Experience Chile through EODP

My experience with the English Opens Doors Program was incredible, hard work, and rewarding. I signed up for one semester, August 2016 to November 2016 and was placed in Maule, about 4 hours south of Santiago (spoiler alert: I loved it so much I extended my stay and did another full year in Santiago from April 2017 to December 2017! But more of that later).

I had no previous English teaching experience, and didn't speak any Spanish, so needless to say I was a little nervous about signing up... There's only so much a degree in Philosophy can prepare you for. However, the week long orientation did a lot to put me at ease. The team were super supportive, and packed a lot in to that first week, and by the end (whilst still obviously very nervous) I felt a lot more prepared and comfortable. Then it was off to Cauquenes, Maule.

I had an incredible host family - Pati and Pedro, a lovely couple in their 60s, who spoke very little English but still went out of their way to make me very welcome in their home. I still talk to them now, and feel like we made a real impact on each others lives. I know in this I was super lucky, and that some of my friends had problems with their host families, but from what they told me, the program always stepped in and helped whenever there was an issue.

My school was amazing, and very accommodating. I worked with high school, and the students messed around a bit but on the whole were great for me. I got into the routine of teaching, following the teaching model that the program taught us in orientation, and as I got more comfortable, my classes got better and better (at least I thought so!). The semester passed so quickly I wasn't ready to come back home, so I spoke to the team and extended for another year!

My second school was in Santiago, and was a million miles away from my first experience. This time, I was working in a much poorer area, and the students were a lot more badly behaved. For me, this was tough - coming off the back of my first experience, I thought it would be a walk in the park, and I quickly learned that it was not. Luckily, I reached out to the team, and one came to visit me in school (this is normal practice, they visit every volunteer at least once throughout the semester). The advice they gave me, and the continued support via email and telephone, made a world of difference to my lessons, and gave me the confidence to see it through. It also improved my classroom control no end!

In Santiago, I lived on my own rather than with a host family. I felt that it was the right thing for me at the time, and it was definitely a great experience. But I only felt like I got the most out of it because I lived with a host family first, and had immersed myself in Chile and built up contacts in the city before I made the decision. I would highly recommend staying with a host family, because its a part of the experience you just can't replicate on your own. For me, becoming part of someone else family, immersing myself in their culture, was a definite highlight. I even started following my host dad's football team (vamos Colo-Colo!). Also, whilst the stipend is pretty generous, I did have to dip into my savings. The program had given us a heads up that this was normally the case, and I don't see it as a negative or a criticism of the program - Santiago is an expensive city from any country's point of view, and if you're working as a volunteer for a government program, you're not doing it for the money!

I feel very privileged to have seen two such distinct parts of Chile, and to have been able to volunteer in twice. Every experience is unique, because Chile is such a diverse country, and every town and region has its differences, so you'll never know what you're in for until you're stepping off the bus/plane and being greeted by you local rep! Its not for the faint hearted, but if you love learning about other cultures, testing yourself to the limit, and making a difference in someone else's life, then this is the program for you.