English Teaching
Support A Local Community
Teach a small English conversation class to adults, business owners & Buddhist monks & nuns.
Experience A Different Culture
Discover what life is like living in a Buddhist temple with an opportunity to learn & practice meditation.
Affordable Long-Term Volunteering
Accommodation and meals are provided, with dedicated free time for you to explore the area.
Project Overview
Teach English to benefit the local community while learning about Thai culture and meditation by working voluntarily in a Buddhist temple.
As a volunteer teaching English to a local community in Thailand, you will be running a small, adult evening English class at a Buddhist temple, on a part-time voluntary basis for up to 12 months. Being a confident and experienced teacher of English, you will help local residents and business owners grow skills and confidence in their conversational English language abilities.
Your goal is to support the temple residents (Buddhist monks and nuns) to be able to communicate so that they can teach meditation to guests. You will also teach local people basic English to help benefit their businesses by being able to interact with tourists. While volunteering, you will have the opportunity to help with the running of the temple, practice meditation and learn the Thai language.
You can spend from 1 month to 1 year on this project, allowing you to explore a different culture while working to support a local community. This project provides accommodation and breakfast and lunch meals throughout the duration of your placement. As classes are taught in the evenings, you will also have plenty of free time during the day.
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
By taking part in this volunteering project, you are helping to support the SDGs, which provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. The specific SDGs this project impacts are:
Location
This project is located at a small Buddhist temple in the Hua Hin district in Prachuap Kiri Khan Province in central Thailand.
Hua Hin is a popular coastal beach resort just 200km south of Bangkok. Sitting on the Gulf of Thailand, the town has a beautiful powdery golden sand beach and features numerous seaside activities as well as fresh seafood restaurants. There are also lively night-markets with a fun mix of food, shopping and performing arts. Inland you can find golf courses, water parks and the Kaeng Krachan National Park, with mountains, forest, rivers and diverse wildlife. There you can hike and visit the Pa La-U Waterfall which is a great spot to watch butterflies.
The temple sits south just down the coast from Hua Hin at Takiab Bay, a small area with a beautiful hill, beach and several other temples. The temple is home to around 16 monks and 2 nuns, who live in segregated accommodation and share cooking facilities. As it is in a popular tourist area, the temple receives many visitors who the temple residents wish to interact with and have the opportunity to share their practices and teach meditation.
Hua Hin is easily accessible by bus, train and air. The journey from Bangkok takes about 3 hours by road and by rail. To fly from Bangkok to Hua Hin Airport takes less than 1 hour. Takiab Bay is accessible by road and takes just 10 minutes from the centre of Hua Hin. A small, locally run minibus or tuk-tuk can be used to travel.
Dates & Duration
You can volunteer from a minimum of 1 month to a maximum of 12 months. Check below for our upcoming start and finish dates for this project.
- 2019
From May 2019 on-wards. Start date flexible.
Costs
To join the project, you will need to pay a project sending fee plus an additional amount for insurance (approximately £1 per day). Please contact us to find out how much this would be.
- What's included?
During your volunteering placement, you will have furnished private accommodation with access to WiFi and a shared bathroom with shower. You will also be provided with two meals a day – breakfast and lunch – and have access to shared cooking facilities. While volunteering you will receive support from our project partners in Thailand.
- What's not included?
Once your placement is confirmed, we can help you to organise your flights, travel insurance, and tourist visa but you will need to cover all costs. You will also need to organise and pay for any required vaccinations and medications you need while volunteering. You will need to pay for your police or background check. While volunteering, you will receive two meals a day (breakfast and lunch) but dinner is not provided. Local street food as well as shops and markets to buy food are very close by. We also recommend that you have a little extra money for any travelling and additional activities you may want to take part in while in Thailand.
Eligibility Requirements
To join this project, you will need to be a native speaker of English. You’ll have an enthusiasm for teaching, including developing a curriculum of activities and study topics to suit conversational and business English needs. While no previous experience is necessary, we suggest, however, that some prior experience with teaching will be an advantage, particularly experience in teaching adults. You’ll need be flexible in your approach, and willing to organise your work in accordance with the varying needs arising from the students.
You will need to be resilient and able to cope with change and to embrace the unexpected! You’ll need to be willing to adapt to different cultural situations, including working in different ways and different living conditions. You’ll need to have a strong motivation for helping others, and an enthusiastic and energetic attitude.
As this placement is located at a Buddhist temple, an interest in practising meditation and learning about Buddhism is desirable. You will also need to be open to and respectful of the Buddhist ways of life.
While no knowledge of the Thai language is required, it would be advantageous for you to be able to speak or be willing to learn basic conversational Thai to enable you to interact with the community day-to-day. For those interested, Thai lessons will be available for you to study and practice.
To be successful, you will need to clear relevant Police Record checks (such as PVG, DBS, ICPC) and understand and abide by our Safeguarding Policy. You will also need to eligible to apply for Thailand Tourist Visa.
If this sounds like you, we would love to hear from you!
How To Apply
If you’d like to apply for this volunteering project, please send your CV along with a Covering Letter to info@ivsgb.org.
Teach English at a Buddhist Temple in Thailand
Project Details & FAQ
- What kind of work will I be doing?
As a volunteer teaching English in this Buddhist temple, you will be supporting conversational, tourism and business English learning activities, on a part-time voluntary basis for up to 12 months.
During that time you will get to know another culture through working voluntarily as an English teacher for the benefit of a local community.
You will be responsible for developing a curriculum and learning activities based on the requirements of the students. The adult students in the class may be complete beginners of the English language, and need English for specific situations or purposes related to business and tourism. The students are keen to learn English from a native English speaker.
- How many hours and what days will I work?
Volunteers will work for 3 hours per day in the evening from 6pm – 9pm, 5 days a week.
- Will I get support throughout my volunteering placement?
Yes! You will receive support from the monks at the temple and our project partners in Thailand.
They will help you get to know the local culture and customs of the country and community. You will also have the opportunity to attend an orientation to enable you to settle in and become orientated before you start your volunteering placement.
If you ever have any questions or need any help, they will be there for you!
- How long can I volunteer for?
The placement can last for a minimum of 1 month to a maximum of 12 months. It is entirely up to you!
Many hosts can be flexible, so if by the end of your volunteering placement you’re not ready to leave, there may be an opportunity to extend your placement too!
- How old are the students and what are they like?
The students you will teach are adults. They wish to learn English from a native speaker. Many are starting to learn English for the first time and so are complete beginners of the language. Local business owners hope to benefit from the classes to enable them to interact better with tourists. Similarly, the monks and nuns of the temple hope to be able to communicate so that they can welcome tourists and guests to the temple and teach meditation.
The class will be advertised to local residents in the area, and is expected to be small with approximately 5-20 students in attendance.
- What are the benefits of joining this project?
By taking part in this volunteering project, you will develop new skills, develop or even learn a new language, make an impact on the local community, learn about different cultures, make new friends, gain confidence and much more!
You will also be contributing to these specific United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: 4. Quality Education, 8. Decent Work and Economic Growth, 16: Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions, 17: Partnerships For The Goals.
- How much will it cost?
To join the project, you will need to pay a project fee. Please contact us to find out how much this would be.
Once your placement is confirmed, you will need to organise and pay for your own flights, visa, vaccinations and medication. If you prefer, we can help you to make these arrangements through our dedicated partner organisations.
During your volunteering project, accommodation and two meals per day are provided free of charge.
We recommend that, should you wish to partake in any excursions, tours, travel or activities while in Thailand, you have your own additional funds to pay for these while on the volunteering project.
- What is the accommodation like?
Your accommodation will be provided by the temple. You will have a private room which will be fully-furnished. The accommodation is segregated between the monks and the nuns.
You will have access to WiFi and a shared bathroom with toliet and shower (no hot water).
Cooking facilities are available for you to use as you wish. ATMs, street food vendors, shops and supermarkets are close by to the accommodation.
Drugs, alcohol and smoking are prohibited in the temple. The host does not permit guests to stay overnight.
- Are meals provided?
Two meals per day (breakfast and lunch) are provided by the temple. You can eat communally with other temple residents. Breakfast is served at 7:30 and lunch is served at 12 noon. Monks do not after midday, so dinner is not provided. The temple meals are not vegetarian, but vegans and vegetarians can be accommodated for.
For other meals, the volunteer should budget a small amount per day (we recommend around £5) to be able to buy and/or cook your own food. There are many street food vendors, shops and supermarkets located close by to the accommodation.
- What is the weather like?
The climate in this region of Thailand is hot all year round, with Celsius temperatures in the 20s and 30s. It is slightly cooler in the rainy season in September-November. October is the month with the most rainfall, while December has the least.
- What do I need to bring?
You need to wear polite or conservative dress while you are teaching and in the temple. Shorts, skirts, spaghetti straps, singlets and open-backed sandals are not suitable. Casual, light, loose and natural fabric clothing is recommended.
You will need to bring your own medication with you.
- Do I need to know how to speak Thai?
It is not necessary to know any of the Thai language, however you may find it advantageous to know and learn basic Thai. As many of the residents in the community will have limited or no English language ability, learning Thai will enable you to communicate. If you are interested to learn it, Thai lessons can be arranged while you are on your volunteering placement.
- Do I need to have a TEFL Qualification or experience teaching English?
While it is not necessary to have any experience of teaching English or a TEFL Certificate, we feel that this placement would be well suited to someone with these skills and qualifications. As a volunteer on this project, you will be responsible for creating and developing the learning topics and activities. You will also be teaching adults. You will need to be a confident self-starter with lots of ideas and enthusiasm for teaching and ability to control a classroom environment.
- Can I volunteer with my friend/partner?
Yes! There may be opportunity for you to do this volunteering project together. However, due to the accommodation arrangements you may not be able to stay in the same room together. Please contact us for further details.
- Do I need a visa?
You will need to check your visa requirements. Generally, a Tourist Visa is sufficient. Please check at the Thai Embassy for further information.