The house of horrors

The nightmare of building your own home in Thailand

Some long-term teachers make one of the biggest decisions of their life and decide to have a house built in Thailand. But what happens when it all goes wrong? Read Ralph Sasser's nightmare story of bent lawyers, jail threats and the construction company from Hell.

Low teacher salaries

Is ajarn.com partly to blame?

No, ajarn.com isn't responsible for low teacher salaries - at least not according to Louis Minson. Louis says that not presenting a realistic picture of the overall job situation would be sweeping things under the carpet.

An Indian teacher in Thailand

Bobo Meitei faces the perils and pitfalls of finding a teaching job

Bobo gets to grips with sliding pay scales and agents bemused by his pseudo-American appearance. Well worth a read!

A Thai student’s diary

What it feels like to be a Thai student studying English in school

A foreign teacher contacted ajarn wanting to share a diary that one of his English program students had written. Although the student is only a youngster, the diary is a very frank account of what it's like to study at a Thai school. Top work!

Colored education

The road to becoming a teacher

Bobo Metei came to Thailand as a fresh graduate on the lookout for different things. So being a young man with little money in his pocket, he decided to take up teaching.

Interview at The Ministry of Education

John Quinn asks the probing questions

John Quinn, the senior TEFL trainer at SEE, spent a morning at the MOE office in Chiang Mai to try and get some answers to questions teachers have regarding employment in Thailand. John has very kindly allowed ajarn.com to put the main points of the interview on-line. Some of the answers may well surprise you.

No magic bullets

Dave Patterson would most certainly like a word

Dave Patterson, who is a teacher at the Prince of Songkhla University in South Thailand, says it's about time Thai students took studying English seriously. And it's about time schools got serious about taking care of their students.

Teaching in Chiang Mai

A bit of info on Thailand's Rose of the North

All the information on this page is courtesy of our friends at One Stop Chiang Mai. If you see something inaccurate - complain to them.

Bangkok vs Chiang Mai

How do the two biggest cities in Thailand measure up?

Read a terrific account from a teacher who gave up the Chiang Mai lifestyle to go and work in the capital Bangkok. It's very much a tale of two cities - and how one dedicated teacher fared in both.

My TEFL career

The ups and downs of over fifteen years 'in the game'

It's a been a long and often painful journey, but here's an account of 15 years in the Thailand TEFL business. My careers officer never once told me that it might turn out like this.

The teacher’s diary

One teacher's descent into madness

The diary is the sad and heartbreaking four-week journal of Mr Jim Elmdon - a teacher who came, saw, and failed miserably. Keep a box of tissues handy.