Assignment 1: Introduction

Hi Zakaria,
I think that it’s quite cool that you’ve been through the experience of adjusting to a new country in your life already – it makes you much more prepared to travel to Thailand! I fully agree with you that the experience is going to be really good for growth and to test ourselves – I’m looking forward to seeing you there.
Jeshin

Hi everyone,
My name is Jess and I am currently studying History and Political Economy at King’s College London. I am Irish English but have lived in London my entire life. I chose not to take a gap year but have been eager to travel to learn more about different cultures and places. Studying History and politics has encouraged me to be more inquisitive and want to experience new places and experiences. One challenge for me will be the length of time away from home but I think the sense of community and the opportunity to experience a new culture and make new friends will help me overcome this. I would love to improve my own teaching abilities and general social skills while learning about a new place and way of life. I’m excited to meet everyone and hopefully learn some Thai!

Hello everyone,
My name is Taqwa, and I am a student at the University of Essex, where I am studying biomedical sciences. My desire to volunteer, travel to new places, and broaden my horizons has always been a motivating factor in my life. When I discovered the amazing opportunity with Gotoco to volunteer to teach children while travelling, I was thrilled at the idea of making a difference while also exploring a new culture.

Thailand’s distinct traditions, languages, and perspectives have caught my attention, and I am keen to immerse myself in this fascinating country. Recently, I have been taking Spanish classes and have found a deep enjoyment in learning new languages, which I feel will be the same for Thai. Undoubtedly, I do expect that this experience will move me from my comfort zone, which I really like, and I am expecting different challenges along this journey. Getting used to a new language, customs, and society’s standards might be difficult at first. Nonetheless, I am confident that with an open mind, patience, and a commitment to learn, I will be able to overcome these challenges. Furthermore, I intend to seek advice from local communities, network with fellow teachers, and actively engage with my peers and Thai locals to ease my absorption into the Thai way of life.

Above all, I hope to obtain a transformative experience through my time in Thailand. I want to broaden my cultural understanding, improve my interpersonal skills, and promote personal development. More importantly, I want to develop my communication skills, especially with children, so that we can understand each other and for me to give them the best I can to encourage and help them learn, grow, and be motivated. I intend to acquire a deeper appreciation for diversity, broaden my global perspective, and form lifelong relationships by immersing myself in Thai culture, engaging in meaningful conversations with people, and actively participating in community efforts. Finally, I am ecstatic and totally prepared to embark on this thrilling opportunity in Thailand. I am prepared to face problems head-on, to accept new chances for personal and academic advancement, and to actively contribute to the local community.

Thank you for taking the time to read my introduction. I look forward to taking this course and thus moving to Thailand!
 
 

Hi! My name is Saira and I am originally from Pakistan but I’ve been living/raised in England since I was around 3 years old. I’ve just finished my first year at university studying Law at SOAS University of London. I’m 21 years old but decided to take a few years out of education during the pandemic to visit Pakistan for several months as I hadn’t been in many years. I’ve always been very passionate about travelling since I was a child, I was very fortunate that I have family all over the world and parents who also love to travel. I’ve always wanted to travel to South East Asia and experience new things so being given the chance to teach in Thailand is an amazing opportunity. I think the main barriers for me will be the language as I know next to none and also being in a completely new environment with no friends or family around, this will defiantly be a challenge but I am willing to overcome this and enjoy every step of the way. I hope to meet lots of amazing people and even make friends along the way and step out of my comfort zone and learn to embrace new cultures as well as gaining teaching skills which may not relate to my career in Law but is a very adaptable and great skill to acquire!

Hi everyone!

My name is Vanessa, and I’m a first year Law student studying at the University of Cambridge. I was born in the UK, but I’m originally from Zimbabwe.

Having never been outside of the UK, I believe that Gotoco’s programme provides an incredible opportunity for me to venture outside of my comfort zone and immerse myself in a completely new culture. I am excited to witness a different way of life based on different sets of beliefs. As such, I anticipate that some of my own subconscious beliefs will become apparent, so that I may reflect on them. I’m looking forward to adopting some of the practices I see during my time in the Land of Smiles!
I chose Thailand specifically partly because I have no relatives or friends living there – this gives me the chance to grow into my independence and learn more about who I am as a person.

I anticipate that I will find being away from the comfort which comes from familiarity challenging. Despite this, I know that facing challenges and overcoming them leads to perseverance, the fortifying of a person’s character, and ultimately to hope (Romans 5:3-4 NIV). With this in mind, I know I will persevere through the early stages of discomfort until the feeling inevitably subsides.

I hope to expand my perspective of life by being immersed in the Thai way of life. I am also really looking forward to contributing to the children’s education, as school provides a unique avenue to self-discovery! Additionally, I hope to meet like-minded people along the way!

Hi! My name is Alice, I’m 21 years old and I am from the UK. I have just finished my 3rd and final year at Durham University where I studied Psychology! I have always loved adventure and I have a passion to see so much more of the world. Teaching in Thailand really seems like an amazing opportunity to go outside of my comfort zone and experience a completely new culture with some like-minded people! This is a new challenge for me so naturally I am nervous but excited! We are jumping straight into a whole new way of living without the familiarity of family and friends nearby, so navigating myself with a new culture and language will be a learning curve! Nevertheless, I am excited and I think it is important to keep an open mind and look for ways to learn and appreciate the Thai culture. With this mindset, I hope to overcome and work through these challenges as we experience them together! I hope this programme enables me to gain confidence and independence as well as teaching experience and critical skills. I look forward to meeting locals, students, peers and other people on this programme as I am sure we all have a lot to learn from each other!

My name is Ciana, I am originally from Argentina and my family is from all around the Americas and Europe, so I am quite used to being in a multicultural environment! I am currently studying Archaeology in Cardiff but have lived in England, Spain and Argentina. I’m going to Thailand for 3 months to travel, teach English and hopefully to learn myself as well about their culture and language. The language barrier and cultural differneces might be challenging but I have travelled a lot and am quite used to communicating with people who dont speak my language. I think the biggest challenge might be getting used to the food, but I’m sure I’ll get used to it.
I love learning about other cultures and meeting new people so that is hopefully something I will be able to do there. The main thing I want to learn is the language, I have been studying a bit and it is very different but I I’m hoping I will be able to learn at least a bit of Thai while being there.I have also never been to Asia before, and I know Thailand is quite different from western countries but that’s something I am looking forward to. I can’t wait to see what it is like and to get to leave among Thai people.

Hi! I’m Lauren, I’m 25 and I’m from Wales. I completed a bachelor’s degree in Film Studies followed by a master’s in English Literature at Liverpool John Moores University. It has always been a dream of mine to teach, so I am extremely excited about working in Thailand. I decided to take part in the programme after a friend recommended the course to me, and working abroad in such a different culture and lifestyle to what I am familiar with seems like the perfect opportunity! I think the main challenge I will face will be adapting to a different lifestyle whilst teaching. I’ve not had any real teaching experience nor worked abroad, but I also see this as a positive – diving into such an experience head first can only motivate me to perform at my very best. I will overcome this by immersing myself in the culture, and my love of travel will definitely motivate me to push myself out of my comfort zone and experience teaching in Thailand to the fullest. I love a challenge and am eager to learn new things, and since I want to teach full time, I think this experience will give me a huge push in the right direction.

During this experience, I am excited to help students reach their full potential whilst also being able to learn so much from them, too. I believe education opens the doors to so many fantastic opportunities in life, and feel privileged to be able to help facilitate this. I hope to meet many like-minded people from all over the world and I am excited to meet new best friends for life. After the course is over, I hope to have the confidence to continue travelling/teaching in Thailand and later all over the world! I am excited to have the chance to take part in a programme that will not only help me achieve my career goals, but also allow me to form deep friendships and to discover more about myself.

I’m very excited to meet you all!