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Volunteering for SECMOL(This section was last updated in November 2008) SECMOL accepts volunteers in May and June for youth camps, and also at other times of the year. People with teaching or ice skate coaching experience are especially suited to our activities, though all volunteers are most welcome. We value volunteers, their work and the inter-cultural exchange and understanding they bring.
Students enjoying a discussion in the garden with a volunteer. SECMOL does not have a formal volunteer application process, because we have few volunteers and some of them just turn up in Ladakh. If you are interested in volunteering for SECMOL, contact Becky, the Volunteer Coordinator, at this email address. Be aware that email is unreliable in Ladakh and it can take 1-2 weeks to get a reply from us. Another possibility is to come directly to SECMOL Alternative Institute Campus in Phey village. We usually have one or two volunteers through the winter, and about 4 to 6 in the high tourist season of July-August. The biggest need is in May-June for our youth camps, where no special skills are needed, and since it is before the tourist season we often get fewer volunteers than we want at that time. We would also like volunteers in winter to teach ice-skating as well as academics. Ice skating, hockey or figure skating coach (Dec to Feb)Can you skate, play hockey, or figure skate? Come and experience the “off season” in Ladakh when there are almost no tourists, and participate in Ladakh’s annual ice frenzy! Ladakh is in fact not as cold as much of Canada and northern US: dependable skating weather starts in late December and ends in early February. Skating is a relatively new phenomenon in Ladakh and has caught on like wildfire. Consider coming in early December to get to know the students and start training them for skating and hockey. There has been very little figure skating in Ladakh so far, and we think this might be very popular, especially if somebody could take a creative approach and integrate local dance into it. For winter we would also like to have a few general friendly volunteers for English conversation or classes. Teaching English or other subjects Twenty-five students who are dropouts or have failed the Class 10 exam in their villages stay at SECMOL Campus for “Foundation Year” starting each July. They especially want to improve their English, since higher education in India is in English. SECMOL staff teach regular classes, but volunteer teachers sometimes introduce a whole new way of teaching and learning that can be exciting. An experienced or trained teacher could either teach directly or help our staff improve our teaching materials and methods. An experienced science or maths teacher would be an asset. We teach basic maths and science in Foundation Year, since most of the students have a poor foundation from their remote village schools. However, at the beginning of Foundation Year the student’s English level will be too low to have such classes in English, so you would have to know Hindi or Urdu to be able to teach these from July to November. Unskilled but friendly volunteersWe organise conversation classes with the volunteers. For this, you don’t need perfect English or teaching experience. The Ladakhi students are eager to learn about the world, and we appreciate the variety of experiences and viewpoints that volunteers bring. We need general volunteers for English practice especially from May to February. Over the years, some volunteers have also taught photography and used the resulting pictures in conversation class, helped the students put on plays or make videos (in English or Ladakhi), taught us new games or exercises, done an art, music or dance workshop, helped the students in charge of the weekly Campus Times newsletter, helped individual students with the subjects they are preparing for state exams, helped in the kitchen, gardened, etc. |
