Teaching English to Buddhist Monks

Due to winter vacation, the project is not available from Jan 03 to March 02

Explore the majestic Nepali Himalayas and local culture while helping the local children learn an increasingly important language.

A monastery plays a very important role in the lives of Sherpa community. Every major festival is held in the monastery and the monks conduct rituals and offer blessings. The monks are enrolled in the monastery from early age, and while some choose to remain monks all their life, many marry and start a family later on. For the young monks in the monastery, it is very important to learn English as well as their traditional scriptures. With English, if they chose to become a householder later in life, they can work as guides or start their own hotel or lodges, and even migrate to other region and get jobs. If they stay on as a monk, they will be able communicate effectively with the outside world. But the monastery does not have the manpower to train the monks in English or the resources to hire a teacher. When you volunteer in the monastery, you will help the monks with their English and give them the confidence to communicate with the outside world. You will also witness color rituals in the monastery and you can even participate in prayer ceremonies.

Your activities as a volunteer

As a volunteer you will enjoy teaching in the project because you will find the monks extremely enthusiastic about learning from an international volunteer. You will conduct 2 to 3 classes per day of 45 minutes to an hour. The monks range from the age of 5 to 17. Some monks understand and can speak few words of English and some won’t have any knowledge of English. The class will be divided according to their level of English. You may have to conduct kindergarten level class once, and a class for grade 2 to 4. There will be a resident Lopon (a master) who will be assisting you during the class. The Lopon will be able to communicate with you well in English.

Skills required

You must have good English (but not of very high standard). No other skills or qualifications are required to volunteer in the project. Volunteers are expected to be respectful to monks, Sherpa community and observe rules of the monastery. Volunteers should also dress conservatively. You will not be allowed to wear shorts and tank tops except in your room.

Arrangement of room/food/supervision

Volunteers will stay inside the monastery in an onsite location. You will be given a separate room and you may have to share the room with other volunteers. The monastery is situated on a hillside just 10 minutes walk from the village of Thulo Gumela. The village of Phakdin, which lies on the Everest trekking route, is 30 minutes below. Phakdin is about 60 to 90 minutes from Lukla. While volunteering, you will also enjoy 3 local meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) with the monks in their dining room. The monastery is surround be pine trees and you can see spectacular views of Thamserku and Kongde Ri Mountains. During the project, you will be support by our Himalayan Coordinator who is based in Gat, about an hour away, and by the monks in the monastery. You can also call our Nepal coordinator in Kathmandu to discuss any problem you may have.