In this interview, you’ll hear from Noah Albanese, a Peace Corps Education volunteer in Thailand. Noah shares what daily life looks like, the work being done, and how service has shaped their personal and professional growth. You’ll learn about housing, cultural differences, project work, language learning, and what it’s like to live and work in a new country. This interview offers a real look into Peace Corps service and what future volunteers can expect.
Table of Contents
- Volunteer Experience and Motivation
- Living Arrangements and Cultural Integration
- Surprises and Challenges
- Advice and Support
- Practical Tips and Language Learning
- Social Identity
- Final Thoughts
Volunteer Experience and Motivation
1. What do you do as a Peace Corps Education volunteer in Thailand?
My job is to improve the ability of English Teachers at my school to teach English while improving the English skills of my students. I do this by teaching my co-teachers English, teaching my students, planning lessons with my co-teachers, and running an English club.
In other words, I am more of an English teacher trainer than an English teacher.
2. Why did you decide to join the Peace Corps and serve in Thailand?
I think my reasons for joining the Peace Corps are quite similar to those of most volunteers. I wanted to explore the world, be immersed in a culture, and work in a job where I can help people.
I have to be honest with you, though, my “why” has largely changed over time. I came for the reasons I stated above, but I stayed because of my students. My students obviously face a lot of challenges growing up. That being said, they still greet me every morning, they show up to my class, and are happy to learn. It gives me a lot of motivation.
Living Arrangements and Cultural Integration
3. What is your housing like in Thailand?
So for the reader, I live in the Isan region of Thailand, which is a distinct culture from Central Thailand. They also speak a different language from Central Thai called Isan.
I’ve been living here with my host family for about a year now. My host mother is the eldest teacher at my school, and my father is a cop. They are very kind to me. They have two sons that I see occasionally because they are in college.
I live in a house on their property next door. We have an outdoor kitchen between both of our houses where I cook. My school is right in front of my house, which makes it convenient. In addition, we have a mango tree in our yard, and it’s currently mango season! I have a good arrangement.
4. What moments or interactions stand out during your service?
How much time do you have?
I always enjoy talking with my students. I remember the little interactions and when they actually learn something. There is this one Grade 1 student who always jumps up and down when I tell her I’m teaching English today. There is another Grade 4 student whom I’ve been teaching how to read, and I remember the joy I felt when he read Dr. Seuss with me for the first time. And how can I forget the never-ending rounds of Uno! If there are any potential Thailand volunteers reading this, play Uno with your students; they will love you.
When it comes to my coworkers, my best memories are hanging out with them in a typical Isan get-together. The Isan get-together is sitting outdoors on a roll-up bamboo mat (bringing your sticky rice, papaya salad, fresh vegetables, fried pork, some beer, etc.) and just relaxing. I’ve had a lot of weekend get-togethers like this.
There was one time that I went to one of these get-togethers, having no idea that we were having a pork roast. They brought the pig in front of me. Then they slaughtered, cleaned, and cooked it in front of me. In my life, I’ve never experienced something like that before. What I really enjoyed, though, was that the entire community, such as the Village Shahman, the Village headmen, and others, came together for the feast. I think the importance of food and living as a community are very Thai characteristics. It’s something I admired about Thai culture ever since.
Surprises and Challenges
5. What has surprised you most about living or working in Thailand?
By far the biggest surprise is the difference in how they communicate.
In Thailand (and most Asian countries), there is a concept called “Face.” A face is like the American concept of a persona, or how people perceive you in public settings. In America, if you make a mistake in public or your boss scolds you in public, you lose face. It’s similar in Thailand, except it’s really bad if you lose face. It’s very, very bad if you cause someone else to lose face.
In America, if you do something wrong, people will give you constructive feedback, they will tell you directly, and you get a chance to course correct. In Thailand, you cannot tell negative things to people directly. At work, I do not receive any sort of constructive negative feedback because sometimes it will lead me to “lose face.” Instead, maybe they will switch the topic, or they will say “I will ask my boss about it” and never bring it up again.
I had to learn (over the last year) how to navigate this. The answer is you have to learn if they give you an enthusiastic yes or if they give you an unenthusiastic yes. Also, asking a 3rd person about their opinion or keeping your ears open for rumors is really useful.
It’s very different from America.
6. What challenges have you faced in your Education work, and how did you respond?
I think the gap between my Peace Corps Project Goals and what my school wanted was difficult for me to navigate.
As I mentioned above, I’m supposed to be a teacher trainer rather than an English teacher. In reality, some English teachers at my school had no confidence speaking English, others were uninterested in learning English with me, and one of them even stonewalled me from teaching any English classes to the students.
I partially understand my co-teachers; I am not a professional teacher, just a volunteer. Still, I felt like I was being used as a babysitter rather than what my job told me I was supposed to do.
During the beginning of my service, this caused me a lot of frustration. However, after a while, something clicked in me. One day, I realized that it’s no use trying to work with people who are uninterested in what I have to offer. Rather, I need to put all my time into those who really say, “Yes, I want to learn English with you.”
This really improved the quality of my service.
7. What secondary projects have you worked on during your service?
- Removing a lice infestation from my school
- Being Santa Claus on Christmas
- Bringing English books to my school library
- Starting an Advanced English Class for gifted students
- Thanks to another volunteer, bringing a PM 2.5 Censor to my School
Also trying to plan a Teacher Training this year.
Advice and Support
8. What advice would you give to future Education volunteers in Thailand?
Do not waste time and energy on people who don’t want to work with you. Focus on working with people who are receptive to you. Your time is precious; you only have two years!
9. How did Peace Corps training prepare you for service?
In terms of PST (Pre-Service Training), my advice is…
You should put all your time and energy into language learning. Believe me… it pays dividends. Pay attention to your project sessions, but keep in mind that the reality of your site is starkly different. Make friends with other volunteers; they will be your greatest network of support.
Practical Tips and Language Learning
10. What would you tell future volunteers to pack—or leave behind?
Bring a Kindle. Best purchase I made.
11. How has language learning been for you in Thailand?
I learned early on that in order to advocate for myself, I could not over-rely on my counterparts. I’ve been learning Thai from the beginning, and I’ve done quite well. I can now advocate for the projects to my principal and create a lesson plan with my counterparts in Thai.
Social Identity
12. How has your personal identity shaped your service experience?
I am Japanese-American; my mother is Japanese, and my father is an American. I was born in Japan, and I moved to the United States in 2014. I’m really 50-50 when it comes to the time I spent in America and Japan.
This might be surprising, but I think my identity has been very helpful during my service. Japanese culture is quite similar to Thai culture: they both practice indirect communication, they are very polite, and they both find “face” to be an important concept. For example, in Thai schools, it’s very important for you to be at meetings even if you have no relation to the topic of conversation. This is the same as the Japanese work culture.
From the beginning, this cultural similarity gave me an advantage in navigating Thai culture. I often used my Japanese lens rather than my American lens when I was trying to learn about Thai culture.
I’m actually really curious about the experience of other Asian volunteers in the Peace Corps and whether they had a similar experience to me.
Final Thoughts
13. What final advice or thoughts would you share with future volunteers?
The Peace Corps allows you to travel, immerse yourself in a culture, and possibly help people. At the same time, the Peace Corps is a really hard job. I don’t think the Peace Corps is for everyone.
However, if you do decide to join and stick it out, I can promise that it will be life-changing. I think with the Peace Corps experience, you are placed in such difficult circumstances, these circumstances lead you to respond in ways you didn’t know you were capable of. Ultimately, you learn a lot about who you are.
Are you thinking about joining the Peace Corps? If you’re curious about service and ready for something new, apply today. Like Noah, you can live abroad, work with communities, and grow in ways you didn’t expect. Apply to the Peace Corps and take the next step.
The content of this post does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps, or Thailand Government.
