Matching
We are currently experimenting a few matching methods. The matching method we used for these few weeks is through a review committee. Our committee studies your profile and suggests a match for you.
As in real life, the fit of a match requires trials and errors to find out. In case you experience problems with your match, please contact us at match@sichuanteachers.org to see if we could help before discontinuing your service. Oftentimes, problems can be resolved as one gains teaching and learning experiences. As some of the students are orphans, a sense of continuity and support could be vital part of their recoveries. However, if you want to apply for a rematch, please write to us. We might offer more automatic mechanism for rematch requests in the future. You must inform us immediately if you have decided to quit so we could find another match for you student.
To facilitate your teaching process, we have prepared some links:
2. Sponsored items (The contents of this page will be updated in the next weeks. Note especially that you could call a number in China using skype.com for less than US$1 an hour.)
In the future we may have other types of matching. The matching method below is tentative.
The website displays to each side a table of anonymized personal data of the other side. Each side ranks a subset of individuals on the other side. For example, a student sees a list of volunteer teachers. If the list is too long, the student filters the list by listing, say, teachers who teach math first. The student then chooses which ones are his first, second, third choices, etc. Likewise, the teachers also rank the students. This website stops allowing modification of rankings on XX/XX. On XX/XX, the website will be closed temporarily for matching students.
We will reopen this website on XX/XX. We are discussing a few candidates for the matching arrangement and algorithms. One possibility is that our matching team will compute some "socially efficient" scores and match the students and teachers into pairs. The words "socially efficient" are in quotes because it depends on your point of view. For example, considerations that we take into account include stability (i.e., each pair does not tend to break easily across time, which is especially important for orphans), efficiencies (e.g. roughly speaking, we try to give everyone their best choices if feasible). Since 2005 similar algorithms have been implemented into matching students and schools in NYC and Boston. (see, for example, this post).
The website reopens on XXX or earlier to announce the pairs. Once our system has finished matching you with another person(s), we will either call or email you the matching results. The website may reopen a few times a year to allow rematch especially if personal data and preferences change.