Gotoco FUNDED TEFL Adventures (Bali, Thailand, Colombia, Europe, SE Asia!) Reviews

I have really enjoyed having an opportunity to visit multiple places in Shanghai, not only the tourist spots but places where local people enjoy to spend their time. Meeting new people in Shanghai was very fun as well. It has benefitted my understanding of independence and overall confidence as a person. I have spent a lot of time by myself exploring the city as well as making new connections.
A chance to work in a school was very unique because through that experience I got to see the other side of the learning process, help student and to certain extent improve my understanding of the English learning process. It has been very valuable for both my personal growth as well as the understanding of future opportunities in China. Definitely give it a try if you have been curious what it is like to teach!

The overall experience was fantastic! I am so glad that I decided to visit China this Summer. The main highlight was definitely the Lavender Provence; it lived up to its expectation of providing a different, happy and exciting experience. Furthermore, teaching the students was so fulfilling especially when I was able to help them understand more complex language. I would definitely recommend the program to a friend because it is such a character-building experience that no one should miss out on. I have absolutely no regrets because the whole trip was fantastic. This program has made me more confident in my abilities to lead a lesson and also navigate my way around a foreign country. I have also come away from the program with some brilliant new friends.

I had the opportunity to spend my summer teaching English through the GoToCo program in Beijing. It was an amazing experience and I gained a lot through it and I can safely say that I grew as a person as a result of it. Application is really simple and fast, I was in contact with Daniel throughout my application and he was always very helpful when I needed help, especially when I had trouble getting the visa.
I was in a camp with nine other foreign teachers who also applied through GoToCo which made the entire experience even better.
During the teaching period, we taught three camps lasting 10 days each and the number of students, as their age and skill level, varied between each camp. However, teaching was not the only thing we were able to do. Between every camp we had free periods where we could explore China, the first period lasting four days while the second lasted nine days. The school helped us organize trips and even paid for some excursions.
I have met so many people throughout my seven weeks in Beijing and five days in Yangshuo. It was certainly the highlight of my experience.
After one has finished their teaching experience, it is possible to receive a TEFL certificate allowing the holder to practice teaching English around the globe.
I highly recommend participating in this program. It is well worth it and a one in a lifetime opportunity. I am definitely going to reapply for a position for the next summer.

Rather than just being another administrative form of summer employment, this program transformed my sense of confidence and world view. Before participating in this program, I lacked confidence and often refused to take on leadership roles with the perception that I should leave those roles to people with more experience than me. I was comfortable with being a sideliner, always eager to organize, help, or provide support to said leaders. After this program, however, I have attained an incredible sense of self-confidence and can say for a fact that I carry myself with much more purpose and ambition, ready to tackle any task thrown at me. With such an intense schedule, I spent more than 16 hours a day with the same people, my fellow gotoco colleagues, and developed beautiful friendships with each of them. I truly learned the hard work that goes into teaching and the feeling of satisfaction when your students learn. However, most importantly, I was finally able to see, experience, and develop opinions about China on my terms. China is truly unlike any place I've ever been to before and there is no doubt in my mind that I will be back in the near future.

The program was very enjoyable with a very diverse group of councellours, the social aspect of camp was fantastic. I made some very good friends from Africa, China, America and numerous places in Europe. The mix of individuals created an environment where you could learn alot.

Working with kids was challenging as their logic is very different at aged 12 and arguments for silly reasons were common. Having said this, when teaching then and leading activities through the day it was mostly fine and very rewarding to see them having fun.

The staff at the camp spoke great English which helped the transition from English to Chinese culture go smoothly.

The hours were longer and I had fewer breaks than I had been told so prepare for that but overall it was a good experience.

This trip opened my eyes to Chinese culture and teaching as a profession. I spent three weeks with an amazing group of likeminded people, teaching inspirational children and working with other talented teachers. I had not taught before so walking into the classroom was daunting to start with, but after a few days it felt natural. We had two days to settle in before teaching, where we met our fellow gotocoers and teachers and were introduced to some teaching techniques. We each had a different area to teach, e.g dance / drama / P.E and could make up our own lesson plans. We had free evenings and weekends which we made the most of by getting taxis to local towns and cities. The five day stay in Yangzhou after the teaching was a perfect retreat after our hard work and gave us a chance to spend more time together as a group.

I had the most amazing experience in China teaching English. The activities were all amazing and I saw so much of the area. I would definitely do this again if I get the chance! I met some really great people who I know will be friends for life. I improved my Chinese and accumulated lots of new skills. This experience has built upon my CV but was also a great way to spend my summer. Whilst teaching I had so much fun travelling and exploring and I really enjoyed my time there. Through this programme I visited Guilin, Yangshou and Nanshan. We were really well looked after and I felt very safe throughout the duration of my stay. I experienced a whole new culture in which I learned lots of new things about the country. Guilin and Yangshou are two beautiful places I want to visit again.

My experience volunteering in the south of China (Yangshuo) has been one of the most incredible experiences that I had the opportunity to live, the best moments have been the activities with the children, the English classes where you felt they wanted to learn and the desire they had to know about you and your country.

The best of the experience was the cultural exchange, meeting such wonderful people and having the opportunity to help.if I would repeat it again, it has been a magical month.

I would recommend the program to everyone because I think that living a volunteer experience abroad has to be vital in today's society. Is a program that help u as a human being. So don’t hesitate if are thinking in offering some help and go for it, I can tell that u are not gonna regret it.

All the best,
Eva Álvarez, Spain.

It is a great opportunity to meet new people from all over the world during an opportunity of a lifetime! The programme offers a chance to try teaching, meet new people and learn more about China- what is there not to love? I truly have no regrets and will definitely remember the experiences and adventures that I had.

Teaching foreign students has really made me learn and adapt to different styles of learning from the kids. I have become far more observant in the way people respond to what I say and how I can best communicate an idea. I have also taken the opportunity to improve my mandarin skills.

The experience of teaching children was also very exciting and I certainly learned a lot and tried to improve as time went on.

As a first year university student, it is definitely a great chance to develop your skills and have an adventure at the same time

It was absolutely great to be in Lingshan, a small town full of amazing people.Victor and his family treated us as we were part of the family which was something outstanding, they took care of us, cooked different food every day and took us to beautiful places. The school and students were incredible, teaching them was a pleasure and the last day was very emotive.

The experience with Gotoco was also really good, eventhoug I was very confused about china and all the document that I needed, the process was very easy and all the emails with the information were really usefull. If I needed extra help there was always someone replying the emails very fast.

I have learnt professional and personal skills that will be very useful for my future. It was my first time teaching and after the experience I feel I am a lot more confident. Teaching in Lingshan was a unforgettable experience.

In overall, the experience was perfect, something that I will never forget.