Alumni Spotlight: Adam Zahn

As an International Studies/Human Rights major at Drexel University, I knew I wanted to incorporate an international experience to add to my curriculum. I have always wanted to go to Africa, and since I was concentrating my degree in international education, I decided to find a volunteer abroad experience. After receiving my Teaching English as a Second Language certification, I decided to put my skills to good use and teach English abroad. To be honest, I found CAPEC by simply searching for opportunities in Cameroon on google. I sent Collette an email and I was arriving in Yaounde a couple months later! Collette made it very easy for me to figure out logistics to Yaounde. She really wants her volunteers to enjoy their experiences and she was a big help. CAPEC seemed like the right for my personal goals in learning more about education development.

My day-to-day activities as a volunteer really made my experience awarding. I would wake up around 6:00am and get dressed to teach. I would eat a light breakfast with my host mother's daughter. After reviewing my curriculum plans, I would wait for my neighbor's children, who were also students at the school, and walk them down the road to the main street. We would take a short taxi ride to Nkofoulou village. We would then take a very fun motor bike ride to the school. Getting to school everyday was very different for me, but quickly became one of my favorite parts of the morning.

I typically taught Reading and Math every morning, while my co-teacher would teach lessons relating to science, civics, and math in the afternoon. He was very helpful in allowing me to adapt to my surroundings but also take charge in the classroom. I would get home from school around 3:30-4:00pm, stop off at the fruit stand for some bananas, and relax on my porch. I would grade homework and plan for the next day. Another volunteer, Jamie, and I also took two short vacations to nearby Bamenda and Buea/Limbe, where we hiked Mt. Cameroon, visited beaches, and attended traditional events.

This volunteer experience really focuses on individual attention. Unlike larger organizations, CAPEC allows volunteers to really take charge of their experience, cater it to his or her expectations, and make the most out of Cameroon culture. That type of freedom is something that other organizations do not offer. I really enjoyed my host family. We became very close, and I still talk to them to this day. The experience also really helped me grow as a person. I came home to Philadelphia with a new found perspective on culture, education, and my surroundings. I was forced to adapt to Cameroon, and in the end, that made my experience extremely valuable.

My experience actually became my inspiration for my undergraduate thesis in development education. I since am working in the field of international education and am pursuing my Master degree in international education. I hope to continue to study development education at the Doctoral level, and complete field research in education abroad.