English Around the World
What is English Around the World?
English Around the World is a volunteer-driven initiative facilitating English language education across borders. Our program provides a platform for individuals passionate about teaching to connect with learners globally, fostering language proficiency and cultural exchange. Volunteers can connect with learners from various backgrounds, all from the convenience of their own homes. Whether you're experienced at teaching English, eager to make a difference, or even not proficient in another language, there's a place for you in our community. No previous teaching experience is needed, and all are welcome. We use English Connect to design our lesson plans, and we rely on having many volunteers to make teaching more personal and impactful for learners.
How do I get involved?
BECOME A VOLUNTEER
Volunteer Description: Help English learners build confidence, improve their conversation skills, and connect with people from around the world! As a volunteer, you'll meet weekly with people learning English to practice conversation and develop their English skills. No second language is required! You'll receive training and resources to deliver English lessons. Volunteers meet together in the Y-Serve office and connect with learners virtually through Zoom.
Volunteer Opportunities: Choose one or multiple weekly sessions based on your availability.
1. Spanish & Portuguese Groups Saturdays at 9:30 AM Y-Serve Office (WSC 2330)
2. Mandarin, Spanish, Japanese & Cantonese Groups Thursdays at 7:00 PM Y-Serve Office (WSC 2330)
3. Ukrainian Middle School Group Lessons Teach group English lessons to Ukrainian middle school students.
Choose one weekly class from Monday–Friday, 9:00–9:50 AM. For more information, contact Luke Shafer.
Step 1- Join Teams
Please join the Teams chat before attending your first weekly meeting. We will use Teams to communicate about lessons, meeting times, and other important announcements. Teams Chat Link
For additional questions, you may reach out to one of the program leaders before attending the weekly meetings. Contact information for the Lead/Program Directors can be found under the "Contact Info" section.
Step 2- Log Service Hours
After volunteering, remember to report your service hours through the BYU app or the “Log Service Hours” tab on the Y-Serve website. Have questions? Feel free to contact one of our Lead or Program Directors before attending. Their contact information can be found under Contact Info.
Supplementary Material
Contact Info
When I first started at BYU, I felt overwhelmed by the sheer number of ways to get involved. I decided that including service in my extracurricular activities was important to me, but I hesitated to commit too much time. I remember walking into the Y Serve office and meeting the one (and then only) director of English Around the World, the program that most caught my attention because I felt I could contribute with my language abilities. From there, I hesitantly joined as program director of Spanish teaching, and I have been amazed at how rewarding service has been and how much the program is growing. To this day I am grateful for the leap of faith I took and continue to take to bless others with my talents and abilities.
This semester, I've taught English to a man who lives in Brazil. He told me that his company was just acquired; if he doesn't learn English, he can lose his job. After just 2 lessons, he said he's learned more than at 4 months of an expensive English school. For this man, learning English was about providing for his wife and 3 little girls. I feel so grateful for the tiny service I can give to him! Thank you so much for giving me this chance to serve and feel Christ's love enter my heart.
I had invited several of my mission friends to learn English in our program. I didn't really expect anyone to show up with that one invitation, but I decided to do it anyways. Three of the people I invited came to our English lesson that weekend, and it was so fun to see them. It reminded me that our little efforts can yield big results when we do them with faith.