Bridget Zapata - Author Interview

Bridget Zapata is teacher to students of Kanchanapisekwittayalai Suphanburi School, sales representative to fans of BellaB, and friendly neighborhood customer service expert to customers of Tennis Warehouse. In three words, who is Bridget Zapata to you?

Open-minded, dedicated, caring.

You are an International Business graduate from California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo. How did you end up teaching high school in a small town in Thailand?

As an International Business major, I knew I wanted to spend time living abroad both for professional experience and because I learned that I love to travel when I studied abroad in India. Originally I didn't think I would be interested in teaching english because I didn't like the idea of one language dominating the world. However, English is the global language and me not teaching isn't going to change that. By deciding to teach, I was really deciding to help others succeed in our increasingly interconnected world. A friend recommended CIEE to me as a program to go through to find a teaching job. Honestly, I decided on Thailand because it was the only country that didn't require you to commit to a full year of teaching (going through CIEE). Plus, everything I read about the country was very positive. Suphaburi is actually anything but a small town in Thailand (though not Bangkok) and I was placed there by CIEE. 

Suphanburi, your home for about five months, is couple hours from Thailand's capital. Some people describe Thailand as two countries: Bangkok and rural Thailand. Are they so different?

 Bangkok and the other large cities in Thailand, Suphanburi included, are definitely different from rural Thailand. My boyfriend and I went on a week long motorbike trip in the north of Thailand after we finished teaching where we drove through beautiful rural parts of Thailand, some of them seemingly untouched by all of the technology and western culture that pervades the larger cities. I remember thinking: "This is what I thought my experience would be. This is what I thought was real Thailand." It turns out, these two sides of Thailand- Bangkok vs. rural Thailand- are both the real Thailand, but others should be aware that teaching English in Thailand does not always (or often) mean becoming a member of a quaint rural community, playing soccer with the kids after school, and teaching their parents night classes.  

If you were given the option to teach in Bangkok instead of Suphanburi, would you have taken it and why?

Definitely not. Evidently Bangkok is one of those places that people love or hate and I was definitely leaning towards the hate side. I'm not a city person in general and Asian cities take the word city to a whole other level. I did enjoy some things about Bangkok- the big markets, the Grand Palace, and the movie theater when I wanted to feel somewhat at home. For me, it was fine enough to visit, but I was always happy when I left.

February 2013 marked what you called "the end of my high school teaching career," and have since traveled across Southeast Asia. Considering your drastic leap from sales and marketing to teaching, what industry will you conquer next?

My fundraising work with Room to Read while I was traveling really made me interested in the non-profit sector because my main drive in life is to help people. I am specifically interested improving access to education both internationally and here in the US. 

What was the most valuable thing you gained from your teaching stint in Thailand?

Flexibility. Teaching in Thailand requires you to be ready for things to change at the drop of a hat, so I learned to be prepared for and accepting when things don't go how I plan.

In your blog, Teach. Eat. Smile. Explore., you mentioned reading the entire blog of a girl who taught at the same school and that it made you feel more prepared for your teaching career in Thailand. What other steps did you take to prepare for the job in another country? Was the preparation enough for the actual experience?

Reading a former teacher's entire blog was definitely helpful. I was ready for my living situation, for classes to be canceled with no notice, to be asked to give a speech in front of 2,000+ people with 5 minutes notice, etc. I also researched teaching ideas and games on ESL websites and brainstormed ideas based on my experience learning a language in high school. This research was probably unnecessary since I didn't know my students' English level and I had plenty of time to lesson plan once I got there. I never really experienced culture shock in Thailand, but traveling in India the year before probably helped make me feel less overwhelmed.

You had a plan and a set of goals for your adventures before you left Petaluma, California, for Thailand. Did everything work out as you planned? What went right and what did not?

Looking back on my goals for myself while I was living in Thailand, I would say I an satisfied with myself and my experience, though I did not entirely meet all of my goals. I did make what I hope will be some lifelong fellow teacher friends and one of my students became a close friend who I still keep in touch with. Although I didn't learn as much Thai as I would've liked, I learned a lot more than some of the other teachers I knew. If I had stayed for a year, I definitely would have made more of an effort to learn Thai. I do feel like I became a good teacher, kept my students engaged, and at least slightly impacted a couple lives. I learned very little about Buddhism in Thailand, but I did learn a bit more in my travels in other parts of Southeast Asia. I tried some weird food and stayed away from eating bugs. I did not keep a journal, but i did update my blog regularly. My last goal was to fall in love with Thailand and while it was an amazing experience, I can't say I fell in love with Thailand the way I fell in love with India and later Sri Lanka and Nepal. 

You have raised funds for Room to Read, an organization that works with communities and local governments across Asia and Africa to develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children. What have you learned from the experience and how do you plan use this knowledge in future endeavors?

Fundraising for Room to Read was a fantastic experience that really enriched my teaching and traveling experience. It made me be much more aware of the education systems in the countries I traveled in and where improvements need to be made. I have a better idea about what drives me as a human being and in the work world and I hope to use this knowledge to help me help others in the future.

In your most recent blog post, you related your visit to a school in Nepal. Aside from language and location, what are the similarities and differences between the educational system in Nepal and Thailand?

Some similarities I found were the drastic differences in education in both countries depending on where you live. It is an issue of resources for those in rural versus urban areas. Nepal has an incredibly unstable government and is recovering from a recent civil war, while Thailand has been relatively stable for the past few decades. This has a big impact on education and developing an education system that is consistent and reliable. From what I experienced in both countries, I found that students in Nepal were more grateful for their education than some of my students in Thailand and knew that they were lucky to be receiving an education. This may have just been from my limited view, though. 

What tips can you give people who aspire to teach English abroad?

Imagine exactly what you want when you envision yourself teaching in a foreign country. For me, this was a small rural village teaching elementary school children, doing art projects and playing sports after school, getting invited to family dinners, and teaching their parents night classes. Whatever it is for you, embrace that ideal for a minute and then throw it away and be open to the opportunity you have.

Choose where you want to live instead of being placed somewhere if you can. If I were to do it again, I would spend time traveling first until I found a place I would want to live and then go about finding a job. 

Don't go into it thinking you are going to completely change your students' lives, but try to make an impact on at least a few lives to feel like you were a valuable member of someone else's society. 

Don't teach English abroad if you are going to be living for the weekends. You are there to teach and the traveling is a bonus.