Working at Buddhist Monastery

Adam Greiner awoke to the sounds of puja his first morning at Jovo Kadhampa monastery. Adam started as a volunteer at VIN (Volunteers Initiative Nepal), having applied to teach English at Buddhist monastery for two months. After working in health care for ten years in London, volunteering abroad was the perfect opportunity for Adam to take a career break and to live abroad.

Qualified teachers are in real demand in Nepal, and VIN runs a variety of programs where volunteers can share their skills with local communities. Adam teaches three classes a day, although there is the opportunity to teach more or less depending on your motivation. The 300 lamas have been extremely welcoming to Adam, and one can quickly immerse one’s self in the monastic way of living. It’s very often the case that the lamas are more interested to learn English when sitting together on the temple steps or at meal times than in the class room, so your time with them can go a long way!

Teaching English at Buddhist monastery comes with a range of benefits. Adam has gained experience working internationally for an NGO. The teaching program strikes a good balance between working with others and having time for reading and reflection. The genuine curiosity of the lamas has enabled a real exchange between cultures and the program naturally lends itself to those wanting to learn more about the Nepalese way of life and Buddhism. VIN also offers travel planning support and a number of group and social excursions for those looking to widen their Nepalese experience outside of Kathmandu.

Adam will be finishing his placement at the monastery this week. He has been extremely appreciative of his time at Jovo Kadhampa and is looking forward to working as a journalist for a local magazine. You can also enhance your educational level like Adam by joining our various teaching projects such as English at community school, Teacher Development , Computer Science, Creative Expression: Arts and Crafts, Teaching the Deaf, Yoga Volunteer, Sports Volunteer, and Cultural Immersion and Teaching. We are pleased to offer these projects to you and to our community site.

Teacher Development Program on Social Science

VIN successfully facilitated eight days training to 32 Nepali teachers through VIN’s Teacher Development Program in Kathmandu last week from its international volunteer, Rachel Lam (Australian professional trainer)

The program consists of two four day sessions involving social science teachers from higher secondary and lower secondary schools of Kathmandu. The aim of the teacher training was to develop advanced teaching skills of Nepali teachers which involved exposure to various key teaching methods, and to alert them to the universal classrooms function.
The key elements of the Teacher Development Program were visible thinking, differentiation, blooms taxonomy, pre-testing and formative assessment, multiple intelligences, inquiry based learning, reflection and metacognition, and high impact teaching strategies. Each of these topics were explored through a tasteful combination of theory and practical learning. Teachers had the opportunity to practice and apply the teaching methods to their current class topics. Therefore they will feel comfortable in applying the structures delivered to them when they returned to teaching. The courses were very enjoyable and useful said a participant. She further added that Rachel was a wonderful trainer who accommodated the teachers with upmost support and guidance throughout the training, and proved that everyone is capable of success.

At the end of the teacher training, all involved in the Teacher Development Program, attended a certificate ceremony where the teachers’ participation was commended with certificates along with the traditional Nepali red tika and scarf.

It was pleased to see the teachers leaving the course with optimistic views of change in Nepali classrooms, and having confidence in themselves to create the best learning experiences for their students. Some teachers have already reported back to VIN with successful accounts of implementing the methods taught through the program, which is very exciting for the future of Nepali schools and most importantly for the students, who are the future. We opened 32 minds last week, which will impact on hundreds of Nepalese kids and their learning experiences. There is still a long way to go, but every little bit counts. We also encourage any Nepalese teachers who are interested in enhancing their teaching skills to participate in these programs as they are enjoyable, educational and truly beneficial.

One of the participant said, “This program was a real inspiration for me as I am sure it was for every other participant, being exposed to many kinds of volunteering in Nepal I understand now that these are the programs that make a difference, the Nepali teacher is where it begins.”

We strongly encourage anyone who has teaching experience in professional development to contact VIN and come to Nepal to host a teacher development program like Rachel, and improve the Nepali teachers’ standards.