Volunteering in Thailand: A Unique Experience

Nearly five years ago I found myself on a minivan taking me to a place I would call home for the next six months (or so I thought). As I drove away from town and into the countryside, with nothing but mountains, palm and rubber plantations to gaze at, I began to wonder what I’d got myself into.

I’ve never been an adventurous person and my decision to come and be a volunteer teacher in Krabi, in the South of Thailand was a rare act of spontaneity. Luckily I wasn’t alone; on the same bus were 10 other people who looked just as nervous as me. Some had given up careers to come here, others were taking a break from studying but we all had one thing in common – we didn’t have a clue what to expect!

TEFL training

The first four weeks were spent completing our 100-hour TEFL training course. Our project was teaching free evening classes to adults in the local community.

We would have input with our trainers in the morning, followed by lesson planning and then teaching or observing in the evening. My trainer Steve described TEFL as a crash-course in teaching and it was pretty intense but also incredibly rewarding.

I remember being so nervous before my first class but soon relaxed and started to really enjoy myself. The students, comprised of people of all ages and walks of life, were so supportive and willing to learn it really put us inexperienced teachers at ease. There was a great rapport between students and volunteers. They would drive us back to base in the evening and after each four-week term was up, there would be a party with karaoke (Thais love karaoke) and mountains of food, all brought by the students.

Working in the community

In addition to teaching, we took part in numerous other activities within the community, such as renovating schools, planting mangroves, taking part in the King’s birthday celebrations and helping those affected by flooding during a particularly fierce rainy season.

We were invited to take part in the annual community festival, performing a traditional Thai dance with barely one weeks’ practice. It was quite scary getting on stage in front of a few thousand people and I was afraid people might get offended if our performance was bad. Thankfully the Thai people forgave our poor dancing and appreciated the effort we had made.

Living in a homestay

After three months teaching adults, it was time to move on to my homestay. I was placed in a small fishing village where I taught primary and high school students during the day and adults in the evening. Now I was faced with a new challenge – teaching a room full of children.

I walked in to my first class to be greeted with about 30 expectant little faces staring at me. They’d never had a foreign teacher before and were pretty excited (or scared) – so I had to deliver. Thankfully my TEFL training had prepared me well and I had a solid lesson plan to fall back on.

Soon enough we were playing games and singing songs with everybody getting involved. Teaching teenagers proved a little more tricky. The students saw my class as a chance to muck around which was a bit disheartening at first but once I lightened up we had a lot of fun.

Five years on

Volunteering in Thailand was one of the best experiences of my life. It was a great way to ease into ESL teaching and get a taste of living in Thailand. I hadn’t intended to stay longer than six months but when my time was up I felt I wasn’t ready to leave. I took up a paid position at a local school and I’ve been working here ever since.

Volunteering also had one other big effect on my life; it’s where I met my wife, Apple. She was working as a staff member when I first arrived and I actually met her on my very first day in Thailand. We hit it off instantly, got married in 2013 and last August we had our first child together. Several of my fellow volunteers decided to stick around too and we still see each other regularly.

Living and working abroad gives you an opportunity to experience other cultures, food and languages. If you’re thinking about doing a TEFL course or volunteering, my advice is just do it. I guarantee you won’t regret it and who knows – maybe you’ll like it so much you never leave.