Volunteer as a teacher in a local Karen community!
Only a quarter of Karen children have the chance to complete their secondary education. By becoming a Teaching volunteer, you will be at the forefront of helping these less privileged children learn and develop, to ensure their future is one of opportunity.
As a volunteer teacher, you will be primarily focusing on spoken English and developing the confidence of the students. The local teachers are often good at teaching the grammar and structure of the English language but when it comes to speaking, many lack confidence and won’t have good pronunciation skills. Children enjoy the fun elements that our volunteer teachers often inject into lessons, especially activities like songs and games, which help bring English alive.
Volunteers can also help by teaching other subjects alongside English. Depending on your skills and interests, you could get involved in organizing extra-curricular activities such as art, drama, music, sports, and more.
Learning English for Karen students is critical. It allows students to expand their employment opportunities and increases their social status. By signing up to be a teaching volunteer, you will provide others with new opportunities but also learn a lot yourself!
So far, we have a community of 191 volunteers. Apply now to become part of the team!
“Why was it such a good experience going to Thailand with KHT? Because of the people, as simple as that. Karen and Thai people are the nicest people I have ever met.”
Isabel Gibert, Teaching English, 2014
Who can apply?
We would love to see people of all ages and backgrounds to get involved! However, you have to have turned 18!
Other than that, as long as you have a good standard of written and spoken English, you can apply.
To enjoy the placement, you should be open-minded, flexible and willing to learn and listen, as well as enjoy teaching.
During the placement, you will be living with a host family from a local Karen village, so you will get an intimate insight into Karen culture!
Who would I be teaching?
The schools are government run with Primary school students aged from 7 to 12 years and Secondary schools aged between 13 -16. Each school varies in size, from small sub-district schools up to much larger schools with more facilities. On average, there are between 20 to 30 students per class.
You will usually be teaching for between 2 to 4 hours a day, and on average most volunteers spend another 8 to 10 hours a week lesson planning. Alongside this to ensure levels of English teaching remain sustainable, we encourage volunteers to spend time with Karen English teachers to help increase their confidence.
Volunteer Stories
Choose between three or six month placements!
To make it possible for as many as possible to get involved, KHT offers placements of either three or six months to suit as many as possible.
We do not offer shorter placements as it is important for our volunteers to be able to establish a bond with the local community in order to make real impact. For that same reason it is possible to extend your stay!
Does it cost anything?
By signing up to become part of the Teaching volunteer programme, you also agree to a fundraising pledge. This pledge is to increase the impact you can make through your placement! The pledge covers all your in-country volunteer costs but you also make a contribution to building sustainable futures for the Karen.
As a NGO, we will ensure that, after costs have been met, all money raised by our volunteers is spent on charitable activities which improve the lives of the Karen people in Thailand.
Three Month Teaching Placement Pledge = £1,000
Six Month Placement Pledge Teaching Placement Pledge = £1,500
This includes a £200 non-refundable deposit which secures your place on the project. The final pledge is due one month before your project start date. Your contribution will be essential to provide access to quality education for the Karen children!
Fundraise
What is included in the costs?
The fundraising pledge covers the following costs:
- One-night residential training and induction in York
- Return transport to and from Chiang Mai
- Accommodation in your village
- Three meals per day
- KHT T-shirt and volunteer information pack
The pledge will also contribute to administration and staff costs in order to provide you with the best possible support during your stay.