Teens count their blessings after teaching placement

Posted 30 Jun 2009

Teaching in Uganda helped two teenage girls appreciate how privileged their own lifestyles are.

Ella and Phoebe Dickinson, 19-year-old twins from Calne, helped to teach in primary schools in the capital Kampala for four months as part of a gap year before university, reports ThisIsWiltshire.co.uk.

Both were amazed by the positive attitudes of the people they encountered in the face of such poverty.

Ella said: "The people I met had an incredible resilience. They faced hunger and thirst with no self-pity, worked with determination and suffered with a smile."

She added that seeing how the rest of the world lived had been "shocking and truly eye-opening".

Meanwhile, learning about Cambodia’s violent past proved one of the most memorable experiences of a TEFL placement in the country for eight Californian students.

The group found visits to genocide sites in Phnom Penh incredibly moving and insisted the trip has shaped their own lives for the better, Redlands Daily Facts reports.

Category: TEFL Industry