Volunteer Spotlight: Luai

My name is Luai, and I am a 25-year-old from Odla Village near Nablus. I first began volunteering with TYO while I was a sophomore studying Arabic at An Najah University. I didn’t necessarily consider teaching much, but I had some free time and thought it would be fun to play with kids in sports classes. I quickly realized what a rewarding experience it was to volunteer, and couldn’t help but sign up to volunteer in more classes, including computer, summer camp, and art classes. I found out that I ended up learning while teaching, that I could not wait to finish my classes so I could go to TYO and play with the children.

Don’t get me wrong – it wasn’t always easy. I had no idea how to work with children, let alone children who had come from difficult backgrounds. Even during the most stressful times, however, I always left TYO wishing I could stay longer with the children.

That’s what made me realize that I wanted to become a teacher. I have since graduated from An Najah and am now a certified teacher with the Ministry of Education and, when I am not volunteering at TYO, I am teaching 14 to 18 year old students Arabic at a local school. I try to incorporate what I’ve learned at TYO as much as I can. Our school system in Nablus is very rigid, but TYO has taught me the importance of being a kid and having the opportunity to open our minds to creative ideas. It also stressed a crucial component of being part of the Nabulsi community: working in teams. To teach, I divide students in groups and have them work together with the help of teaching aids. I’ve noticed that the kids not only learn more, but they are happier. I am excited to continue integrating what I’ve learned from my experiences at TYO with my new job as a teacher.

I have no intention of leaving TYO though. As long as TYO’s doors are open, I will be here doing what I can.

- Luai

Luai is a volunteer at TYO Nablus.

More about TYO’s volunteers: Like Luai, 95 volunteers hail from An Najah University. Others come from surrounding colleges, including Al Quds Open University. Of the whopping 125 registered volunteers for this term, 95 are female and 27 are male. Five of them have been with TYO since the beginning and 17 have been with TYO for at least two years. Three quarters of our volunteers aren’t just helping teach in the classrooms, but are also still students in the university classroom themselves. We couldn’t ask for a more dedicate core group of volunteers and we certainly couldn’t do our jobs without them.