Volunteer as an English Teacher in Germany

By The Excellence Center In Europe / In Internship in Germany

I volunteered as an English teacher at the Excellence Center in the city of Halle, Germany for 10 weeks from September to November 2020 and it has been an invaluable experience. I’m glad I got to know some of the students and also, some of the other teachers here in Halle.

It is more than Teaching English

There’s more to teaching English than you might think and almost every day at the Center I was discovering different facets of language I had never thought of before and took for granted. Having real experience teaching English to beginners made me think more deliberately about what methods of language teaching work better than others and the work I did in the Center gave me a greater ability to teach than any textbook ever could.

Try different methods of teaching in a relaxed environment

The Excellence Center was a great place to try different methods and exercises in teaching in a relaxed and comfortable environment. The teachers teach voluntarily and the students attend voluntarily, so each party is independently motivated to achieve what they want from the Center.

Although not all students have the same motivations, as some will be more eager than others, this is normal and will teach you how to accommodate the different demands students have. This is exactly the reason why the experience is valuable it shows all sides of what it’s like to teach English as a foreign language.

A lot of freedom to travel around Germany

My time outside of work in the Center was also quite fun. I only had about 20 hours of teaching English including my German classes so I had a lot of freedom to travel, see in Germany, and what’s good in my new home.

I did start at the Center during a fairly rough time for many businesses during the pandemic, but fortunately, the schools all stayed open and most of my time in Halle was between the two lockdowns. So I still got a taste for life in the city of Halle, Germany. In this respect, I was quite lucky to have as many students as I did despite the disruption.

My German host family

I also feel very lucky when it comes to my accommodation. My German host family was perfect, I couldn’t fault them one bit. The parents were so generous and helpful, I thank them for taking me into their lovely home.

They made me feel so comfortable, they gave me space when I needed it, shared their meals with me, and always offered me a seat at their table. I couldn’t have asked for better hosts. I’m very grateful to them and the Center for arranging such welcoming hospitality.

Final remarks

I thank all my students for their effort, my lovely hosts, and the Center’s director Rafat Shantir for the guidance I received during my time as a Volunteer as English Teacher in Germany, all of whom have made my participation in the program so worthwhile.