Program Reviews

Great staff, great participants, and a wonderful opportunity to work abroad as a teacher!

The Changsha Summer Programme lasts for 4 weeks, where two of those weeks involve teaching at a designated school. The first week involves an induction week and the final week becoming a "holiday retreat".

If you are interested in visiting China first hand then this programme provides is a great opportunity to visit if you are looking for a unique summer experiences, while having the satisfaction of improving students' English language capabilities.

After Thailand, I felt totally different, made me way calmer, laid back, and I'm just at way more peace. In Thailand, the people were very nice, and everything just worked; nobody told you that you can't do anything. The kids were lovely to teach, the food was amazing and cheap, and I totally absorbed the laid-back energy of the locals.

Gotoco were really good with the support and guidance they gave; nothing would have been possible without them, and Emma was a great coordinator.

In addition to the regular teaching, we also had a few English camps, which were just so fun for everyone. The kids absolutely loved them at every school

I had a great time on the Gotoco Hunan programme this summer. One of my overall highlights was being able to explore so many new places, as no two locations were identical. Every town, neighbourhood, or sometimes even street had its own charm. It made me feel like I could explore forever and still find something new. Another highlight would be every time I made a breakthrough in reaching my class. Being able to connect to them despite not speaking the same language fluently was special.

I would highly recommend the programme.

The experience of teaching my own class of students, making friends with other gotocoers, gaining teaching skills, meeting new people in a local context and exploring northern Italy! I also loved being immersed in Italy and its culture

I would recommend gotoco as it was a great way to gain teaching experience in a way that would otherwise not be possible and I loved exploring northern Italy for the 2 weeks - particularly Lake GardaIncreased my confidence in my own skill set and how comfortable I am in gaining new experiences outside of my comfort zone alongside valuable teaching experience and immersion in a different culture and new country.

Most memorable moments:
Teaching everyday
Going on the school bus
English camp
Playing ping pong after school with students
Muay Thai fight
Thai football game
Trying new foods in the village and meeting local people

The experience was extremely memorable and rewarding and nothing like I've ever done before. I met amazing people, did amazing things and went to places I would've never been able to go on my own. Highlights were teaching and living in the local community, being fully immersed into the lifestyle.

My experience was extremely good with this program, I made good friends and connected with the local community. I managed to travel on weekends and make the most of my time in Thailand.

I had an excellent experience teaching abroad through Gotoco - they were very helpful throughout the process in helping organise my placement in China and they gave very useful assistance in organising visa and providing me with pre-travel information. I spent six weeks teaching in Beijing at a partnering summer camp, which I felt was really helpful in developing my organisational and presentation skills.
Furthermore, Gotoco also organised a really enjoyable end-of-program trip in Yangshuo - the scenery there is absolutely incredible, and accommodation in and travel to Yangshuo were both fully covered.

My trip to China, including both my placement at a Summer camp and the after programme trip in Yangshuo was absolutely incredible. It was a fantastic experience, both to grow my own confidence and abilities but also to explore the culture of a country that I would not otherwise have had the opportunity to visit. My time in China was extremely varied, and I was lucky enough to spend time in both a particularly urban and then more rural area of the country. I had a wonderful time, making friends for life, and I would absolutely recommend this programme.

Incredible opportunity which was very affordable, with wonderful people and staff who were really supportive. The pre- and post-programme trips were wonderful and the teaching job itself was really rewarding. The TEFL course was a great opportunity for those who would like to pursue teaching. We had lots of independence during our placement, which meant we got to explore Vietnam on our own which was great. Overall, this was a brilliantly run programme which was fantastic value for money and one of the best experiences of my life. Would recommend!

Gotoco gave me the opportunity to develop my professional teaching skills in Thailand. Seeing the effects of my lessons on the students was so rewarding, and getting to experience daily life within Thai culture was valuable and unforgettable.

The planned trips on either side of the programme were immersive and a great way to build friendships with the other participants that last beyond the programme's end. The TEFL course was straightforward and helpful when it came to lesson planning for the students.

This was really fulfilling as an experience - I learnt so much about teaching and gained loads of confidence, made many new friends, and got to learn about and live in an entirely different country from the UK. We really bonded with the children over the course, and it was a great experience to see them grow, thanks to the assistance of the lesson plans. It was an intense schedule but entirely manageable, and the end-of-programme trip involved many fun activities, the highlight being white water rafting! Would definitely recommend this if you are not sure what you want to do in the future but want to gain many valuable skills.