The first thing that struck me about Learn4Life was that it was a proper, organised private language centre. It had a structured curriculum, timetable, term dates, exam and enrollment dates, mark schemes, attendance sheets, teaching resources, the works. For volunteers, it had fully-furnished private bedrooms with attached bathrooms and hot showers, air-con if you wanted to use it (but you'd have to pay for the electricity if you used it - I paid nothing and managed with the ceiling fan and regular showers), even a fridge. We had a cook that provided lunch five days a week, eggs and bread in the kitchen if you got hungry in the middle of the night, a cleaner (for common areas), free wi-fi(!), bicycles we could use, even a school cat. By Cambodian standards, we had excellent living standards. My classroom was two steps from my bedroom door. That's the closest I've ever lived from my workplace.
Mind you, it was no backpacker, gap-year guesthouse with a program. The volunteers were all professionals in their late twenties, up to retired professionals in their sixties (average forties). It was an organisation that had been there and done that - and had more or less perfected a system that worked like clockwork. It also felt like a real job. We had meetings to discuss student performance and needs, extra-curricular activities (bicycle ride, a clean-up, visit to a poor village school), a staff barbecue, dinner and drinks with colleagues for birthdays.
The students were mostly serious, results-focused adults as this was an intensive English program taught by foreign teachers - a luxury for the local students who recognize the value of the program for the fee they were paying (minimal fees to keep the program sustainable). The youngest students were in secondary school but most were working adults. I even had Cambodian English teachers in my class, so that kept me on my toes. Expectations are high and colleagues, though volunteers, were serious about teaching and helping students learn English well.
I had really fantastic, smart, professional, caring colleagues the term I was there. Great discussions and smiles to last a lifetime. A no-nonsense volunteer program. www.learn4lifecambodia.org
