Teacher Diego: A bumpy road to becoming an English Teacher

Teaching in Thailand is one of the most interesting experiences I’ve had yet. I’ve learned a lot about the culture of this beautiful place and I will never regret my decision to leave Italy and start my adventures abroad, which ultimately led me here.

I had to work hard to get the opportunity to take a TEFL course, going through countless adventures in Australia and New Zealand to learn the appropriate level of the English language that allowed me to start this amazing career. Despite my Bachelor degree in foreign languages and literature achieved in Italy, the language barrier was huge when I landed in Australia for the first time. Every day included many mistakes and struggles with incomprehensible words and local phrases. However, unashamed, I kept trying and trying until my conversations were fluent and my understanding was nearly perfect.

Then, after 4 years, it was time to face the new adventure that I had planned after my degree: teaching English in Asia. Many friends told me about their amazing experiences visiting Thailand so I did my research on the internet and found a very interesting TEFL course on the island of Koh Samui.  Upon arrival I discovered paradisiacal beaches, warm weather, and amazing fresh food; it seemed about right. In short, it was one of the best adventures of my entire life, I was surrounded by amazing people - future teachers, in fact, the location was beautiful and life seemed to be amazingly perfect (which it is even now).

The TEFL course was a blast and it went by too fast. The instructor was clear and funny and after the classes I was definitely ready to apply for a teaching job. I had quick replies from three different schools: one in Songklha, one in Krabi, and one from a charity Foundation called “Phuket Has Been Good To Us”, like the name says, in Phuket. I decided Songkhla was too far and in the middle of nowhere so I placed this offer as my last choice and arranged a Skype interview with the other two offers. Any doubts I had were gone after these interviews. There was nothing wrong with the Krabi school but the professional and friendly people on the other side of my screen from Phuket Has Been Good To Us (PHBGTU) were just amazing! My questions were all answered by the senior teacher, the recruitment volunteer and the boss of the Foundation. I decided to start my adventure from the Island of Phuket!

Friendly staff welcomed me in the small town of Kamala. We had lunch and introduced ourselves; everyone was very friendly and at the same time very professional. The staff and my co-workers helped me a lot during the first months of the job until I got used to it and I started to have my first achievements. Students began to get used to me; the younger ones started to see me as an example and the older ones as a friendly face who they could open up to and explain their problems, dreams, and hobbies. Teaching in the underprivileged government school is not the easiest thing to do but the rewards are enormous considering we can make a small difference in the lives of less fortunate students. I have been so fortunate as to be put in charge of the P6 class here in Kamala which has been sponsored by Jean-Claude and K Kantaya, meaning I can make an even bigger difference.  

Every day is a new experience and there is something new to learn. Even after one year and a half as a teacher for PHBGTU I am still surprised an amazed the Thai people, the community and my co-workers and I’m looking forward to the rest of this academic year ahead.

“No I don’t teach, I work in the Office” – by Erin Grout

My mother was skeptical when I said I was leaving for Thailand in a month to work as a full-time volunteer for an NGO for half a year. She was reassured when she saw that the organization had a website, was on Google maps, replied to my emails, and generally seemed legitimate. Still, I had student loans and the more responsible choice at the time seemed to be staying in the US, getting a paid job, and maybe taking a holiday to Thailand someday. But I decided it was the opportunity I was looking for and, bank-account-be-damned, I was off.

Luckily, it turned out moving to Phuket and volunteering for Phuket Has Been Good To Us Foundation (PHBGTU) was a great decision. Volunteering for the Foundation doesn’t just mean making coffee (although we do enjoy our morning cup of Joe); I became the primary marketing and communication fellow or the “Marketing Department”. This role meant liaising with media sponsors, updating our social media, creating our quarterly newsletter, marketing and helping to plan our major fundraising events, and more! In short it was amazing career experience, working with great people, on a beautiful tropical island! #Winning.

Even the fact that I happened to arrive on the island during an El Nino year –which meant the rainiest high-season most people seemed to be able to remember – hasn’t put a damper on my time as a full-time volunteer. One of the best parts of the job is helping out at Coconut Club, the after-school programme for residential students at Kamala school. For an hour each day we play games or create arts and crafts with students who live full time at the school because they are orphans or their parents are unable to take care of them. Spending time with the children we work to benefit through quality English language programmes is the best reminder that a day full of monotonous emailing was worth the effort. 

Fortunately, working in the office was usually very dynamic and meant taking responsibility for a variety of projects. I stayed with the Foundation for 9 months and was able to take part in all three of our major fundraising events over the course of the year: A Night at the Opera; Black Tie, Muay Thai; and Pop Up 3. While I was primarily working on marketing our small team shared responsibility for tasks and everyone was involved in our fundraising events. Even our seven-member teaching team would help out before and on event day.

 While a salary is a nice perk of any job, I am incredibly happy that I chose to be a full-time volunteer for PHBGTU. I was lucky enough to move to Phuket and meet fun people, take part in great festivals, eat delicious food, and travel around Thailand a bit! Plus, while my time with the Foundation is wrapping up, I am hoping to stay on in Phuket and I am therefore seeking new work opportunities. In the meantime, I will definitely stay informed on all the happenings at Phuket Has Been Good To Us and take part whenever I can!

Reaching out to the Present Generation

“I don’t want to become a teacher.” I can still remember my snobby face while that statement bumps the lobes in my head. It was 10 years ago though. A lot has changed since then. Going back, it's my definite answer to the No. 1 question I was frequently asked before entering college life. 

I want a change that’s why. I’ve been spending all my years in school and I won’t give teaching a go as a profession either. That was my thought back then. I’ve chosen to take up a Nursing course instead.

Ironically, if words can be eaten, I ate it all up. It is because I am now a teacher and I love being called one. A living proof that the only thing that’s constant in this world is change. A turning point that leads to an exhilarating road trip! Let me grab the steering wheel for you. Don’t forget to buckle up! Bumpy road ahead.

Teaching brought me to different heights in my life. It’s definitely where I find my purpose. It was a great opportunity to impart what I’ve learned not just as an educator but as a person living and facing the realities of this world. My love for education brought me to Thailand, “The Land of Smiles”.

  

   

I’ve been teaching here for more than two years now. I can still remember my first day of teaching, I felt an ambivalence with that circumstance I am about to face. The norms and culture somehow match the place where I grew up. It’s not too hard to adjust except in learning their language. To mention, it’s the outset of a life living far from home. Sleepless nights, feeling homesick and living alone. Yet, the motivation that I’m doing it not just for myself but for the ones I loved gave me the courage to get back on the track.

I’ve taught secondary students in a province in South Thailand, then I’ve had a summer job as an assistant teacher in Chonburi, searching brought me to a Kindergarten teaching position in Rayong province and I’m now here in Phuket as an ESL teacher for students who have had a special place in my heart.

Working at Phuket Has Been Good To Us (PHBGTU) Foundation taught me more about selflessness. It’s going beyond the goal of sharing knowledge and pursuing the illumination of academics in light of the subjects we’re teaching our students. It’s deeper and that’s what I love the most in teaching here. I’ve learned not just to be a teacher, but to be a sister or sometimes a mother to the students who long for this kind of care and love. I’m amazed of how most of our students undauntedly face living in the school and not being with their family most of the time. At a very young age, they’ve known how to live independently and have surpassed circumstances that were not meant yet for them to experience. They’re like seedlings growing in a plot full of thorns and rocks. I admire them and will be forever grateful for having the opportunity to teach and care for them.

      

Time will come that this experience will just be a fragment of a memory. Yet, it’s something worth remembering. PHBGTU is a remarkable organisation which helps young individuals to realize their dreams. Working here is like being with your family. It feels like you’re home. I would want to grab this opportunity to encourage people to reach out to the lives of the youth today. It’s not too late to share, care and love them. It is because at the end of the day, as an educator, what matters most is not the number of rewards you get but the lives you’ve helped nourished to grow. It’s transformation indeed!

      

Now, let’s all move on to our next destination. Ready? Buckle up! Enjoy the ride!