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Paragon Galapagos

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Why choose Paragon Galapagos?

We are a non-profit foundation based in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, in the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador. Our main focus is providing excellent and accessible English-language courses to the local community. Additionally, we operate a small community center that offers specialized courses, social clubs and event nights.

We are looking for volunteers who

- Are interested in developing their cross-cultural communication abilities
- Want to share their life and experiences with others
- Can provide IT or web design support
- Expect to immerse themselves in the local culture

We currently have volunteer positions open for volunteers interested in working with English language young learners.

Website
www.paragongalapagos.com
Founded
2016

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Staff Interviews

These are in-depth Q&A sessions with program leaders.

Lara L. Neeley

Program
Teaching Volunteer
Job Title
Teacher-Trainer
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What is your favorite travel memory?

Having been a traveler for most of my adult life, choosing just one favorite travel memory is a difficult task. I have been privileged enough to travel to some of the most remote locations in the world and witness sites that few others ever will.

If pressed to choose just one memory that stands out the most to me, I would have to say Oman. After spending the day trekking and swimming through Wadi Shab, my husband and I were tired and ready to get back to town and to our hotel.

As I reached into my pocket for the car keys, I realized they were gone. There happened to be a few locals standing close by and they could tell by my expression that something was wrong, so they walked over.

After explaining the situation, they quickly began to call their friends over to see how they could assist us. One local decided to try his luck at retracing our path to look for our keys – no luck. Another offered to drive us back to town, as long as we didn’t mind riding in the back of his truck with his prized goat. By the time we got to town, the rental company was closed so we went back to our hotel.

The next morning as we were leaving the hotel to go to the rental agency we spotted the local who had driven us back to town the previous night. He wanted to be with us when we went to the rental agency to make sure they took care of us promptly.

After finally receiving a spare key, he then drove us the hour and a half back to our car. The kindness of strangers is always inspiring!

How have you changed/grown since working for your current company?

Working for Galapagos TEFL has given me the opportunity to share my knowledge of teaching with future generations of teachers. When I first started teaching in 2009, it was common practice to spend the entire class time lecturing.

I soon realized that while my students could score high marks on exams, they could not carry on a conversation in English. This is when I realized that students needed to be the center of the classroom, not the teacher.

Now as a teacher-trainer, I feel that this is the most important aspect of teaching that I can share with new teachers.

What is the best story you've heard from a return student?

I recently received an email from a former student who wanted to share his success story with me. This student had been a teacher for about a year when he enrolled in my course. Coming from India his style of teaching was based primarily on lectures, grammar translation, and repetition.

During the course, I shared with him the importance of creating authentic student-centered activities. After the course, he took this knowledge with him and began to implement it in his classes. In his email, he told me how his students now feel less anxious in class and how they have gained confidence in their English abilities.

He attributes this change in his students to the new methodologies he learned during the TESOL course.

What makes your company unique? When were you especially proud of your team?

It’s easy to say that location is what makes Galapagos TEFL unique, but it is so much more than that.

At Galapagos TEFL we work together as a team to share not only our professional experience but also our cultural experiences as world travelers. Combined, we have traveled to over 75 countries.

It is this accumulated real-world experience that makes Galapagos TEFL and its trainers unique.

What do you believe to be the biggest factor in being a successful company?

Commitment - at Galapagos TEFL we are committed to each and every one of our participants. We are committed to ensuring that we provide the best experience so that all participants are prepared to enter any EFL classroom around the world and succeed.

We are also committed to helping all participants grow individually as teaching professionals. Finally, we are committed to making a positive impact in the communities within the Galapagos Islands.