Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Education is not self-evident for everyone
Today we visited the Asia Center Foundation, which is located in Phuket. We met about 40 children who lived and got educated there. We also met some wonderful volunteers who care for and watch over the children. They give one hundred percent daily to make the children smile and be happy.
When we arrived, one of the volunteers told us about their motivation, how the institution got started and for what reasons the kids are here. For struggling families in Thailand, sending their children to school is a luxury they cannot afford. Many children don’t even receive preschool education. Others drop out at a very young age to start working. The Asia Center Foundation offers different programs to children from 4 to 18 years old. From preschool centers and scholarships to sports programs, Asia Center Foundation creates education and development opportunities for more than 250 children every year.
To welcome us students, the kids baked tasty little Thai snacks which they sold. By doing this, they have the chance to learn life skills like how to cook and how they can get an income in their future lives. The earned money and other donations we gave them will be used to increase and develop the kids’ facility.
They sang a lovely “Thank you”-song for us which made our hearts melt. The kids put a lot of effort into the song with clapping hands, dancing steps and a teacher even played the guitar. Afterwards, we played soccer, drew pictures and played games in the garden with them. The kids are adorable, open-minded and very happy! We had heaps of fun while playing around and spending time with these little people. It’s great to see places where people offer their help for others. The volunteers give those children a future which they wouldn’t have without them.
You might also be interested in: Bali Street Kids Project
We are used to taking education for granted. It is something we are used to growing up with, whether we like it or not, and most of the time we don’t even realize the important role it played in our early development. This experience today was an eye opener to appreciate and to be grateful for all the education we’ve got so far and for everything that will be taught to us in the future!
We always try to take our students to a charity while the’re studying abroad!
Find out more about studying abroad in Phuket
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This text was written by the Prince of Songkla international students Annika and Maike.
