Barefoot and Breezy? Try Suited, Booted, and Uptight!
The last 9 weeks have absolutely flown by, and I can't believe we are already posting our final blog about our teaching experience in Thailand. Needless to say, it's been a pretty busy time which explains the slightly neglected travel blog ... we will be back on it from now on!
It's fair to say that the realty of our time teaching TEFL has been quite far from our initial expectations. When we interviewed for 'Media Kids' (the agency that schools then buy into to deliver English lessons) they informed us they targeted rural areas in Thailand where English was not so easily accessible. The recruiter went on to explain that the levels of English were typically very low, and that we would be teaching one topic, say; colour, for one week across each of the classes we saw. Perhaps jumping to conclusions too quickly, we assumed the school we'd be placed in would be out in the sticks, and fairly basic in terms of resources and expectations.
Anyway, as explained in our previous post, The Montrisuksa School turned out to be pretty far from this preconception. We were placed in a large private school which, although based in the rural village of Nam Phong, is made up of few local kids and instead attracts students from a wider network of families who can pay considerable amounts for their child's education.
The students are expected to have a fairly good level of English and this was reflected in the challenging curriculums we had to follow when lesson planning. The workload has been anything but light, with a constant stream of deadlines to meet, a heavy timetable of teaching, and multiple weekends spent doing school related activities (with no extra pay). The heat has been overwhelming, sometimes hitting 40 degrees, and behavioural issues in the classroom were far more common than either of us expected. Working straight through from 7.30am to 4pm each day with just a short break for lunch is common practice, and even then we have spent many evenings and weekends catching up on grading sheets, lesson plans and report cards. So. Incase you haven't guessed, we are both exhausted, run down and extremely excited to pack up our bags and get back on the road this weekend!!!
However there are a few important things still to mention.
Firstly, take everything I have just moaned about work-wise, times it by a thousand and then divide the pay check by at least two .... and that just about sums up the working conditions of the Thai teachers. They are living examples of the most amazing work ethic we have ever come across, working at least six fulls day a week, teaching almost every period, and never, ever complaining. Our first impressions left us feeling a little shocked that corporal punishment can still be seen daily in the school, but having spent 9 weeks fully immersed in the day to day running of things, it is clear just how caring the teachers are. Although often ill and exhausted themselves, they seem to have so much compassion for each and every child in the school. In fact, just a few weeks ago, I was walking up a long flight of stairs to get to my classroom when I nearly stumbled over the dance teacher who was lying unconscious at the bottom of the stairwell. My immediate reaction was one of panic (I REALLY need to get first aid trained!!), so I ran to get Butty (who is MUCH better in an emergency) who helped get her to the safety of a classroom. She was out for a good 20 minutes, and was extremely hot. The ambulance arrived and took her away and we felt pretty worried for her welfare., However.... a couple of hours later, and guess who's back at school, in uniform and ready to teach? Yep, the dance teacher. Apparently a few years back she gave birth to her baby in the morning and was back in the school that very afternoon.
There is no such thing as sick pay, and for every minute they are out of school their pay check is docked. Reductions are made if the air con is left on, or a light, and their 'summer holiday' consists of 5 days off before returning for preparations for the next semester. We have both loved getting to know the Thai teachers better as they are some of the most resilient, but also lovely, people we've had the pleasure of meeting on our travels.
We have taken some very valuable life lessons away from our time at Montrisuksa, some positive and some not so positive, but all valuable in their own way. It has been blissful to become apart of another village for a few months where we have been accepted with open arms by all the residents. The people of Nam Phong can be summed up as being hardworking, funny, and extremely happy. One of my favourite things about spending an extended amount of time in a place totally alien to where you have grown up is that on the onset everything seems so far from what you know. You feel totally isolated and like there are no familiarities or home comforts, but it doesn't take long for the materialistic differences to melt away. You're left with a realisation that there are far more human qualities and practices that are universally shared than any of those that separate us. Even the barrier of language can become more redundant than it first seems, and you realise we really are all the same. It's a beautiful feeling to experience.
We will be leaving Nam Phong with very mixed emotions. We'll be sad to say goodbye to the friends we have met and worked with at the school, as well as our students. I think tears will be shed particularly when saying farewell to our adopted pets Blueen the cat and Rosi 2 the puppy. We'll miss the BEAUTIFUL surroundings that we get to take for granted everyday, and I have to say it's been LOVELY having a wardrobe for a few months. We'll miss our little porch with the rainbow hammock, and the iced-coffee lady who makes our drinks just how we like them.
But... there are exciting things to look forward to. Two good friends of ours have just touched down in Thailand to join us for some of our travels; Katie and Kemish.....can't wait to see you!!! We have a few weeks left on our Thai visas which means time to unwind and get our tan on whilst we explore the southern islands. It's also not long until my mum and dad meet us in Vietnam for a mini adventure :) No more alarms, no more hot, itchy skirts and shirts.
We decided that working for the last 9 weeks has been important in re-centring ourselves, having a purpose again and reminding us how fortunate we are to be on this adventure. BUT, we are so ready to be full time travellers again and return to being 'barefoot and breezy' instead of 'suited, booted and uptight'!!
Thanks for reading
Butty and Katie xxx
It's fair to say that the realty of our time teaching TEFL has been quite far from our initial expectations. When we interviewed for 'Media Kids' (the agency that schools then buy into to deliver English lessons) they informed us they targeted rural areas in Thailand where English was not so easily accessible. The recruiter went on to explain that the levels of English were typically very low, and that we would be teaching one topic, say; colour, for one week across each of the classes we saw. Perhaps jumping to conclusions too quickly, we assumed the school we'd be placed in would be out in the sticks, and fairly basic in terms of resources and expectations.
Anyway, as explained in our previous post, The Montrisuksa School turned out to be pretty far from this preconception. We were placed in a large private school which, although based in the rural village of Nam Phong, is made up of few local kids and instead attracts students from a wider network of families who can pay considerable amounts for their child's education.
The students are expected to have a fairly good level of English and this was reflected in the challenging curriculums we had to follow when lesson planning. The workload has been anything but light, with a constant stream of deadlines to meet, a heavy timetable of teaching, and multiple weekends spent doing school related activities (with no extra pay). The heat has been overwhelming, sometimes hitting 40 degrees, and behavioural issues in the classroom were far more common than either of us expected. Working straight through from 7.30am to 4pm each day with just a short break for lunch is common practice, and even then we have spent many evenings and weekends catching up on grading sheets, lesson plans and report cards. So. Incase you haven't guessed, we are both exhausted, run down and extremely excited to pack up our bags and get back on the road this weekend!!!However there are a few important things still to mention.
Firstly, take everything I have just moaned about work-wise, times it by a thousand and then divide the pay check by at least two .... and that just about sums up the working conditions of the Thai teachers. They are living examples of the most amazing work ethic we have ever come across, working at least six fulls day a week, teaching almost every period, and never, ever complaining. Our first impressions left us feeling a little shocked that corporal punishment can still be seen daily in the school, but having spent 9 weeks fully immersed in the day to day running of things, it is clear just how caring the teachers are. Although often ill and exhausted themselves, they seem to have so much compassion for each and every child in the school. In fact, just a few weeks ago, I was walking up a long flight of stairs to get to my classroom when I nearly stumbled over the dance teacher who was lying unconscious at the bottom of the stairwell. My immediate reaction was one of panic (I REALLY need to get first aid trained!!), so I ran to get Butty (who is MUCH better in an emergency) who helped get her to the safety of a classroom. She was out for a good 20 minutes, and was extremely hot. The ambulance arrived and took her away and we felt pretty worried for her welfare., However.... a couple of hours later, and guess who's back at school, in uniform and ready to teach? Yep, the dance teacher. Apparently a few years back she gave birth to her baby in the morning and was back in the school that very afternoon.
There is no such thing as sick pay, and for every minute they are out of school their pay check is docked. Reductions are made if the air con is left on, or a light, and their 'summer holiday' consists of 5 days off before returning for preparations for the next semester. We have both loved getting to know the Thai teachers better as they are some of the most resilient, but also lovely, people we've had the pleasure of meeting on our travels.
We have taken some very valuable life lessons away from our time at Montrisuksa, some positive and some not so positive, but all valuable in their own way. It has been blissful to become apart of another village for a few months where we have been accepted with open arms by all the residents. The people of Nam Phong can be summed up as being hardworking, funny, and extremely happy. One of my favourite things about spending an extended amount of time in a place totally alien to where you have grown up is that on the onset everything seems so far from what you know. You feel totally isolated and like there are no familiarities or home comforts, but it doesn't take long for the materialistic differences to melt away. You're left with a realisation that there are far more human qualities and practices that are universally shared than any of those that separate us. Even the barrier of language can become more redundant than it first seems, and you realise we really are all the same. It's a beautiful feeling to experience.
We will be leaving Nam Phong with very mixed emotions. We'll be sad to say goodbye to the friends we have met and worked with at the school, as well as our students. I think tears will be shed particularly when saying farewell to our adopted pets Blueen the cat and Rosi 2 the puppy. We'll miss the BEAUTIFUL surroundings that we get to take for granted everyday, and I have to say it's been LOVELY having a wardrobe for a few months. We'll miss our little porch with the rainbow hammock, and the iced-coffee lady who makes our drinks just how we like them.
But... there are exciting things to look forward to. Two good friends of ours have just touched down in Thailand to join us for some of our travels; Katie and Kemish.....can't wait to see you!!! We have a few weeks left on our Thai visas which means time to unwind and get our tan on whilst we explore the southern islands. It's also not long until my mum and dad meet us in Vietnam for a mini adventure :) No more alarms, no more hot, itchy skirts and shirts.We decided that working for the last 9 weeks has been important in re-centring ourselves, having a purpose again and reminding us how fortunate we are to be on this adventure. BUT, we are so ready to be full time travellers again and return to being 'barefoot and breezy' instead of 'suited, booted and uptight'!!
Thanks for reading
Butty and Katie xxx
Love it. Can’t wait to see you in May xx
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