Education Thailand Project #32133

Empower 20 Young Changemakers from Myanmar

by BEAM Education Foundation

Empower 20 Young Changemakers from Myanmar

Project Report | Oct 17, 2019
CSIP Fall 2019 Update

By Lulu Zhou | Higher Education Program Associate

ThelThel teaching at Wai Sai Moon (Myanmar temple)

Dear all,

Hope all is well! The “cold season” has officially started in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Also, our students are in their first semester of this school year. Recently, they have just finished their mid-term exams—it has been busy at the universities. Despite having busier academic schedules, they are still working hard to volunteer and support local communities with their diverse skills. Su, Weh, Thel Thel and Chen have kindly shared their updates with us.

On behalf of our students and BEAM, we would like to express our deepest gratitude for your support of their educational and professional opportunities, which is tremendously beneficial both short- and long-term for our communities.

Su, 4^th year studying Social Science at Chiang Mai University

How are you feeling about this semester?

My schoolwork is more comfortable than in the previous year. I think that three-year experiences have helped a lot and made me strong in this final year. I am not afraid of deadline because I can manage my time and my abilities very well. I am studying 4 courses: Resource Management and Development, Cultural, Political & Resistances, Geography of Migration, Environment & Social Movement in SEA. I feel happy in this semester because there are fewer assignments. I believe that I could improve my writing and presenting skills more and more by studying.

How did you do in your most recent exams?

I only took one in-class exam and one take-home exam for the midterm period. The results are not out yet. For exam preparation, I read a lot of academic readings and notes in order to analyze or criticize one issue from every dimension. Mostly, I like take-home exam more than in-class exam because it is less stressful for me.

Have you participated in any events/community service recently?

I am volunteering as a Burmese language teacher, working with Shan children at a Buddhist temple and migrant workers at a construction site.

What are your summer plans (classes, internship, work)? Or if you are graduating soon, what are you future plans?

I’m very interested in things such as social work (e.g., counseling with women victims), traveling, watching adventure movies, reading books and writing articles based on my experiences. As my future plan, I will work at SAW foundation because I would like to work at a shelter that takes care of orphans, supporting the people who have malnutrition and helping the women who escape from human trafficking and domestic violence. SAW is facing a lack of donors and financial supports. Thus, I want to find more donations or networking for SAW as much as I can.

Is there anything else you would like to share/comment/ask us?

I would like to thank CSIP committee for supporting my education. The CSIP scholarship system is very suitable for me because I got not only financial supports but also new experiences with my internship. Also, I get to learn about Shan migrant workers and their livelihoods. I don't have other suggestion, and everything is fine for me.

Weh, 4th year studying IT at Payap University

How are you feeling about this semester?

Pretty great. I feel really calm because I have done taking 7 courses and passed them all. In order to graduate next year, I need to take more courses than before, like 7 courses for this semester and 6 courses for the coming semester.

How did you do on your most recent exams?

I did great in most of the exams and the papers too. But there was one exam that I did really badly and I had been worried that I might fail. But I passed it gracefully.

Have you participated in any events/community service recently?

I have been participating in church events as the Vice General Secretary of Church Youth. Also I worked in the media team by taking photos of the church activities. The most recent church event I have participated was the KBC Youth Day. I was part of the song-sing service leader team, and I led the youth to play a community-building game, which I have learned from the JUMP! Foundation’s Facilitator Training in Bangkok. (I and a number of BEAM staff and students attended the Facilitator Training together in September.)

What are your summer plans (classes, internship, work)? Or if you are graduating soon, what are you future plans?

Before the end of the previous semester, I had planned to go back to my hometown to meet with my family and relatives. But I only got a very short semester break and also I was needed for BEAM’s impact assessment project, so my plan to go back to my hometown didn’t happen. So, I have been using my free time by volunteering at BEAM and at KWAT (Kachin Women's Association Thailand), where I was helping them to translate from Burmese to English and from Kachin to English.

ThelThel, 2nd year studying Social Science at Chiang Mai University

How are you feeling about this semester?

This first semester of the third year is the most challenging for me because I have to take seven courses. As I have to take seven courses this semester, it is very difficult for me to manage my time well in order to study each subject regularly every day. Additionally, I have to write weekly summary for Space subject and Migration class. Another subject is Research Methodology and it has weekly quiz. To be honest, all these subjects I take in this semester are more difficult. Moreover, I have 6 term papers to write and have to complete all by 6^th December 2019. So, I am worried that my GPA will be dropped since every subject has been hard for me.

How did you do on your most recent exams?

I have finished mid-term examination two weeks ago and I had to sit only two subjects, which were Migration and Space subjects. As I did not have to take many subjects, I believed that I did well on both subjects.

Have you participated in any events/community service recently?

In this semester, I participated in leadership training from September 25-26 with my juniors for their activities. I got a chance to help them by preparing some activities. It was my first time joining this training and I got many experiences by helping them. Moreover, I intern at Wat Sai Moon (Myanmar temple) on every Saturday. My responsibility is teaching English to Shan children and it is a very wonderful internship for me. And also, I will have another internship at construction sites and I will be teaching Burmese to Shan children every Tuesday and Friday.

What are your summer plans (classes, internship, work)? Or if you are graduating soon, what are your future plans?

I do not have any special plans for my summer break because my final year will start again in June, and I may have only a few days of summer break.

Is there anything else you would like to share/comment/ask us?

Firstly, I would like to say thank you very much for CSIP and teachers for continuously supporting my studies. CSIP provides me with not only financial assistance but also a lot of new knowledge, experience, and skills to contribute to our community. It is a good opportunity for me because I can apply these experiences and skills in the future after I graduate from the university. Thank you so much for your support.

Chen, 2nd year studying English for Communication at Chiang Mai Rajabhat University

The midterm exams have just ended for a few days. And I have a good feeling for the results.

I paused teaching at camp for a while during the examination period. However, I will resume it this week. Shan New Year is coming soon so P' Ying and I are planning to teach New Year songs to students after class. I hope the students will enjoy the classes and practice songs.

I would like to say that everything is going well with my studies and volunteer teaching as well.

Million thanks to BEAM and CSIP project for all of your support and encouragement.

BEAM Education Foundation is committed to supporting migrants, refugees, and underprivileged applicants who have a limited chance to further their studies and who have the potential to contribute to their communities. Among the migrant population in Thailand, there are more than 1,000 students finishing high school equivalency programs every year, but the opportunity to continue their education is restricted. Currently, only an estimated 25% of college-ready students are provided with the funding needed to attend university. Please help BEAM raise this number! Thank you very much for your support!

Chen's students playing games during the break

Su checking students' exercises at temple

Weh singing song during WCC Church service

Links:

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Jul 25, 2019
CSIP (Community Service Internship Program) Summer Update

By Lulu Zhou | Higher Education Program Associate

Chen teaching English, Shan, and Burmese languages

Dear all,

Hope that you are enjoying your summer! In the fall semester semester, we had a shortage of scholarship funds. However, thanks to your generous donations, we were able to have adequate financial support for our students during the spring semester. Thank you so much for your continuous support of our students’ education access; it means so much for them, their families, their communities, and BEAM.

Our students have completed another full year of college. They have different summer break schedules, working hard on various professional, academic, volunteering, and/or personal endeavors. Su, We Hkawng, Thel Thel and Chen have kindly shared their updates with us.

Su, 3rd year studying Social Science at Chiang Mai University

Summer Activities:

During this summer break, I am working as an intern at Phan Tee Eain (Creative Home) for cooperative studies of CMU. Cooperative Studies aims to provide the opportunity for students to undertake a work internship in a social science related field after the 3rd academic year. The grade for Cooperative Studies is based on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory criterion. Students choose one organization as their interest areas and they must undertake a comprehensive research report on an issue related to their internship. This research must be approved by the student’s agency supervisor and university liaison officer. Length of report depends on the issue of research, but it needs to be no fewer than 6,000 words.

My interest area is gender equality, women empowerment, and women rights issues. Therefore, I chose Phan Tee Eain (Creative Home), which is local NGO based on Yangon, Myanmar. Phan Tee Eain (PTE) is supporting and facilitating to empower women by enhancing their knowledge and capacities, providing social services, conducting research related to gender inequalities in politics, strengthening local youth networks, and advocating women issues Their target regions are Sagaing, Magway, Ayeyarwaddy, Yangon, Shan (North), Naypyidaw, Bago and Mon states in Myanmar.

I have to complete 14 weeks in this internship with 8 hours of work per day. My internship started on the 6th of May and will end on the 9th of August. Now, I have finished 11 weeks and I am learning how the PTE implement activities and how network organizations collaborate with each other. I follow their workshops and activities in Northern Shan State and Kayah State to assist my project officer if needed. My research is “Gender Based Violence and Kayah Women”; therefore, I have to conduct interviews in the Kayah state for the sake of comprehensive research with the support of the organization. Also, I participate in gender forums, workshops and trainings organized by PTE and other NGOs in Yangon. I have received many work experiences from this internship and gotten a chance to visit communities in remote areas of Shan state and Kayah state. Thus, I enjoy this summer break.

Plan for the Upcoming Semester/Year:

For this coming semester, my goals are to study hard and participate in new field trips, seminars and other activities organized by CMU. I have to study more than I did during the previous semester because I want to improve my GPA. I will do my work internship by teaching Burmese language at Wat Sai Mon monastery during weekends. I hope that I will gain new experiences through volunteering.

Photos (attached at the bottom of the report):

Phan Tee Eain (Creative Home) was implementing ‘Gender Equality and Local Governance’ workshop as one of their projects. The participants were Shan ethnic people and government officers. The venue was in Hsenwi city, Northern Shan state and we went there last week. My job is to help my supervisor and organize these workshops as much as I can.

We Hkawng, 4th year studying IT at Payap University

Summer Activities:

“For 2019-2020 academic year, Payap university has changed the whole International College department schedule by shifting the university opening period two months earlier. Therefore, as a Payap international student, I only had a very short summer break. I stayed in Chiang Mai and continued my internship at BEAM, where I had a chance to teach computer basics to the new GED students along with Saya Thor Zin. This was the first time I have taught basic computer skill to others in a class. It was a very exciting experience for me, and I have enjoyed it.

On the other hand, I have been volunteering in the media team at Wunpawng Christian Church. Within my short summer break, the church media team was working on the church photo magazine about the church’s half-year activities. I am glad that I had a chance to be part of the team, and I have gained experiences through serving.”

Plan for the Upcoming Semester/Year:

As this academic year will be my fourth year, I will have to study much harder in order to finish a bachelor’s degree within four years. Therefore, I have been prepared mentally and physically for this coming semester. Now, the semester has already started and I am doing well with academics. This semester, I am taking 7 courses and aiming to finish all of them with no lower than C. I will do all the assignment and homework and pay focused attention in all my classes and lectures.

Thel Thel, 2nd year studying Social Science at Chiang Mai University

Thel Thel could not do a summer internship because she went back to her hometown; this is her update from the spring:

Currently, I am doing my internship at Shan camp and teaching Burmese to Shan children. I teach Burmese at Shan camp every weekend. There are about 15 students, but they are different levels. Some children can read and write basic Burmese and they are fast learners. So, we divided into two groups to teach Burmese. For me, I teach children who do not speak or read Burmese at all. I love teaching and I learn many things from this internship. I am delighted to make a contribution of my knowledge and skills to children by teaching Burmese.

Chen, 2nd year studying English for Communication at Chiang Mai Rajabhat University

Summer Activities:

I am happy to share what I am doing in this school break. Yes, I am taking a part-time job and doing community service. Everything is going well with me. From Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm, I work as a tourist guide at an elephant camp in Mae Taeng district. On Thursday and Friday evenings, I teach basic English and Shan language at Shan Youth Power organization. And on weekends, I help as a facilitator at Community Learning Center, Burmese Class, at Wat Sai Moon. I feel happy with my private job and volunteering currently.

Plan for the Upcoming Semester/Year:

For the coming next semester I hope I will learn very useful subjects and skills that will improve my English. As usual, I will do my best to maintain my grade standard, which looks good

BEAM Education Foundation is committed to supporting migrants, refugees, and underprivileged applicants who have a limited chance to further their studies and who have the potential to contribute to their communities. Among the migrant population in Thailand, there are more than 1,000 students finishing high school equivalency programs every year, but the opportunity to continue their education is restricted. Currently, only an estimated 25% of college-ready students are provided the funding needed to attend university. Please help BEAM raise this number! Thank you very much for your continued support! You can also learn more about our programs by visiting these links:

With gratitude,
BEAM Education Foundation

Su Myat assisting with gender issue workshops.

Chen teaching English, Shan, and Burmese languages

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Apr 19, 2019
CSIP Spring Update

By Alta Alonzi | Program Associate

Su Myat visiting a farming village

Greetings!

Spring is here, but so is final exam season for our CSIP students. Our students have been busy this semester with their academics and internships. But, they still made time to share the latest updates in their lives will all of you.

*Unfortunately, donations have slowed down of late and we are not likely to have enough scholarship funds to support these four students next semester. BEAM is working with partners to find a long-term solution, but that will not help our students this coming fall. All our students come from migrant backgrounds, and have passed through many hurdles to get to university. We cannot let them down now! If you are all interested in the good work and progress our students are making, please donate and share this link to your friends and family! Thank you!!*

Here is what our CSIP students have to say:

Su Myat, 3^rd year studying Social Science at Chiang Mai University

"For CSIP internship, in 2nd semester of my third year, I have worked at construction camp site from 7 pm to 8:30 pm to teach Burmese language for Shan migrant workers’ children. Usually, when I prepare lessons, I need to understand classroom atmosphere, different levels of students and their education backgrounds and focused students’ motivations and interests by using creativity ways. I got many experiences in this internship such as exchanging different language between teacher and students, learning students’ different understanding on lessons and their interests. Currently, I am busying with writing four term papers and one research paper which must finish in the end of this month."

We Hkawng, 3^nd year studying IT at Payap University

"Happy Songkran and Happy Buddhist New year to all my donors and the scholarship committee. I have been doing well with my studying and my internship at BEAM. And also, I am happy in doing community service to my community especially my church Wunpawng Christian Church. I am also serving as a president in the Payap Myanmar Student Fellowship (PMSF). Here are some photos to describe my activities."

Thel Thel, 2^nd year studying Social Science at Chiang Mai University

"Currently, I am doing my internship at Shan camp and teaching Burmese to Shan Children. I teach Burmese at Shan camp every weekend. There are about 15 students, but they are different level. Some children can read and write the basic Burmese and they are fast learners. So, we divided into two groups to teach Burmese. For me, I teach to the children who do not speak or read Burmese at all. I love teaching and I learn many things from this internship. I am delighted to make a contribution my knowledge and skill to children by teaching Burmese."

Chen, 2^nd year studying English for Communication at Chiang Mai Rajabhat University

"I feel so happy every time when I meet the students to teaching the languages. And my teaching and the condition cooperating with other volunteer teachers are going well, too. However, a few weeks ago the air pollution was so serious and we stopped teaching for temporary. Hopefully we can resume the teaching on the next week. The final exam of this semester is coming soon, 29th April to 3rd May. I will do my best as usual. Thanks for your wishes."

BEAM Education Foundation is committed to supporting migrants, refugees, and underprivileged applicants who have a limited chance to further their studies and who have the potential to contribute to their communities. Among the migrant population in Thailand, there are more than 1,000 students finishing high school equivalency programs every year, but the opportunity to continue their education is restricted. Currently, only an estimated 25% of college-ready students are provided the funding needed to attend university. Help BEAM raise this number!

You can also learn more by visiting these two links:

We Hkawng teaching math and science

Thel Thel teaching Burmese at refugee camp

Chen with his students on the playground

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