Voluntary Project Overview

Our programmes to teach English in Tanzania, are based around the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, near the town of Moshi and in the picturesque Pare Mountains. Volunteers travelling to teach overseas can teach English in rural Tanzania as a volunteer working at local primary schools. Although English is often a third language behind local tribal languages and Swahili, children must have an understanding of English to enter secondary education. However, with many schools suffering from a scarcity of teaching resources, this is often not the case. This lack of resources also means that teaching abroad in Africa can involve taking charge of extremely large class sizes. In rural Tanzania it is not uncommon to have 80 or even 100 children in a class. In these circumstances, volunteers keen to teach English abroad are welcomed enthusiastically by our partner schools.

The Volunteer Abroad Role

Career break volunteers interested in teaching in Tanzania can provide invaluable teaching support to underprivileged children and overburdened local staff.

Teaching in Africa is often very traditional and the input of our volunteers can help schools to engage their students more effectively. Volunteers teaching English overseas in rural Tanzania are encouraged to exchange ideas and teaching methods with local teachers to make lessons more visual and active.

Teaching volunteers in rural Tanzania will also have the opportunity to take their own classes, teaching children aged 5-14 years old. An average working week while teaching abroad will involve a minimum of 10 hours tuition and 10 hours preparation work, although volunteers can also get involved in various extra-curricular activities.

Volunteer Work Impact

Volunteering to teach in Africa can be an endlessly rewarding experience, and this is particularly true in rural Tanzania, where resources are scarce. Local children and staff benefit greatly from interacting with native English speakers, and volunteers teaching English overseas in Tanzania can raise confidence and understanding of the language.

At present the standard of English in rural schools is below what is required in the national curriculum. Career break volunteers can make a real difference in rural communities, and by teaching abroad in Tanzania, you can raise standards of education to allow children to progress to secondary school.

Other Volunteer Abroad opportunities

Volunteers teaching English overseas in Tanzania can get involved with a variety of activities outside of the classroom. Most schools have after school programs and career break volunteers can help run sports clubs and other extra curricular activities.

Depending on where you are based, volunteers teaching in Tanzania can participate in the local community. This could involve helping a local women’s pottery group, teaching English to adults in the village, or working with local craftsmen to improve their marketing.

Volunteers teaching English in Africa can also explore the natural beauty of Tanzania, which is home to Mount Kilimanjaro and some of Africa’s finest game reserves.

With such a wide range of opportunities, volunteering to teach English in Africa can be a life-changing career break experience.

Voluntary Programme Requirements/Eligibility Criteria

Teaching English in Africa can be challenging, but at the same time it is incredibly rewarding. Career break volunteers wanting to teach English in Tanzania need good communication skills, an open mind, plenty of enthusiasm and a good sense of humour! Our philosophy is to encourage students to learn by having fun in lessons.While the large class sizes can appear daunting, they provide a real opportunity for volunteers to challenge themselves as they teach overseas. Teaching in Africa requires you to stretch your imagination and creativity in the classroom, and the cultural exchange is invaluable. Teaching experience is an advantage but it is not essential to teach English abroad. If you feel you need any preparation, we can arrange for you to take part in a TEFL training weekend before you depart.

Volunteer Accommodation and Living arrangements

Volunteers teaching English in Tanzania are generally accommodated in a local guesthouse with meals provided, or in a homestay, where you have a private room in a local family’s home. Meals are taken with the family, providing a great way to try local food, experience local culture firsthand and even learn some Swahili!

If you have any specific requirements while teaching in Tanzania, please discuss the options available with us when planning your career break abroad.

What’s included in your Programme Fee?

• Project selection and placement - Our in-country teams work constantly to identify and select projects that are doing exemplary work in developing countries but need your skills and effort. Our staff are in dialogue with you to ensure that we choose a project that really needs you, where you will use your skills and contribute, because at MondoChallenge, we believe that a great volunteering experience is largely dependant on matching you with the right project
• Pre Departure Briefing - Before you leave, we will arrange for a pre departure briefing where we help you with small but extremely helpful details on your chosen destination. Things like: what to pack, local culture and customs, food, safety and precautions if any - simple things to make your life easier!
• Guidance for processing visa - MondoChallenge will arrange for any relevant documents and guide you through the visa process.
• Airport Pick Up - Arriving in a new city and not knowing where to go and how to go can be quite unnerving. A MondoChallenge representative will meet you at the airport and take you to your place of stay where you can put your feet up after a long flight.
• In country Orientation and Welcome Pack - When you arrive at your location, you will be given an orientation where you could meet other volunteers from MondoChallenge, learn all about your location, how to find your way around, where to get SIM cards for the phone, small bits that you will need help sorting out in the first few days.
• In Country Support - Our local co-ordinators are there to guide you through out your stay. They will make sure that you are settled at your project, are comfortable with your accommodation and provide guidance on local culture and customs to ensure that you have a memorable and rewarding experience.
• Accommodation - In most cases you stay with a local host family. It gives you a taste of the daily life of a local. You will be sharing a room with another volunteer, however if you prefer to have a single room to youself, this can be arranged but a cost supplement may apply. If you prefer totally independent accommodation, this maybe possible in certain areas at an additional cost and our Programme Managers will be able to assist you with this.
• Breakfast and Dinner - Local home cooked food, will be provided at the home stays. This gives you a chance to experience local dishes.
• Optional Contribution to the Education Grant - The Educational Grant helps projects like the one you will volunteer with, to get basic infrastructure and resources. Open air schools need a roof, some need tables or chairs and some need books for children. We identify needs and constantly work at improving the conditions at our partner projects. We also encourage you to identify needs at your project and let our local management know of any specifics that you feel may help. The grants are made through our registered charity, FutureSense Foundation (Charity No: 1132101). In the project fee above we recommend an optional contribution towards these grants. If you would like to fund raise or contribute further amounts towards this directly to the foundation we can assist you through the process.

Not Included:

• International Flights
• Visa and Travel insurance Costs
• Vaccination
• Local Transport and Travel
• Personal Expenses

Project photos

Testimonials