May 3, 2025

Free tutoring programs for kids run by churches fills much needed void among low-income families

From "Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>
Date Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:45:03 +0800

3100 Edition

July 25~31, 2011

Church Ministry News

Free tutoring programs for kids run by churches fills much needed void among 
low-income families

Reported by Sam Lee and Chiou Kuo-rong

Written by Lydia Ma

“According to a 2009 report from the Ministry of Education, there are more than 
100,000 children wandering unsupervised every day after school is over,” said 
James Shia, General Secretary of Chinese Christian Relief Association (CCRA), 
during a press conference on July 20, 2011. That’s why starting this September, 
CCRA will start offering free tutoring programs at 150 locations, which will 
help 2,400 children from struggling families with their studies and offer them 
free extracurricular classes.

This press conference was called by CCRA to raise awareness and raise funds and 
encourage people to get involved. The association’s goal is to offer classes 
free of charge for children from disadvantaged backgrounds so that they won’t 
miss out or lag behind in academics merely because their families can’t afford 
private tutoring, cram classes, or arts lessons.

Tutoring classes will take place at various local churches and has become a 
partnership project between the CCRA and local churches with the goal of being 
a beacon for Christ at the local level.

Some students from Minsyong Elementary School performed during this press 
conference. Their school had already begun partnering with CCRA and a local 
Bread of Life Church. 

Chung Yu-ju, the church pastor’s wife, said Minsyong Township needed this 
program very much, especially since it is known for its high crime rate. The 
church has helped many disadvantaged students through this program, including 
those from single-parent families, those raised by grandparents, children whose 
mothers are foreign spouses, and children with special needs.

“We have a deaf student in our class,” said Chung. “This kid is already in the 
third grade but cannot speak yet because the family is so poor that they cannot 
afford getting the child a hearing-aid. We are fundraising right now to help 
the child get a hearing-aid.”

Shia said that teaching these children to have good manners and good moral 
values is also part of the program’s goal. But it will also provide children 
with dinner and art, dance, music, and language classes so that students can 
build up self-confidence and discover their talents and interests. 

It is the goal and hope of organizers that these skills will help them and 
their families avoid a life of perpetual poverty.

PCT has also been involved in similar ministries in the past and continues to 
do so via more than 1,200 local churches. PCT presbyteries are the main 
coordinators for such programs while local churches provide the manpower and 
the venue. Such programs make up one aspect of the PCT’s evangelism strategies. 
Churches in Seven Stars Presbytery and East Coast Presbytery have been 
providing Life Education classes, tutoring classes, visitation services, and 
community outreach for a long time.

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