IBDP Service Trip to Chiang Mai 2008

A group of 22 students, myself included, from my school visited Chiang Mai from 25th – 29th May, the first week of our mid-year break. This activity involved the provision of our service, mainly educational, to 28 students, aged 4 – 11 years, in a village in Ban Pha Mon. The school, adopted by the Raffles City Rotary Club in Singapore, at which we were situated at for our period of service, was located on a mountain several thousand feet above sea level.

The first day of our trip involved mainly travelling. Upon arrival at the school, we unpacked our belongings, planned our lessons for the following couple of days and were provided with dinner and accommodation. On the following day, we were introduced to the children and we mingled with them for about an hour, playing soccer, talking with them, etc. When mid-morning arrived, we began lessons with them. The 22 of us were divided into three groups (prior to the trip itself) and each group undertook approximately 10 students, arranged according to their level of education. During lessons, we taught them the English language with the help of picture cards, physical symbols such as airplanes and animals, assessment books and coloring activities. When lessons had ended, we planned for our last day of teaching. We agreed to follow up on several effective lesson activities such as the picture cards. Also, we participated actively in area cleaning. This involved the cleaning of toilets, dishes, classrooms and floors. On our last day, we taught for a good amount of time, much similar to the day before, and we planned and practiced our cultural performance in whatever remaining time we had. We also trekked down the mountain to visit a plantation area. When night had fallen, we walked into the main village to give our performance – singing two culturally-focused songs with actions. We participated in the sparklers and fireworks, and lantern celebrations. Furthermore, we gave out our tokens of appreciation – picture-frames with pictures taken over the past couple of days. This was also when we passed on our donations of clothes and stuffed-toys to the families within the village.

In this activity, I feel that I have accomplished what I set out to do. This trip to Chiang Mai has allowed me to realize more about myself and others around me which I would not have otherwise had. I have accomplished our main goal, which was to educate the school children to the best of our abilities, through planned lessons and activities. I also feel that through this trip, I have established fresh bonds with the school children and have learnt more about the culture of Thais and their way of life. In this trip, I experienced several difficulties, which I overcame in the end. I demolished the face of fear and standard of living in terms of accommodation and hygiene. I was able to endure, without much complaining, whatever came our way. Furthermore, when we had a hitch in our lesson plan, we acted quickly and wisely so as to achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for all.

I have learnt, from this activity, more about other parts of the world and that things are not always as they seem. I have learnt and understood that life without love is nothing. I have learnt to be modest and humble when it comes to all things. I have achieved the ability to meet challenges, big and small, and that it is not so much that result that counts, but more the process in achieving it.

This activity was supervised by Mr. Charles Png and Ms. Ng Sho Ching, two members of academic teaching staff. They assisted in the planning of lessons and the approval of proposals. They also donated a color printer to the school in Chiang Mai. They organized meetings and assisted in being the backbone to this activity.

This activity benefitted both parties, those in Chiang Mai and the 22 of us. We understood more about each other, I believe, and that we have helped and changed each other, be it in a small way or big way. If I were to do this activity again, I would request more time with the children, perhaps the role of not solely teaching, but more bonding and making a physical change to the school.