Travel to Teach: Volunteer in El Salvador

El Salvadoran's are famed for their friendliness and hospitality but in the last 30 years the population has suffered a brutal civil war followed by a series of devastating earthquakes and hurricanes, leaving the country as one of the poorest in Central America. However, the war is now firmly in the past and with a free trade agreement with the US and increased tourism helping a steadily growing economy things finally seem to be looking up for the population of El Salvador.

In spite of the recent improvements many of the areas of the country remain devastatingly poor and there is a real need for volunteers to help with the countries educational and social development. Travel to Teach work in schools and orphanages teaching English and teaching computers and between September and December we also work with turtle conservation projects.

Despite being the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America, El Salvador offers a broad range of environments. A range of volcanic mountains run through the middle of the country and there are large areas of natural forest, volcanic islands and beaches that provide some of the most renowned surfing in all of America.

El Salvador Volunteer Locations:

Travel to Teach volunteers are based in two locations in El Salvador

Santa Tecla City
Known as the "the City of the Hills" Santa Tecla is famous for its colonial houses, parks and mountains. Located 10 miles west of the El Salvadorian capital San Salvador City in a 900 metre valley, Santa Tecla provides an excellent base for volunteers to explore the rest of El Salvador.
Read more.

Meanguera Island
Our second volunter location in El Salvador is Meanguera Island which is situated in the Golf of Fonseca, and part of the volcanic archipelago which divides El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. Meanguera offers visitors the opportunity to visit deserted paradise beaches with jade coloured waters; to walk in the mountains with spectacular views across to the volcanoes of Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador; to visit archaeological sites; to watch sea birds; and best of all, to enjoy the island’s traditional fishing and delicious food.
Read more.

El Salvador Volunteer Programs

Computer Teaching

As part of out El Salvador computer program volunteers collaborate with local teachers to teach children and youths IT skills. El Salvadorian's are very keen to learn computer skills as some basic IT knowledge is very helpful in improving their future job prospects, but access to qualified computer teachers in poor schools is very limited. Volunteers can help by training children and young people in computer projects including hardware and software basics, Microsoft Office programs, the internet and educational games. Volunteers can teach computers in Santa Tecla and Meanguera Island and can combine computer teaching with teaching English.

English Teaching

In El Salvador our volunteers work with elementary and school age children in both public and private schools in Santa Tecla and Meanguera Island. As a volunteer English teacher you will assist the established teacher in the classroom and sometimes lead and prepare lessons yourself. Volunteers work together with the local teacher to help improve basic English skills, particularly conversational English.

English Teaching for Tourism

As well as teaching in schools our volunteers also work with young people on Meanguera Island to teach English for the tourist industry. Tourism has been gradually increasing on Meanguera Island and providing locals with much needed job opportunities if they are able to speak English. Our teaching aims specifically at teaching people skills they need to work in the tourist industry enabling them to work in hotels or as guides.

Orphanages

In Tecla Travel to Teach works with an orphanage run by the Catholic Church. The Orphanage is situated just outside of the town and has a huge garden where they grow all sorts of fruit and vegetable and also produce coffee for sale.

The orphanage has around 80 children, both boys and girls aged from 5 to 20 years. Volunteers can help with homework, extra English tutoring, and general care, playing games and all sorts of sports.

Sea Turtle Conservation Project.

Meanguera Island is the breeding ground for a number of species of sea turtle including the critically endangered hawkbill, the worlds largest breed of turtle, the critically endangered and shell-less leatherback and the endangered Olive Ridley turtle. All of the species are in decline for various reasons including accidental fishing catches, pollution and particularly on Meanguera because their eggs have traditionally been eaten by the local population.

Volunteers can work at the Don Chentillo Hatchery between September and December, where they help the turtles hatch and survive their first 3 months until they are ready to go into the sea. This is the most critical stage in the turtles life as they are also vulnerable to natural predators during this period.

El Salvador Facts

Full country name: Republic of El Salvador
Located: In Central America, bordering the Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.
Area: 21,041 SQ Km (8124 sq miles).
Population: 6,517,300(official estimate 2002).
People: Mestizos 94%; Indigenous 5 %; white 1 %.
Language: The official language is Spanish. English is widely spoken. Nahuat is spoken amongst the minority indigenous population.
Religion: Roman Catholic 78%, there are also some other Christian denomination. There is extensive activity on the part of Protestant groups, and there are an estimate 1 million protestants in the country (know locally as Evangelicos).
Literacy: People over 15 years who can read and write: Total population: 71.5%
Males: 73.5%
Females: 69.8%
Government: Executive power in the Republic of El Salvador is vested in a President, elected by universal adult suffrage every five years. He is assisted by a Vice President and a council of Ministers. Legislation is formulated by the 84 member Asamblea Legislativa, elected by Universal adult suffrage every three years.
Money: US dollars from January 2001.
Climate: Hot, subtropical climate affected by altitude. Coastal areas are particularly hot, with a rainy season between May and October. Upland areas have a cooler, more temperate climate.
Economy - overview: the long-running civil war caused a significant decline in El Salvador’s mainly agricultural economy. Although there has been a steady recovery since the political settlement took hold, El Salvador remains one of the poorest economies in the region. The economy is also still vulnerable to the variations of the regional climate like hurricanes, floods and drought. The principal commercial crops are coffee, textiles, cotton, sugar, corn, beans, rice, and shrimp.
Sights: El Centro: San Salvador Down town.
Highlands: El Pital Mountain, Ruta de las Flores, Santa Ana volcano, Perkin, Montecristo and Imposible parks.
Coast: Costa del sol, Zonte, Zunzal, Cuco and Tamarindo beach;
Insular Region: Islands in the Gulf of Fonseca.

Back to top