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MOEI Intensive English Camp 2008
 
 
Introduction
In June-August 2008, Moei Outreach Education Initiative (MOEI) will launch an intensive English-language camp for Burmese refugees and migrants in three main locations in northern Thailand. MOEI itself comprises one university and two NGOs with long records of educational achievement:
            Child’s Dream – www.childsdream.org
            Hong Kong-America Center – www.cuhk.edu.hk/hkac/
            Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Hong Kong – www.hku.hk/socsc/
 
Concept
MOEI Intensive English Camp 2008 aims to bring together about five former Fulbright English Teaching Assistants (ETAs) and about 15 undergraduate students (UGs) from Hong Kong and elsewhere to deliver an intensive English-language programme to Burmese refugees and migrants in northern Thailand.
 
Timing
The programme will last for seven weeks from 23 June to 8 August 2008.
 
Locations
The programme will be delivered in three main locations:
Chiang Mai (major regional city)
Mae La refugee camp on the Thai-Burma border (roughly 50,000 refugees)
Mae Sot (border town filled with Burmese migrants)
 
Format
The programme will split into a 1+6 format. In the first week (23-27 June), ETAs and UGs will participate in orientation and training, with guest speakers providing local orientation to ETAs and UGs, and ETAs providing English-language training to UGs. In the remaining six weeks (30 June – 8 August), ETAs and UGs will form teams to deliver intensive English-language instruction to Burmese refugees and migrants.
 
Teaching duties
The normal teaching week will be five 5-hour days from Monday to Friday. Classroom contact will thus total 150 hours. At the end of weeks two and five of the six-week teaching programme, the ETAs and UGs will spend two nights at a nearby resort hotel.
 
Accommodation
ETAs and UGs will be accommodated on a twin-sharing basis in guest houses in either Chiang Mai or Mae Sot. No students will live in Mae La refugee camp – rather, they will travel there on a daily basis from Mae Sot (about one hour away by road).
 
Budget
Key costs for students coming from the UK will be:
            Airfare to Chiang Mai              travel agent can advise
            Insurance                                                         university international office can advise
            Accommodation                                  set at £200 for the entire programme
            Food                                                    very cheap in northern Thailand
 
Participation
MOEI expects to recruit all of the ETAs from Hong Kong. It will recruit about 10 of the UGs from the Faculty of Social Sciences at HKU. It would also greatly welcome participation from UG students at other universities. We do hope that some UK-based students will be able to come to northern Thailand in June-August 2008 to take part in this programme.
 
Application deadline and further information
Applications need to reach Andy Howman, Head of International Office by 16 May 2008. Ahead of that deadline, informal enquiries can also be sent to him – it would be best to talk through the issues by email (A.Howman@bath.ac.uk).
 
Interviews will take place on Wednesday 21 May.