Community School English Teaching

The reign of the Khmer Rouge devastated the education system in Cambodia and destroyed its very foundation. Since then, the Cambodian government has invested a lot of time and money into rebuilding their education system. However, change is slow and Cambodia still has one of the poorest literacy rates in Asia, especially amongst women. High dropout rates, lack of qualified teachers and classroom overcrowding are all significant factors that continue to have a negative impact on the countries education system.

Cambodia’s economy is shifting from that of traditional sustenance farming to an economy driven by industry and service. This economic change has further enhanced social inequality within the country as the less educated and economically poorer members of society are driven into low-paid jobs with no career development. The demand for skilled labour, especially within the service sector to keep up with Cambodia’s growing tourism industry, calls for a greater need for children to get more engaged in their education, in particular with developing English language proficiency.

PMGY place volunteers at a community school programme where the aim of the project is to provide accessible education and English development to children from the surrounding villages. The opportunity to learn and develop English is so high in this rural area that children are prepared to travel 7km each way daily for a one hour English lesson. The school usually has over 100 children attending each day. The project has grown so much that the programme is now expanding into nearby village schools to provide even more opportunities to the local community.

For many of the children from the rural villages, learning English is seen as the only way to get on in life and achieve the better jobs in Cambodia such as accounting and hotel work to bring an overall higher standard of living for themselves.

The school provides free English lessons to children from low-income families in the Takeo province. The children still attend public school in the mornings and in the afternoon attend the community school programme that provides a key focus on English language development.

Most volunteers lead their own classes, although if requested our team can place you to buddy up with a more experience volunteer to start with although this is dependent on volunteer numbers at the time. Classes are divided based on ability and age range. The children’s ages range from 5 to 18 years. You will find that the younger children come at the start of the afternoon and the older children come late afternoon.

There are five classrooms in total at the project where teaching takes place. Volunteers are expected to teach at least four one hour lessons daily. Although English is the main subject you will teach, volunteers do have the opportunity to teach Computer Studies, Maths, as well as creative activities such as Art, Dance and Sports.

There is an office of resources and textbooks on site from which to base your lessons. Volunteers are encouraged to introduce creative and engaging ways of covering the lesson materials. Class sizes vary from 5 to 25 children.

Volunteers will teach children across all ages through the day as when one lesson is finished and this class returns to their nearby village; the next class comes to the project for their one hour lesson and so the sequence continues until the evening time when lessons finish.

As you teach the same classes daily within the same time slots, it allows for you to ingrain structure and build rapport with the children. This is in addition to seeing first hand the development of the children from the start of your programme to the end of your programme.

Volunteers are more than welcome and encouraged to make their lessons fun and engaging and this may include storytelling, singing songs and arts and crafts activities. There is plenty of outdoor space where volunteers can take the class out to play sports, educational games or enjoy some play time at the end of an intense lesson on the slides and swings!

We encourage volunteers to prepare as much as possible for their teaching programme overseas. 

IN & AROUND PHNOM PENH

PMGY volunteers are based 90 minutes away from central, exotic Phnom Penh. Set along the banks of the mighty Mekong, Cambodia’s capital is the Asia many dream about as well as an attack on the senses. And that’s all part of the attraction!

From the glimmering spires of the Royal Palace to the trendy café culture, the city is one of the hippest in the region and fast becoming an essential feature in the itinerary of anyone travelling to South East Asia.

PMGY’s volunteer programmes in Cambodia allow you to engage with some of the most disenfranchised members of the community and see a side of this magnificent country to which the average visitor will be totally oblivious. Whilst you’re not volunteering there a number of wonders throughout the whole country that will keep you entertained.

S-21 (TUOL SLENG) PRISON

This prison was the Khmer Rouge’s primary interrogation and extermination centre, designed to purge anti-Khmer Rouge elements from the new society Pol Pot and his henchmen began ruthlessly creating. Before the 1975-79 regime, the building was a school. The prison cells contain a variety of information about the history of the Khmer Rouge, victims of the S-21 prison and an insight into what went on behind the prison gates.

KILLING FIELDS

Choeung Ek, commonly known as the ‘Killing Fields’, is the site where thousands of Khmer Rouge prisoners were executed and subsequently buried. It is particularly harrowing when you discover the sheer scope of the atrocities that took place. Located around 30 minutes from central Phnom Penh, you can hire a tuk-tuk to take you to and from Choeung Ek. 

We suggest that you watch the film ‘The Killing Fields’ by Roland Joffé and/or read one of the following two books: ‘First They Killed My Father’ by Loung Ung or ‘Year Zero’ by Francois Ponchaud. These will definitely give you a good background as to what happened in Cambodia during these torrid years and heighten your experience of visiting Tuol Sleng prison and Choeung Ek.

ROYAL PALACE

The Royal Palace is located opposite the ever present Tonle Sap River. Although not as large and impressive as the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Phnom Penh’s Royal Palace is still a point of immense beauty. The Silver Pagoda is simply brilliant and the surrounding gardens are extremely beautiful.

It’s best to visit the temple first thing in the morning whilst it’s cooler and before the large tour groups overwhelm the place and creep into every photo you take! Be warned you must cover your shoulders and knees in order to gain access.

NATIONAL MUSEUM

Located just opposite the Royal Palace, the museum has a large art collection, statues of Hindu gods as well as two magnificent statues, one of king Jayavarman, the other of Yama, the Hindu god of death. No photos are allowed and it is a must visit to get the vibe of the city and country, for any visitor.