Are Thai teachers actually helpful?
Or is the foreign teacher better off without them in the classroom?
Before beginning my experience as a TESOL teacher in Thailand, way back when I was a newbie farang taking my TESOL course on Phuket, I was repeatedly assured by indifferent agencies and instructors not to worry because you will always share classrooms with Thai teachers that are there to help you.
Classroom management experiences
Experiences from both Thailand and China.
The Thai teachers at my school, especially the veterans, are uncomfortable with the excitement and commotion during the lessons by the foreign teachers. They view it as an inability to control our students.
Advantages of team teaching
Working with a co-teacher who becomes a valuable assistant
When I taught with my partner, the Thai teacher would translate everything I would say. When I modeled all the oral activities, the Thai teacher would explain. But the flow of the lesson was in the hands of the Thai teacher.
My struggles with the Thai language part 2
My past four years of Thai study and how I have motivated myself
Many thanks to all the people who gave me positive feedback on part one of ‘My Struggles with the Thai Language'. It seems that a lot of other Thai learners out there have gone through similar experiences to mine. They hit what I call ‘the ceiling' and realized that it would take a tremendous effort to take their spoken Thai onto the next level.
My struggles with the Thai language part 1
For 15 years, my spoken Thai didn't get any better at all.
For the first five years here, I would say my Thai improved steadily. Both my vocabulary range and my speaking confidence increased and my listening comprehension improved a lot. I never felt the need to take any formal Thai lessons. The Bangkok streets were my classroom
Byeland to Thailand
Postbox letter from Brenda
I've been working at a government college for the last 5 months. While my school has kept good on the salary and pay me on time every month, the paperwork wasn't delivered on time as promised and I have had to do costly visa runs.
Work with the tools you have
Postbox letter from Khru Mark
On the topic of Thai classroom assistants and are they useful to a foreign teacher? I have six teachers with me. (One for each level that I teach.) They are all different and they all need to be treated differently.
Why is English so poor in Thailand?
Students are simply just not 'taught' here
Recently I read an article that stated adults in Thailand are ranked 55th from a list of 60 countries on their English proficiency skills. From what I have seen as an English teacher working in government secondary schools over the last 10 years, I'm not surprised,
Thai students and the fine art of copying
I couldn't believe what was going on in the classroom
I come from a society and a culture where the copying of anything in or out of a classroom is simply looked on as cheating. Not only cheating the whole idea of education but cheating oneself out of any possibility of learning, not to mention a total disrespect of the student who goes to the trouble of learning the correct answers in the first place. So I was appalled beyond measure when I saw my first example of copying in my classroom at my first school in Phuket.
Don't ask me
Postbox letter from Neil
In a previous position at a large government high school I was required to instruct my senior students in the art of expressing their opinions in English. Great idea!! One problem - these students had NEVER been encouraged to express any form of opinion in their native language and had no concept of critically appraising any statement made by their teacher.
