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VolunteerTeachingVolunteer teaching is something that is very new in my life currently. I?m currently in training for the US Peace Corps in Ukraine. This is the way I will spend the next two years of my life, teaching english at the secondary school level. I have completed my first lessons at the school and can affirm that there are many differences in volunteer teaching and teaching as a profession. First, if you are volunteering in a country aside from your own, there are many cultural and language barriers you have to consider and overcome before you can think about teaching in the classroom. Everything about the way you teach abroad matters. You must take into account customs, classroom management, as well as may other important practicalities. For example, to teach english in Ukraine, one must know about the complex rules such as grading policies and classroom behavior. A teacher in Ukraine is used to such things as cheating and it is not considered cheating in Ukraine as their culture helping out one another. Additionally, children are held up to different standards here. They must dress very formally, cannot eat or drink in the classroom, and are overall more polite than American school children. Secondly, one must be ready to face varying attitudes regarding volunteer status wherever they volunteer. I have noticed that volunteers aren?t always well received at their place of ?work?. One must be patient and extremely flexible in order to not offend the individuals whose primary job is the teaching position where you are volunteering. In my current situation, teachers are easily offended when volunteers overstep their boundaries and act as if they are full time staff. I know that this is a completely individual circumstance, nevertheless it may occur more frequently than one might think. Lastly, I think a good tip for someone looking to volunteer in the field of education would be the capacity to work within varying realms with whatever you are assigned. Often times, one might not be doing exactly what they imagined, but sometimes it works out for the best. Usually a shortage of resources can be an issue in some volunteer situations. One must be resourceful and creative and create lessons in new and exciting ways. I have had to stretch my imagination to the limits and use and re-use various items in order to make lessons appropriate for the classroom. This only makes the teaching process much more rewarding and meaningful for me. Overall, in order to be a successful volunteer teacher, one must possess creativity, flexibility, and a desire to better the children you are working with. Volunteer teaching is extremely rewarding and comes with many great experiences. I think it is in a completely different realm than normal classroom instruction. One has more opportunity for creativity and using experimental lessons as well as novel types of classroom management. In the end, a volunteer teaching stint is stimulating and unforgettable. I would recommend volunteer teaching to anyone interested.
