ASSIGNMENT 1: INTRODUCTION

[Louis Reader]

Hi all! My name Is Louis, I’m 30 years old and currently living in the UK. Though raised here, I’m from a French and German background thanks to my parents who raised me speaking both. I’ve spent the last few years in Bristol, though whilst enjoying the local scene, the people and the work I accomplished – I realised I was lacking something. Maybe it was a new cultural perspective, or a fresh start in a new career, but after some narrowing down of options I settled on teaching english abroad.

My mother had the same experience, moving from France to become a French teacher here and I believe the same journey would greatly benefit me. I love to decipher personal relations, how and why people do what they do and come to conclusions that vary so vastly in their content. As for choosing south-east Asia (I’ll be teaching in Cambodia), I had already visited so much of Europe, but nothing further. I appreciate a place that values friendliness and co-operation with nature, whilst also being fiercely interested in the history of the region.

I imagine the transition from a cosy life will be difficult, as we are all creatures of comfort. However I find myself most active when pressed, pushed beyond my boundaries into a place where I naturally thrive. Without this impetus I found myself slowing down, whilst all I deeply wish for is deeper connections and rich experiences. I will likely heavily rely on the friends I make along the way, I was never too good at being by myself as I love and seek interactions daily. Hopefully the cultural brain of our group will be something I can both benefit from and provide to.

[Kelly Cease]

Hi everyone, my name is Kelly, and I’m from Kansas City, Missouri. I received my Bachelor’s in Education for English and Theater from the University of Central Missouri and have taught English grades 9-12 for the past nineteen years. While teaching I went to school part time and received a Master’s in Global and International Studies from University of Kansas and presently, I am working on completing my Master’s in English at UCM. I am also grateful I had the opportunity to study abroad in England for a semester during one of my undergraduate semesters and in Argentina for a summer semester during my graduate degree program. I have decided to teach abroad this summer because I want to learn more about the Thai culture & have a new understanding of a different educational landscape. I am so excited to see Thai architecture, eat Thai cuisine, and learn more about Thai culture every day. Although I am looking forward to all of these new experiences, I know there will be challenges along the way. Since I have never traveled to an Asian country, I realize the language and cultural barriers will create communication difficulties. In addition, teaching students in a language where I have very limited understanding will be challenging. I’m also close to my family, so I know I will miss them. In order to overcome these challenges, I plan on learning as much as I can through this course and the orientation. I also know journal writing on tough days helps and not being afraid to ask questions or seek further clarification when I need resources about something is vital when in a new place. While I like to push myself to go outside my comfort zone, I realize there will be some difficult days. Taking a moment to consider the future self I hope to meet at the end of this experience also works for me when culture shock or challenges become overwhelming. Lastly, I hope to leave Thailand with not only better understanding for its history, culture, and people, but I also hope to further grow as an educator and learn from the teachers and students where I will be placed. Look forward to meeting all of you!

[Kelly Cease]

Hi Candace,
I have been a high school English teacher for nineteen years, so we do share a common thread of possibly sharing similar teaching realities. In addition, I loved reading the part about how “you are never too old to live out your dreams and explore the world”. We also share that philosophy as I am grounded in the concept that it is important to continue seeking new experiences and knowledge at all stages of life. I hope you had/have a good end to your school year, and I look forward to meeting you!

[Alyssa Michel]

Hi,
My name is Alyssa and I’m from Iowa, USA. I studied linguistics in college because I’ve always been interested in different languages and cultures. I’m just finishing up my first year of teaching ESL at my local elementary school.

I decided to travel to Thailand because I want to experience what it’s like to be a newcomer in a foreign country, so that I can better empathize and improve my teaching for my newcomer students in the US.

I expect a lot of challenges in navigating Thai culture in a professional setting because professional settings in the US have become increasingly casual, so this will take some time to adjust. I expect to overcome this by coming prepared and observing the mannerisms of people around me.

I hope to push myself to be more social, improve my teaching, and learn more about Thai culture.

[Giselle Cabrera]

Hi! My name is Giselle and I am a young teacher currently living in Los Angeles. I have lived in Hawaii as well and love traveling to new places. I went to the University of Hawaii at Manoa and studied elementary education and multilingual learning, specializing in supporting young English second language learners. I decided to teach/travel to Thailand to experience a new culture and support new students! I love helping young learners and making learning fun. The challenges I am expecting to face are new language and cultural barriers. With ways to communicate, dress, act, etc. I hope to learn and grow as an educator as well as have fun adventuring traveling and exploring a new country!

[Claire Patterson]

Hey everyone!

My name is Claire Patterson and I grew up and still live in Minnesota. I graduated from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota in 2021 where I majored in Math Education and minored in Leadership and also played college basketball. Since then, I’ve been teaching high school math in Osceola, Wisconsin where I also coach basketball and softball.

It’s always been a dream of mine to teach abroad! My original plan was to teach abroad right out of college. However, graduating during COVID put a damper on that, but the dream of teaching abroad was always still there, so I finally decided to take the leap and do it before going back to get my Master’s. I’m sure challenges are going to arise everyday whether it’s adjusting to a Thai classroom, traveling in a completely foreign country where I don’t know the language or culture, or just being on my own. To overcome these, I plan to just try to embrace every opportunity that arises and immerse myself in the culture as much as I can.

Overall, I hope to learn from this experience. Learn more about Thailand and its culture. Learn about what teaching is like in other countries and learn skills that I can bring back to my classroom in the US. Learn about myself and just have a really fun summer doing something that I’ve always wanted to do.

[Claire Patterson]

Hi Giselle! I’m also a young teacher (though elementary aged kids are not my strong suit). I love that you decided to teach/travel in Thailand so you can continue to learn and grow as an educator. I’m also hoping to learn new things that I can bring back to my classroom in the US. And why not have a fun summer and enjoy Thailand at the same time? I hope you have a great experience!

[Megan Frintner]

Background information about yourself:
My name is Megan and I teach 3rd grade in the suburbs of Chicago. I have taught for six years and this is my first time teaching abroad. I have lived in the Chicago suburbs most of my life. I grew up in a family of five, so I have my two parents, my twin brother, and my younger brother. I am passionate about teaching multilingual learners and I am so excited for this opportunity!

Why are you deciding to travel/move to Thailand?
I am deciding to travel to Thailand because I am passionate about teaching multilingual learners, and I am also thrilled about the opportunity to become immersed in a new culture.

What challenges do you expect to face along the way and how do you expect to overcome them?
I expect the language barrier and cultural differences to be challenging at first. I plan to overcome them by building a community, asking questions, learning words and phrases in Thai, and perseverance.

What do you hope to get out of your experience?
I hope to widen my perspective of the world, take some fun activities back to my US classroom, and learn TESOL methodologies that will help me improve my teaching practice.

[Nikita Henwood]

Hi Everyone,
My name is Nikita, I am 27 years old and from New Zealand. I have 5 years teaching experience in New Zealand and 1 year working abroad on a cruise ship around Europe – assistant manager of the children’s club on board. I have currently been travelling full time and am writing this from Bali. I decided to move to Thailand after travelling some of South East Asia and absolutely loved the culture, people and landscapes. I have always wanted to move overseas full time and have had a while off teaching so would love to get back into it. Some of the challenges I have already faced while travelling and know I will come across again are; the language barrier, organising transport, meeting new people, a sensitive stomach to new foods and feeling confident while travelling solo. I have learnt that things won’t always go to plan, e.g. The food served is not what you thought it would be, the transport is bumpier than a roller coaster, sometimes when one says the understand you they really do not and you may have to fake it till you make it on various occasions. However, without any of these experiences I wouldn’t be living and learning in the way I have always dreamed of. I wouldn’t be visiting beautiful beaches, ancient temples, trying new delicious foods and growing as a person. I plan to combat travel challenges by looking at everything as a learning experience and knowing not everyday or everything will go perfectly.
I hope to gain more appreciation for different cultures and religions. I am passionate about my own culture and know how important it is to ones identity. I also hope to become a more worldly, compassionate and forward thinking teacher.

[Jodie Marie Mott]

Hi everyone! My name is Jodie, and I’m from Wales in the UK. I have just completed my second year at Aberystwyth University studying Education (or my third year if you count the year I did originally studying Physical Geography with Education!). I am a full time student with a strong work ethic and an eagerness to learn new things and explore the world. I enjoy working with children, and I am excited about the possibility of developing my skills. I love music (I play the flute), musical theatre and helping others. I am planning to become a teacher in the future, and so I am excited to have this opportunity to help me explore teaching opportunities while allowing me to travel and work at the same time. I think that the main challenge I expect to face throughout this trip is the language barrier, but I am keeping myself open to new experiences and remaining willing to learn, and so I believe that this challenge will be a profound opportunity to learn and grow alongside the children and my course mates. I am most excited to meet new people who are like-minded and gain valuable teaching/TEFL experience.

[Jodie Marie Mott]

Hi Nikita, that sounds amazing! It sounds like your experiences so far will help guide you for this trip, and that you know exactly what you want to develop (and that you’re willing for things not to go to plan and to use those experiences to learn and grow). These tips are really helpful and I hope to follow them too. I hope you get to learn lots about the different culture/religion(s) in Thailand and have a great experience!

[Amy Finlayson]

Hello, everyone! My name is Amy. I was born and raised in Pretoria, South Africa. I have a degree in psychology and used to spend much of my time as a volunteer offering free counselling services and training new counsellors, which I loved! My studies also placed a strong emphasis on English Literature, and I love sharing my passion for the English language with students in the classroom.
I have spent the last year working as an English teacher in Vietnam. While moving abroad presented a lot of challenges along the way, it has also been such a privilege that I will forever be grateful for. It has ignited my curiosity to travel more, immerse myself in more cultures and further develop my teaching skills. I have always wanted to see more of Thailand and so I am excited to do this while bettering myself as a teacher.
My time in Vietnam, taught me that there is always an adjustment period and that it takes time to settle and establish routines. It is always important to be patient with yourself during this time. I am hoping that being placed in a bigger city in Asia will give me more opportunities to make friends and develop stronger support structures. I plan to put myself out there more!
I am keeping an open mind through the process and I am excited to begin my Thai journey through this course.

[Luca Di Rienzo]

Hello! My name is Luca. I am 22 years old and in 2023 I graduated from the University of Nottingham with a Maths degree. I want to travel to Thailand because I loved it the last time I visited! While there, I found the people super hospitable and overall kind and the country was beautiful.
Challenges I expect to face while there mainly come down to the teaching aspect as I have only a little experience teaching in a classroom, so the lesson planning might be a struggle at the start or getting the students engaged in the lesson.
I hope to meet a lot of new people and friends still in the country. Also go exploring and gain experience teaching!
Can’t wait!

[Phedra Broch]

Hi, everyone!

My name is Phedra. I recently turned 26!

I was born and raised in Hamburg, Germany, and I am of Ghanaian descent. I have lived in the UK for around 15 years now. I speak German, English, Spanish at an intermediate level and Twi, which is one of Ghana’s many languages. Embracing different cultures is all I have known since I was young and I simply love it. It is truly a privilege for me.

To be sincere, travelling to Thailand was not something I initially even thought of; I always wanted to travel to Latin America. However, I began doing some research on the country and found that it possess a rich blend of cultures and customs that I would love to know more about! I am intrigued to learn about the history and significant sites of Thailand. Besides, it is good to broaden perspective.

One of the obvious challenges I expect to face along the way is the language barrier. I only know very basic Thai phrases because I have been teaching myself using an app called Ling, but I may find it difficult to communicate with locals and for them to understand me. A way to combat this is by having a translation app handy. I aim to download a feasible app that I can have ready on my phone if needed. I also know the importance of non-verbal communication. Having welcoming and open body language is something I will do in order to make whoever I speak to feel comfortable.

Although I have been exposed to a variety of cultures throughout my life, I may still experience culture shock. One way I aim to combat this is by putting myself out there and getting to know some local people. I believe that by doing this, it may help me to overcome any cultural differences and help me to gain more knowledge of the country!

My hope is that this experience will enable me to gain a wider perspective on life and help me to develop, not only as a professional but personally too. Although I am there for the purpose of teaching English, I hope that in return, I am taught about Thai culture.

[Laurel Claydon]

Hi everyone,

My name is Laurel 🙂
I currently study medicine at Newcastle University. I want to move to Thailand over the summer as I hope it will provide a great opportunity to learn about different culture. In future I hope to work for a humanitarian aid relief organisation, so working abroad now would be great in helping to develop key skills for working in the future. I have worked abroad once before in Croatia for 3 months as a windsurfing instructor. This was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I expect to feel quite overwhelmed at first as this is the furthest I have ever travelled, and I am going to be with an entirely new group of people. I hope however to use this as an opportunity for personal growth and development. I hope to gain more confidence in my abilities and make the most out of my time, I also hope to give back to the community that are providing me with this amazing opportunity.

Thanks for reading,

Laurel

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