Timothy
Working in: Chonburi
Monthly Earnings: 45,000
Q. How much do you earn from teaching per month?
A. About 45,000 baht. I teach and live just outside Amphur Muang, Chonburi.
Q. How much of that can you realistically save per month?
A. Not much. I have two daughters, a house loan, and a car payment that take my savings. Occasionally I'll manage to put 3000 baht in my savings account.
Q. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
A. We just finished building a three bedroom two bathroom house. It's paid for with the exception of a small loan that runs us 3000 baht a month.
Q. What do you spend a month on the following things?
| a) Transportation | 15,000 baht. Car payment and gasoline. |
|---|---|
| b) Utility bills | 5000 baht. Two phones, electricity, and water. |
| c) Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping | 10,000 |
| d) Nightlife and drinking | Do you mean going to the zoo and buying ice cream? 1000 baht. |
| e) Books, computers | 1000 baht (unless I go to Kinokuniya Bookshop in Bangkok then it might be a LOT) |
Q. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
A. We are middle class but we're not putting anything away for the future at this point.
Q. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
A. Food and taxes. If I didn't buy western food our bill would be a lot lower.
Q. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
A. A single teacher could get by on 20 grand here. I suppose I could get by on 30 with a family, but it would be tough.
Phil's analysis and comment
My father always had a saying - "running a car will keep you poor" and while that's not always the case of course, a whopping third of Tim's salary goes into keeping his four wheels on the road. On the other hand, he'll soon be in the position of not having to pay rent of any description. It's always nice when your accommodation overheads don't include a rent bill every month, despite the fact that property here doesn't have a great re-sale value unless your front door opens on to the beach or you're five minutes walk from an international school.
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Ajarn Guests
Fear of change?
In Thailand the government has set 2012 as English Speaking Year with a goal of encouraging students to converse in English every Monday. Such policies are useful but the major leap of enacting legislation to make English an official language for Thailand is also needed
Software for student tests
The integration of internet and computers with education and English learning is something students find normal, and classrooms without some access to educational software may seem quaint. Some students may even feel they can get more ‘professional' teaching from the numerous online ELT sites if a school is behind in IT.
Whatever happened to the shopping mall teacher?
They are the shopping mall English teachers - gliding like pale, undernourished phantoms amid the hordes of weekend Thai shoppers. The main reason I empathize with the shopping mall teacher is because I was once one myself. I know how desperate and soul-destroying it can be.
About Ajarn.com
Ajarn.com was started as a small hobby website in 1999 by Ian McNamara. It was a simple way for one Bangkok teacher to share his Thailand experiences and pass on advice. The website developed a loyal and enthusiastic following. In 2004, Ian handed over the reins to Phil Williams and 'Bangkok Phil' has run the ajarn website ever since.
Ajarn.com has grown enormously and is now the most popular TEFL site in Thailand - possibly even South East Asia. Although best-known for its vibrant jobs page, Ajarn has a wealth of articles, blogs, features and help and advice. But one principle has always remained at Ajarn's core - to tell things like they are and to do it with a sense of humor. Thailand can be Heaven or Hell for an English teacher. It's always been Ajarn.com's duty to present both sides of the equation. Thanks for stopping by.
