How can I make it in the madness?

The harsh reality of teaching in Thailand

It's depressing just how many people come here to teach and leave with lots of resentment and bitterness. Or worse still, remain here polluting the place with those same feelings! Don't be one of them.

The real heroes of the TEFL industry

I raise a glass to those teachers that simply keep on going

There is an old joke in the TEFL industry: "What's the difference between a school administrator and a brain surgeon? A brain surgeon doesn't walk around thinking he's a school administrator!"

People without formal teaching qualifications

I'm talking about those without as much as a TEFL or CELTA certificate

Some would say controversial words from Steve. But what is it about untrained teachers that really gets his goat?

Teaching to the test: an editorial

What do these standardized tests actually prove?

Is there a better way to determine what a student knows, or how he/she could perform in whatever environment for which the score is required?

Going Home

The difficulties of finding employment when a teacher returns to the USA

The economy is functioning like an alcoholic's ailing liver. This has been headline news for several years, but seeing it in the news and experiencing it first hand was quite different.

Am I one of the desirables?

Postbox letter from Ken

Do I fit what Thais are seeking "disciplined, neat, clean, organized, mentally stable and responsible foreign people"? Perhaps?

Who gets the call when their arms are raised?

Which student gets the teacher's questions and why?

Here are the different groups of students within a typical class. They are quite distinctive and there's not really much of a gray area between them.

It's not the 'Land of Smiles' for us

Facing challenges as a black teacher in Thailand

For the sensitive minded people who live in utter oblivion about skin color, this is probably not the article for you. But this is the cold hard truth.

Black teachers in Thailand

Does racism exist in The Land of Smiles?

Over the years, ajarn.com has asked the question 'do black teachers have a harder time finding work in Thailand?' Racism? Xenophobia? Fear of the unfamiliar? These have been some of the responses from various teachers.