a board member, I am also learning. The non-profit system in China is vastly different from its equivalent in Europe or the US. Non-profits in China face numerous challenges but have the potential to make a real impact.

In both these roles, I have also made many new friends in expatriate and Chinese communities. One of the wonderful side-effects is the cross-cultural exchange that occurs between expats and the local Chinese community.

It’s also an opportunity to make a valuable contribution to our communities. I chose to volunteer because I wanted to find a way to contribute to the community in which I now live. Stepping Stones provides an ideal platform for those who want to do something worthwhile, with long term benefits for a truly vulnerable population within our community in Shanghai. By providing at-risk children with educational opportunities at a young age, I can help them to avoid dropping out – and all that would follow – and I hope I can instill the value of lifelong learning.

To find out more, visit http://steppingstoneschina.net, email enquiry@steppingstoneschina.net, or call +86 (21) 3209 5565.