By Darrell Turner
Currently close to two million people are displaced within Myanmar due to the civil war and most students complete only six years of education. The most sought-after jobs require English skills, yet quality English education is not available to the average student. So, every week, Sarah Clifford logs onto Zoom from her desk in Tennessee, and talks with seven learners in Myanmar. It isn’t a conversation about novels, but it is a book study group. The book is the Bible, and the participants are currently children who come from Christian families or are being cared for by Christians. “What’s exciting is that increasingly, Buddhist students in Myanmar are interested in joining our classes. The classes are free, and the students want to learn English. God is at work in the country of Myanmar,” Sarah said.
Sarah uses Light of the World Learning (LOTWL) materials and teaches through a separate organization called the Light of the World Club. She first got involved when a friend who was working with the club asked her, “Do you want to sit in on one of my classes?” Soon, Sarah was hooked. She had not previously done ESL teaching, but she had taught writing to children from age eight through high school in a home-school cooperative. Through a Google search for “Light of the World,” Sarah discovered Light of the World Learning and recommended its curriculum to the Light of the World Club.
Many of the students in Myanmar who are tutored through the program live in orphanages. Others work with Sarah and nine other teachers while sitting in private homes or internet cafes. Teaching can be challenging. “The connection often goes on and off,” Sarah says. “Most students have to keep their video off and even just audio often involves a shaky connection.”
The LOTW material features stories about Jesus and his teachings. Students also memorize Bible verses and share what they have learned about Jesus. “At the end of our classes, we spend time in prayer,” Sarah says. “I encourage the kids to say their prayers in Burmese. I love that they know that there are people on the other side of the world praying for them.”