Volunteer and gap year teaching placements
Education is the key to a prosperous future, however many schools in developing countries are extremely under funded and find it hard to attract talented, qualified staff meaning that teachers are often overstretched and the quality of teaching is low. As a Teacher you will draw upon your own educational background to fill this gap while mentoring and educating students and supporting fellow staff. The scope of your teaching role will depend on the needs of your host country. At some placements you may be given sole responsibility for a classroom of children and be expected to teach all subjects in the curriculum to varied age ranges, at others you’ll support the existing classroom teacher. Schools may call on volunteers to teach a wide variety of subjects, so you’ll need to be creative in the use whatever resources are available to teach your students what they need to know. You’ll most likely find they teach you just as much in return.
Available in:
Fiji
Teaching with Community
Lattitude volunteer Teachers in Fiji work in primary and secondary schools and are usually given real responsibility from their first day. Although many hosts will describe their placements as assistant-style roles, the reality is that you will most likely be given your own class to teach and to plan lessons from the very beginning. This makes volunteering in Fiji a great opportunity to develop your own personality and teaching style while gaining some great presentation and leadership skills.
The precise nature of your duties will vary from host to host, but past volunteers have taught English, maths, cooking, dancing and swimming to name a few. Hosts are also keen to adapt roles to volunteers’ strengths, so if you speak French, for example, you might be asked to take some French language classes. You will also be encouraged to bring your personal skills and interests to extracurricular activities; after-school clubs set up by Lattitude volunteers have proved extremely popular in the past!
Due to the nature of some placements, combined with the welcoming nature of Fijians, these placements enable volunteers to expand their role to include a large aspect of community work too. In some of these placements volunteers live and work on a daily basis with the village community and will soon find themselves part of everything the community does. From playing games and sports to festivals and celebrations. Working with children in the evening – helping with English as well as arts and crafts etc.
Overview
Placement duration:
Departure months:
Minimum age:
Food included:
Accommodation:
Pocket money:
5 months
Feb & July
17
Yes
Yes
No
Malawi
Teaching
Undertaking one of our Teaching placements in Malawi is an extremely rewarding and varied experience. Our volunteers work with primary and secondary school-aged children, and gain experience teaching subjects such as English, maths, history and biology, and any other subjects that the school may need help with. At the beginning of your placement, your head teacher or mentor will discuss with you how best to put your skills to good use.
You are encouraged to take a proactive approach in suggesting how best your time can be utilised, and past volunteers have advised that the more energy and enthusiasm you put into your work, the more you will get out. Your hosts may not feel they can ask you to do extra work, so be prepared to offer up your time when possible: the more you take on, the more you will learn and ultimately the more your work will be appreciated! Within these placements there is plenty of opportunity to get involved with the school and local community as an extension to your teaching duties. Volunteers in the past have set up sports clubs and drama clubs as well as spent a lot of time getting to know and help the community they live with.
Overview
Placement duration:
Departure months:
Minimum age:
Food included:
Accommodation:
Pocket money:
3,6 or 9 months
Jan & Aug
18
Yes (see costs)
Yes
No
Vanuatu
Teaching with Community
Volunteer Teaching positions in Vanuatu are hands-on, varied and very rewarding. You will be placed in either a primary or secondary school, and will teach a range of subjects, such as English, maths, science, social studies, religious studies and P.E.
These are great placements for volunteers looking to gain some fantastic experience in teaching. Although you will discuss with your colleagues how best to go about putting your skills to good use, you will have the freedom to plan your own lessons and bring your own personality to your role.
Most schools will be able to provide you with books and other teaching materials, but in other areas where there are fewer resources, you will need to use your creativity and imagination to keep students engaged. As a teacher, you will also become an active member of the local community, and will be encouraged to set up after-school clubs for children depending on your interests.
Due to the culture, geography and hosting structure of placements within Vanuatu, volunteers will find themselves working (and enjoying themselves) a lot within the community, in fact it is an integral part of the whole placement. In this sense volunteers will be involved in a whole myriad of activities. They will work with the youth of their community, they may be involved with music, drama and sports as well as generally helping out with village life in any way deemed best.
Overview
Placement duration:
Departure months:
Minimum age:
Food included:
Accommodation:
Pocket money:
6 months
Jan & June
17
Yes
Yes
No
