We introduce volunteer teachers where we are invited by communities to find ways of bringing sustainable benefit to children’s education.
The focus is on placing international teachers in rural public primary and lower secondary schools, but we have also been involved in teaching in other domains such as professional development for local teachers and community vocational training. Most of the efforts of volunteers have been directed towards helping to improve study and English communication skills of students which is highly valued by parents and teachers.
Benefits for volunteers
Volunteers have had the opportunity to challenge preconceived ideas and training about what constitutes the ‘best’ pedagogical methods and identify simple, powerful and ‘appropriate’ ways of teaching in Nepal that engage and resonate positively with students and their teachers.
Volunteers have also been encouraged to commit: to working under the direction of the school Principal; to working in close collaboration with local teachers and learn appropriate teaching techniques from each other; and, to follow the local curriculum.
The program aimed for excellence in three core areas:
1. Positive and lasting impact on schools, their students and teachers.
2. The professional and personal development of participants.
3. Meeting our development objectives so we can grow our program of assistance to underserved communities.
Details about the Pathway Program
Read about our program for attracting suitably qualified volunteers to help teach in Nepal.
Pathways Program
Professional involvement
The program accepts only suitably qualified people who have the necessary training and experience that will allow them to contribute to the teaching objectives of the school. Most teaching volunteers were education students in the final years of university or were professionals with experience.
Consultation
There was a strong community consultation and review process. School exam results and interview of volunteers, children and local teachers were collected and assessed to ensure that the program was having a positive effect and to further improve the program.
Knowledge database
The outcomes and collective experiences of participants were used to build a knowledge base for the benefit of future participants.
Local capacity
The program did not detract from the important work of building local teaching capacity. We encouraged ways of integrating the efforts of volunteers with those of local teachers with the view to having a positive influence that will continue long after volunteers have departed.
OUR TEACHING PROGRAM ASSIGNMENTS
La Trobe & RMIT University teachers in Nepal
We had the privilege of having two Australian universities participate in the Pathways Program in 2017, our volunteer program for introducing skilled people to our project sites. Pre-service teachers from La Trobe and RMIT Universities worked with orphans, pre-primary, primary and lower secondary students from the Upper Mustang region, Kaski and Gorkha Districts of Nepal. […]
Chhonhup Winter School
Before the start of the winter months, when temperatures are approaching freezing point during the day, schools in the Upper Mustang region near the Tibetan border with Nepal close their doors and move to lower altitudes to continue teaching. Essentially, there is a winter migration of schools to warmer areas for around four months of […]
Flinders University Teachers
The Pathways Program is an initiative that strives towards being a best practice model for volunteering by responding to the needs of local communities. Together with our local partners and community leaders, we have created opportunities for volunteers from around the world to share their knowledge, time and goodwill by contributing to our development objectives […]
Pathways Program volunteers for 2014
2014 was the culmination of three years of building close relationships with communities in rural Nepal and understanding how some of their needs could be filled with the help of volunteers. Together we have created opportunities for volunteers from around the world to spend time in communities we work to help build local knowledge and […]
RMIT University Teachers
2013 was a busy year in our Pathways Program with three separate teaching placements occurring through the year. The Pathways Program is our volunteer and placement program for connecting skilled people from around the world to communities we work with in Nepal. The second teacher placement for the year was an independent RMIT University pre-service […]
eTutoring from Australia in 2012 – 2013
In September 2012, students at the Shree Bhumeshwor Seconday School, in collaboration with Logged On, were the first in Nepal to join RMIT University’s eTutor program. eTutor is a collaborative project between RMIT and schools in Australia, Malaysia, India and Nepal. The program involved education students from RMIT interacting with school students through an online […]
Teacher placement & professional development
The Pathways Program is our volunteer and placement program for connecting skilled people from around the world to communities we work with in Nepal. We have built trusting relationships with local communities and work closely with them to understand how their needs can be helped filled by volunteers, particularly teachers. Our first teacher participant on […]
Connecting students & teachers to the web
Technology has transcended cultures, races and economies to become a driving force in the lives of people across the world. Over a billion people have access to the internet and billions more have mobile phones. The reliability and affordability of digital technology has helped close the digital divide between affluent and emerging economies and enabled […]