MOBILE TEACHING PROGRAMME UPDATE
October 2011
In September two separate teams arrived to work with the Burmese refugees. Each team of four has a team leader, each one a volunteer who has decided to stay on to work with the programme.
The refugee camp team works in the large refugee camp situated about an hour's drive outside of Mae Sot. The migrant team works with schools scattered around the town and its outskirts. This year we are also working in two Thai schools since the migrant and Thai schools are working more closely together and a few thousand Burmese pupils are being taught in Thai schools. Our teacher/trainers travel between the schools by bicycle.
Last year, a cohort of teachers from the migrant schools passed the Cambridge KET (Key English Test) and PET (Preliminary English Test) examinations. This exam course is being extended this year. It will take about 5 - 6 months, taught in our new office, to the migrant teachers alongside goodwill participants from the NGOs with whom we work in partnership, the Thai schools and the local Thai Ministry of Education. The possibility of acquiring an internationally recognised qualification has been proving very popular. As happened last year, examiners from Harrow International School in Bangkok agreed to act as examiners for this year's March exams.
On the 17th March 14 teachers sat the Cambridge KET exam and 9 sat the PET exam. We are looking forward to their results.