The small island of Bali, Indonesia is renowned for its beautiful and varied landscapes, from towering volcanic mountains, vibrant green rice fields, contrasting black and white sand beaches and the amazing coral reefs. There are also plenty of cultural attractions as Bali is home to diverse and sophisticated art forms, such as painting, sculpture, woodcarving, music and dancing. By volunteering to teach English you can immerse yourself within the community and get to know more about the Balinese culture.
WHAT DOES THE PROJECT DO?
Learn more about the social, economic and environmental issues affecting modern Indonesia whilst teaching its future generations. Get involved in the vibrant and diverse Indonesian culture by working as a teacher.
Based in Indonesia’s picturesque island of Bali your help can give children a sense of confidence, encourage their enthusiasm and ambition, and even improve their opportunities for the future.
To teach, you will need to be patient, flexible, a confident communicator and able to use your initiative and imagination. Lessons will be fun and interactive, developing the children's confidence and conversational skills as well as raising awareness about environmental and social issues.
WHAT WILL I BE DOING?
Introduction week
Your first week is designed to give you an opportunity to explore the history and culture of Indonesia, and of course Bali, with visits to local sites of special interest such as nearby markets, sample the local cuisine, familiarise yourself with Balinese customs and meet the local people, as well as hopefully learning some key phrases to help you get by. Following this wonderful opportunity to fully immerse yourself in your new surroundings, your briefings for the volunteer work will begin along with language classes and cooking lessons throughout the week.
Teaching weeks
After the introduction to Balinese culture the work on the project will begin. You will be teaching 4-12 year olds in a local school. The children are incredibly friendly and eager to learn making your teaching experience as rewarding for you as it is for them. You may be shadowing a local teacher at the school, or may be required to take control of your own lessons, the level of responsibility you are given will depend on your length of stay. You will be encouraged to formulate ideas and develop your teaching skills and techniques.
It’s not just the work in the classrooms you’ll have to think about, you will have to organise innovative and effective lesson plans to teach new and varied subjects and then of course there may be homework to mark. As well as this you may have the opportunity to help with lots of extracurricular activities which will vary depending on your personal skills and interests, whether that’s helping organise a school show or playing football with the super competitive and skilful locals. Whatever you decide, you are sure to gain huge satisfaction from inspiring these kids, whilst enhancing your own skills and experience significantly.
During your free time at weekends you will have the opportunity to visit the many beaches (about an hour away by bus) including the idylic north coast.
