Free education in Laos

Hello, my name is Phonexay Chanthasuck and I’m a 30 year-old English teacher.

I was born in the North of Laos and I grew up in a riverside village. I’m the oldest of seven siblings and my parents relied on farming and hunting to support our big family. My first contact with the English language was in primary school. One day some tourists visited our school and started teaching the alphabet. One of the visitors noticed that I was quick at learning and encouraged me to keep studying the language so I could get a good job in the future. Since that day I fell in love with English.

I had the dream to pursue my studies and go to a school to learn English. But the school was a six hour walk from my village, so I rented a small flat with my friends. However, we had only one English lesson per week because there where not enough students. My dream was to become an English teacher, so I tried to pass the exam, but unfortunately I failed. I was very disappointed but I kept taking English classes in two other institutes. The next year I finally passed the exam and spent the next four years completing my teacher training certification. During my education I tried to find some jobs, in which I can improve my English language skills and earn enough money to finance my studies. So I worked in restaurants, hotels, travel agencies and thaught English at a private school.

After my studies I met a man who offered to rent me a piece of land in Nuamthuam village, where I could build an education center. In 2019 the center was built and since then I’m offering English classes. Since 2020 I also offer Chinese, Computer science and music. Now we provide classes for more than 150 students.

My center is named after my daughter: “Yolita Training Center” in the hope that one day she will continue my legacy. My vision is to offer free trainings and enable all local kids the access to education. Unfortunately, I don’t get any financial support from the government. So I have to pay for rent and all additional expenses on my own. That’s why I have to charge the students with a monthly fee of 100.000 kip ($5,20) It does not seem much, but for most local families it’s a significant cost.

In 2022 I bought a piece of land where I would like to build my own center and fulfill my dream offering free education to my community. However, the building costs are very high. That’s why I’m asking for support to anyone who this story speaks to and believes in the importance of free education. I would highly appreciate any donation, whatever you can – large or small in order to make our dream come true and have a better future for our kids here in Laos.