Buriram Expats
Buriram Province - General Category => Thai,Lao,Khmer Language => Topic started by: Mod on September 03, 2012, 03:12:03 PM
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Thai + English Teaching
There's an option of learning Thai and English language from Thai native language speaker.
The lesson will be private lesson one by one.
We have comfortable place to learn in the city and anyone who interesting is welcome to contact us : 081-0704750
sawadi sawadi sawadi
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Is the teacher male or female?
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Thai + English Teaching
There's an option of learning Thai and English language from Thai native language speaker.
The lesson will be private lesson one by one.
We have comfortable place to learn in the city and anyone who interesting is welcome to contact us : 081-0704750
sawadi sawadi sawadi
There's an option of learning Thai and English language from Thai native language speaker.
Learning the English language from a Thai you cannot be serious.
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I'm Thai, Female, 25 years old who teach Thai and English basic for the beginners.
If someone want to go higher level we can arrange a native English teacher.
Ann
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Italian Tony's assumption that No Thai could possibly teach English well is highly offensive.He thinks he can speak Thai well,so why is the reverse not possible.Could it be that he is just incredibly arrogant or ignorant ,or both? I think the bad habit of Thai bashing goes way too far,not everyone in Thailand is the same as the people Tony associates with.
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Not sure that this is an example of Thai bashing. Maybe IT has experience of Thai people teaching English.
I do, and I have to say that facts and statistics that are available are not in favour of Thai English teachers.
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The Thais can only go so far in English then they will struggle, in particular with grammar. This is widely recognised at the highest levels of education in Thailand.
What qualifications do you (the teachers) have?
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Hi Jamaw,that's the whole point-what qualifications do the teachers have? I have met many English speaking "teachers" in Thailand who would not pass a fourth grade primary school english exam.While these days many Thais have had an excellent Tertiary education,far better than many of the boozy expats in this country.There is no doubt that English speaking is very difficult for most Thais,but not all ,as Tony would like to have you believe.Many Thai people travel the world privately and for business and academic purposes these days.I think Tony should realise things are changing in Thailand,soon many Thais will speak English better than he ever did.
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You were talking about teaching English and not speaking. Just for your information Thailand currently stands at 9th out of the 10 ASEAN countries. Only Laos is worse, at the moment.
I have a Diploma and a Graduate Diploma in Teaching English to Speakers of other Languages, by the way. I have been teaching in Thailand for 15 years. I can tell you now, it will be a very long time until Thais speak better English that Europeans do. I am not having a go. The system just can't do it.
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Eric, I cannot disagree with anything you say there. However, having had similar experiences,these types are becoming the minority. All schools in Thailand are tightening up, not just on qualifications but types, relevance and accreditations.
Just for the record, I've done a TEFL course of 6 weeks which was quite challenging (both Thai education and British Council accredited). Some are better than others but that's also being dealt with hence why some training schools are closing down.
I have 23 years experience as a training manager, mostly in developing countries having run my own business in uk for 16 years ; Middle East, India, North Africa and Papua New Guinea. I was also a country training manager. Although that gave me some confidence and understanding; I've had to deal with poorly educated people and write training programs, it was some relevance to my experience.
I'm now going on to take the degree as it will give me a guaranteed visa and starts with a 3 year visa as soon as I enrol.
Some of the comments brought up by the director of our training, who has been in Thailand for 26 years; he stated Filipna, African and Indian 'English' teachers are on the way out and the directive is British, USA, Canadian, Australians only. Anyway you look at it quaoificatioos are necessary if not vital.
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As Starman has stated, and stated from his professional experience, it's quite simple, Thais cannot teach to the levels required.
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Italian Tony made a broad statement that I disagree with.There is no question that any qualified teacher will be better than non -qualified.But that was not the point of my grievance.
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It's best to stick to facts and not broad statements. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but there's 'a matter of opinion' and, 'an opinion that matters'!
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It's best to stick to facts and not broad statements. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but there's 'a matter of opinion' and, 'an opinion that matters'!
Yes, indeed.
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Nice of you to show support,exactly my point cheergirl
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My question was aimed at Mod and I'm still waiting to find out what qualifies him to teach English.
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Hi Jamaw,that's the whole point-what qualifications do the teachers have? I have met many English speaking "teachers" in Thailand who would not pass a fourth grade primary school english exam.While these days many Thais have had an excellent Tertiary education,far better than many of the boozy expats in this country.There is no doubt that English speaking is very difficult for most Thais,but not all ,as Tony would like to have you believe.Many Thai people travel the world privately and for business and academic purposes these days.I think Tony should realise things are changing in Thailand,soon many Thais will speak English better than he ever did.
I support the use of facts to make a point. I don't particularly support posts like this. Maybe you would like to rewrite it.
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I've come across qualified teachers who have been in the job a while and let themselves go, drinking and womanising excessively but that was a few years ago and way down south. From what I hear from friends who are teaching is that any teacher in a school who misbehaves, is disrespectful to the culture or does not act in a manner a professional teacher should, is out and contract cancelled.
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Getting back to the beginning of this thread,MOD states that she is offering basic English for beginners.I believe she should be supported in this endeavour ,not brow beaten by a bully.This is not about facts and figures,it is about giving people a fair go at doing what they want,regardless of where they come from.There is still a need for Thai people at the basic level of teaching English as they have a better chance of relating to the problems Thais have in starting out with English.So,give the lady a chance to help her country any way she can.We should always encourage positive behaviour any chance we get.It took guts for a non-native English speaker to offer her services on this site and we should show her the respect she deserves.
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If anyone is advertising to teach English then they should have the required qualifications. If a Thai is offering to teach English then I simply won't take it seriously. If a Thai is offering to teach Thai to an English person they would still need more than a basic understanding of English.
I've no problems with people helping to learn a language but if you are advertising and seeking to do it professionally then you are subject to comment and critisism in order to justify it.
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By the way Jamaw/Italian Tony or whatever you go by today-The Mod had the courtesy to identify herself as Ann.Good luck with your teaching classes Ann.And lets pray you get intelligent and broadminded students in your classes .
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Eric. I'm not sure what you're getting at but as I stated, I've nothing personal about this. I never asked for identity, only that anyone who is teaching should be suitably qualified and I stand by that.
In all matters of training standardisation is as important as standards. I have friends who are highly qualified and experienced teachers who have been contradicted by other teachers doing it part-time with no qualifications.
Think of the student! The young student who hasn't got much money and goes to learn English with the hope of gaining a better job only top find out that the English they have learned is very poor. I have experienced this and will always speak up about it.
If you want to teach, get qualified.
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We seem to be going off at tangents.I agree 100% about qualifications-but this was never mentioned in I/T's original statement that I took exception to.And Jamaw kept referring to MOD as a male after the lady identified herself as a 25 year old Thai female.People need to read what is written to give people a fair go
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Eric, I've no idea who MOD is, and it is irrelevant to the argument what the gender is.
You slagged off qualified teachers yet appear to support and promote one that is not qualified. I'm trying to get my head round what the basis of your argument is.
If someone is taking money for a professional service and is not qualified then that in my professional opinion lacks credibility. In my country it's a prison term but I accept 'this is Thailand'.
I have a neighbour who's son was turned down for an apprenticeship with Toyota because his written English was so bad. It surprised me as when I chatted to the lad he sounded ok. It turned out he went to an old English chap (now deceased) who gave out English lessons cheap, this was about 3 years ago. I've no doubt his intentions were pure in helping young Thais but there are many like him that are actually doing damage.
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At no point did I slag off at" Qualified" English teachers.Quite the opposite.I was stating that many "english " teachers are not qualifiedbut,only native english speakers.Which supports the situation you describe about the poor kid.His teacher should never have taught anything other than beer tasting.I/T was criticising on the basis of nationality not qualifications-go back to the original quote-nothing about qualifications was ever mentioned.This was brought in later to hijack the discussion.I do not like being misquoted-I am quite capable of getting myself into serious trouble all by myself-thankyou party11
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Eric, point taken.
I can provide you, or rather bombard you with so much information as to why Thais are so poor at English and why they should not be teaching it. Most of it comes from government sources and as previously stated by Starman, Thailand sits way down at the bottom for English in the AEAN region. The key point being grammar. So, it is vital that anyone teaching English should have a proven, tested and qualified standard of grammar.
There's no real debate or argument, it's quite simple. If a Thai wants to teach English then that Thai needs to do something to have their own language skills tested.
It's nothing personal and this has been mentioned on various forms of Thai media.
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Thankyou Jamaw,maybe we were on the same side after all.And I thought Thai was a difficult language to communicate in!But I still think there is a place for qualified Thai teachers,otherwise unqualified Farangs will come along and stuff things up.
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I would accept that, only if done correctly and this has been muted at higher levels. The idea is that a suitable Thai teacher would work alongside an English teacher, in particular at the early stages. This was experimented with last year and the findings were so shocking that it is being re-thought. Basically, experienced Thai teachers of English were so poor at grammar they had to suspend it.
In an ideal world we would have good Thai teachers teaching English but there's little incentive or support. Teachers are poorly paid and the education system is a mess.
Just to digress slightly, to emphasise a point. I met with my bank manager and asked her about business English for her staff. She said there's no demand. I contradicted her and mentioned that there were lots of farangs in Nangrong. In any case I asked her what she did about staff development which brought a vacant look. I informed her (I thought I was reminding her), That the bank has a budget for staff development and languages comes under that, as does IT skills and many more. She hadn't a clue.
Basically, for a multitude of reasons, Thailand is playing catch-up and trying to race to the front but missing out vital bits in the middle.
Times are changing and it's going to get tougher to become an English teacher, as well as remain one, but the demand is there if only some would recognise it.
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To think Thailand can improve it's standard of English without using Thais is naive.Expats cannot do it alone.ASEAN is set for 2015-Thais will have to be a part of the training process -Remember colonialism finished a long time ago-And Thailand was never part of it-good for them! How about some co-operation and support between Thais and expats for a change? Maybe then we can improve Thailands ranking in ASEAN. party14
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Times are changing and it's going to get tougher to become an English teacher, as well as remain one, but the demand is there if only some would recognise it.
+1
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To think Thailand can improve it's standard of English without using Thais is naive.Expats cannot do it alone.ASEAN is set for 2015-Thais will have to be a part of the training process -Remember colonialism finished a long time ago-And Thailand was never part of it-good for them! How about some co-operation and support between Thais and expats for a change? Maybe then we can improve Thailands ranking in ASEAN. party14
I feel that is happening already as there seems to be more Engrish teaching jobs available then ever before (at a much higher salary than a few years ago). This is just my feelings/experience on this matter.
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You are correct in that it cannot be done without Thais which is one of the reasons why it's taking so long and they lag behind, but as I've stated, they need to be trained. One of the reasons why Thailand is poor at English is indeed because it wasn't colonised. This brought an insularity which still prevails in some quarters today.
Ideally, the young Thais at school today should go onto university and get a degree in English. Then they will be the future of education in this country. Further education brings a massive income to the uk, people come from all over the world but sadly not from Thailand.
My step-son is 14 and I'm working on him and his friends. I'm hoping I can send him to UK when he's 21 to further his education.
Sadly, in Thailand, many bad things are dome with good intent.
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Nobby, you're correct. I've been offered quite a few but declined. My reasons for doing so is that I only want to work in the Buriram area.
Also, now that Burma is opening up and being a former colony with English speakers, many English teachers will go there and dump Thailand and this country will suffer because of it. I hope I'm wrong though.
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Don't get me started on colonialism-I am an Aussie-c--------m is a dirty word in aus!That's an area that I can really get into trouble with-without any help at all thankyou again swordfight
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Yes I know, I spent a year in Oz a few years ago. When I was filling in my visa I was asked if I had a criminal record. I asked if you still need one to get in ;-)
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Not unless you want to join the wharfies union ,then you do,and that,as Starman would say ,is a fact
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My students are housewife who cannot read and write in English.
My qualification maybe not enough for you.
I just finished bachelor's degree of Graphic Design not English but I'm the one who use to take care the foreigner customers so I think my level is ok to teach people who even doesn't know ABC. and don't worry I don't teach for the young student, I always tell them that I'm not professional teacher.
Thank you for all your support sawadi
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Hi mod,very good of you to reply in such a concise and honest fashion .I for one believe that most young thai housewives will be much safer to learn English from you.You never know what these shifty Farangs are after cheergirl
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Ms MOD. I have no problems with people helping local Thais to improve their English. However, if you are taking money for it then you should get qualified.
Having just read your post I have to say that you justify my comments as your English is very basic and the grammar is poor.
I state once again, this is not personal. You are teaching Thais English and from what I've just read you confirmed my thoughts. Perhaps you speak well but the biggest problem for Thais is written English and grammar.
Why don't you meet up with someone like Starman? With his experience, it could only be of benefit to you and the Thai people you are 'teaching'.
I'm assuming Starman is receptive to input, appologies to him if not.
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You're in with a chance now Eric, sweet talker.
When I think of Aussies and English I go back to tennis when Virginia Wade was playing and an Aussie radio commentator describer her as Vagina Wide. No sarcasm, no pun, no humour, just his English!
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I think you underestimate the aussie sense of humour-just think -same as English,only quicker
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Nah Eric, as a Scot I used to say, we speak too fast and you think too slow.
The radio commentator was dropped because of it. He'd no idea what he did wrong. Sadly, it's a BBC thing.
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The same thing happened to a famous tv host-he got sacked by Kerry Packer for doing a crow call--it sounded something like--FAAARK bananadance
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Ms MOD - I'm willing to bet your English is much better than many ex-pat English speakers, even in written terms. But the fact is they are not teaching or at least not in professional terms. There's lots of ex-pats who have done a great job teaching members of the extended family how to speak English and communicate but when it comes to writing and grammar, they know when to stop.
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Eric, Have you heard the story of Emma Chisset from Melbourne?
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about 60,000 baht
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Not quite!
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Per couple return
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You're on the right track but the wrong destination.
The great, witty and intelligent Australian writer Clive James as was asked during an interview several decades ago why he became a writer and author. He replied that he had always loved reading and was inspired by his English teacher. One day the teacher told the class a famous English author was coming to Melbourne and they could get the afternoon off if they wanted to buy his book and get it personally autographed. Clive begged his father who gave in and let him go.
As they all waited in the very long queue to have their books signed, Clive was next when a big fat woman walked up to the front, slapped the book on the table and said ''Emma Chisset''. The author (we believe it was Graham Greene), casually opened the book and signed to ''Emma Chisset with best regards. She burst out...No! Not Emma Chisset...it's Emma Chisstet. Sorry said the author, is it one 'M'? Er, is it two 'T's? No she blasted. This went on for a few minutes until the teacher came over to the author and said...she means..... ''how much is it.''
'
It's better said than written and better said by an Aussie.
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I think you underestimate the aussie sense of humour-just think -same as English,only quicker
Thanks for the biggest laugh of the day
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Perhaps you speak well but the biggest problem for Thais is written English and grammar.
Why don't you meet up with someone like Starman? With his experience, it could only be of benefit to you and the Thai people you are 'teaching'.
I disagree, Thai students/teachers and School Principals have been taught written English and Grammar to an OK standard because thats something that is easier for a Thai to teach.
In my (limited) experience, its conversation that they ALL stumble with because 'if you don't use it, you lose it.' Most English Expats might have learnt French (for instance) at school and then promptly forgotten it, because it was never spoken since that time.
I teach approx 300 students per week and 90% say its conversational skills that they are lacking.
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Spot on Nobby,absolutely 100% right.And how are Thais going to practice if expats don't even give them a chance.They have the knowledge,all they need is alot of encouragement from us.Remember,in Thai culture saving face is everything.For Thais to speak English with english speaking people takes heaps of courage compared to us who don't give a damn what others think.
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Nobby, that's far too simplistic. Bot my daughters have taken Spanish and German and as they haven't used it much they have lost it. The students need exposure to the language and conversation and they don't get that as there isn't much in Thailand. There are plenty I know of that can hold a good conversation but cannot read or write.
I don't know how you teach but what you say goes against all other research. The standard of writing and grammar of Thai teachers is very poor and I've seen this myself. I even read some Engish workbooks issued to the kids from schools and they are full of errors. I have friends all over Thailand who teach and state the same.
If it was as you describe then there would be no problems. Children pick up language easily, or relatively easy. It is grammar and writing that is the weakness and that is glaringly evident having read the post by admin who can no doubt speak English ok!
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Jamie, I have to admit I agree with all of your points regarding the standard of education and educators in Thailand. Regarding Ann, I have met her a few times and I can confirm her spoken English is a bit better than her written English. I have no knowledge of her teaching skills or what materials are used. I have seen her with a student and that student seemed comfortable, engaged and generally excited to see the results of her exams, but who knows how that correlates into actually learning.
My best guess is that the English lessons at BE are geared almost exclusively towards the wives and girlfriends of foreigners. I assume the focus is therefore on building very basic conversational skills and stringent grammar lessons might slip through the cracks. Assuming Ann is a capable teacher, her standard of English is probably good enough for the early lessons and presumably students eventually could move on to being taught by Arnon.
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In my experience many Thai educators have the feeling of "we know best. We can do it". It is in fact the Thai teachers that are blocking the idea of Native English Speakers and Thai Speakers working together.
If the head of the foreign language department is on your side then you have half a chance.
The school where I currently teach have finally allowed me to check and amend the end of term tests before they go into the test rooms. This is something that very rarely happens in Thai schools. The Thai teachers write the tests and think everything is good. Some of the time it is not. So, if the test is wrong then the teaching was likely wrong. How are students supposed to get it right when they are being educated wrongly?
There are many things that need to be looked at. Thai teachers do not speak English in the classroom, most teaching is done from a book, the students get homework and copy each other. Students are never encouraged to speak English in the classroom. Most importantly, and this is across the board and involves every subject, the students are never encouraged to ask questions.
This is my experience as both a teacher and a parent.
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I have to agree with Starman, not just because of his expertise and experience but this is exactly what I was told by academics whilst training for this. There are schools that have a rigid curriculum and teachers must stick to it, there are others that will let the language teacher formulate his or her own lesson plans. We have to be realistic in that some students may not be interested in learning English or not capable. If I was left to get on with it I would evaluate the students as to their capabilities and limitations; those that were keen and capable would take an exam at the end of each term in reading, writing, comprehension, grammar and speech. The others would be trained to form conversations and be capable of basic communication skills. But that is down to the skills of the teacher.
The highest standard of English in Thais comes from journalists in both the print and communications media. They have access to a higher standard of education and training, they have financial backing and perhaps most importantly, they get to work abroad in the UK or USA to broaden their experience. If this was done with education and teachers were given the support they crave and deserve we may not be having this conversation.
I have seen written tests set by Thai teachers for students of English and they are shocking, poor spelling and grammar as well as 'typos'. What chance do the students have when they are given such material?
I have in my vast experience interviewed and employed many people and I've found that there are intelligent people that would never make as teachers. There are different aspect to teaching but what all is said and done Ann is taking money for teaching English when she is not qualified to do so and her own grammar is very basic, and that's being polite. By all means help and assist people by taking money you put your neck on the block and are open to challenge.
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Why Thais can't speak English....an interesting read.
http://www.ajarn.com/ajarn-guests/articles/why-cant-thais-speak-english/