Teaching Children in Cambodia

Volunteering Project Details

New Hope Cambodia School educates over 1200 students daily, teaching English, math, computer skills, morals and gender equality. Classes run daily between 08:00 and 10:30 and again from 14:00 to 18:00. We ask each volunteer to commit to the morning, afternoon or both sessions. The role of the New Hope Cambodia volunteer is to assist the Khmer teacher, by providing support with the school curriculum by helping with pronunciation and assisting the teacher to direct classroom activities.

New Hope Cambodia welcomes volunteers from all walks of life. The desirable qualifications for a volunteer are someone who is enthusiastic, committed and has a flexible attitude.

Day 1

Siem Reap:
Arrive at any time. An included transfer from Siem Reap Airport or Bus Station is included. Welcome meeting and town orientation by Volunteer Coordinator and orientation of the project by the Operations Manager.

You will be staying off site from the project in a guesthouse that offers hot water, electricity and wifi. You will also be given a bicycle to be able to get around while you stay here and at the end of your time this bicycle will be gifted to a local child who can use the bicycle to get to school.

Once you are settled in you will be taken to meet the team at New Hope. A group of inspirational people who work in a village that is plagued with poverty, sex-trade workers and sub-standard housing.

Day 2 – 13

Siem Reap / New Hope project :
Morning and/or Afternoon Volunteering at the Project. You will be working alongside local Khmer teachers and other volunteer staff providing education and training in English, math, moral lessons, computers and sewing. Half days midweek and on weekends are free for optional visits to explore the World Heritage listed ancient cities and temples of Angkor, visit the Floating Villages, take Khmer cooking classes or shopping for traditional handicrafts in local markets.

During the week you will be involved in the day to day operations of New Hope. There are a variety of roles that you may be called upon to assist with while you are here, some of which may include:

Teaching
The New Hope School offers classes to all of the children in the village. On any given day you may be teaching people English, mathematics, computer skills or sewing. One of the biggest issues that faces Cambodia is an uneducated population, due to the Khmer Rouge Regime in the 1970’s that killed anybody with an education. Today, education is so highly prized and the local children flock to these classes with eager faces – ready to learn and to be taught.

Outreach
New Hope’s outreach centre deals with a massive variety of issues. People who work in this centre may deal with cases of domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse, housing issues, malnutrition and much more. In the past some of the volunteers we have had working in this centre relocated a family living in a swamp surrounded by garbage to a new house. The outreach centre calls on you to think on your feet as you deal with these issues and look at potential resolutions.

Medical Centre
The New Hope Medical Centre is the only one in Siem Reap that offers free medical treatment to both children and adults. Every day in the village of Mondul 3, this centre is inundated with a large range of health issues that exist in the village. The centre is basic and cannot deal with all issues so some cases will need to be transferred to other clinics, some will require emergency care and other people have longer ongoing battles with sickness well known by the clinic. As you work alongside the Khmer people in this role you will fall in love with their determination to survive.

Educating Tourists
G Adventures also has groups that visit this project several nights of the week and dine in a local restaurant/hospitality training centre which we established in conjunction with New Hope. When G Adventures tourists visit the centre they may ask you about the challenges that you face daily, and you are a representative of both New Hope and the Khmer people when you respond.

New Hope is an organization that runs Monday to Friday, so in your time volunteering you will also have the opportunity to visit some of the local sites on the weekend. New Hope has a tourism branch to their business, so you can organize any of these ventures with them (optional). Some of the additional things you may want to experience include:

Angkor Wat
The world’s largest archaeological site is located just 6kms away from Siem Reap and only 2 kms from New Hope. You can cycle through the jungle and explore the ruins by yourself, or jump in a tuk tuk and experience some of the local transportation on the way.

Floating Villages
Only 45 minutes away from Siem Reap is the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia. The Tonle Sap Lake is a massive source of fish and home to the largest bird sanctuary in the region. On the border of the lake there is villages that float with the tide of the lake. There are floating schools, pig farms, crocodile farms and much more. Also because of the tide of the lake there are large pythons that the local children often collect as their pets. One of the best photography opportunities in the whole country.

In addition you could go to swim in the ancient baray (man made lake from the 11th Century), shop in the local markets, receive massages from the blind and much more. Siem Reap is an area that will never cease to amaze you.

Day 14

Today you leave the project