More foreign English teachers set to be hired as Thais aim for better than basic English

[zydeco]

One thing to remember. If you sign up to teach English in this country--at whatever level, including university--Thais and Thai society will look down on you. Doesn't matter if you're an older person not much concerned with Thai social pretensions and prejudices. But younger teachers (the type they seem to want most, here) will find themselves treated with contempt and disdain. 

[GinBoy2]

On 12/5/2019 at 9:46 AM, gamini said:

I hope they don't hire them locally because most of the native English living in this country seem to have strong regional accents, sometimes difficult to understand. My Thai wife speaks better English than most of them. Many Indians I have met speak the Queen's English and they will be be the best people to teach English here because they will be a lot cheaper than employing Westerners. The government could afford to employ a lot more. 

So I might have to agree, and it tends to be the Brits.

 

In the US there are obviously regional accents, but doesn't even come close to the wild variations from the UK.

 

Now I don't want to offend anyone, but I can have a really hard time understanding some Scots, and an awful lot of Northern English accents.

 

I can't remember what TV show I was watching, but I ended up putting on closed captioning so I could understand the accents were so thick

[KhaoYai]

11 hours ago, GinBoy2 said:

Now I don't want to offend anyone, but I can have a really hard time understanding some Scots, and an awful lot of Northern English accents.

Of course there are a lot of accents, I struggle to understand Scots when their accent is strong. Geordie, Liverpudlian and Brummies, I can go with if they don't speak too fast. When in my native area I guess my Yorkshire twang is as broad and any other but when I'm talking to people from other areas or foerigners I don't use it. I'm pretty sure an English person would still be able to tell though. Surely someone teaching English would do the same - I'd hope so anyway.

 

Oddly enough - as an aside, I've had more than one Thai person tell me that they understand me more than they do others - especially southerners. I cannot understand why anyone would speak to a foreigner using their local twang and in some cases, even expect a foreigner to understand colloquial terms and slang.

[thequietman]

14 hours ago, gamini said:

I was lucky when I was a 4 year old kid in England. We had a French Cook and i had a French nanny. Consequently I speak fluent French. It helped me get some good jobs.

Blow ?????

[FruitPudding]

On 12/3/2019 at 2:03 PM, jlwilliamsjr18 said:

We've heard this before, yet the enthusiasm dies like a flame in the wind.  

Relax your no work policy for retirees. This would help. 

There are many of us, who are retired teachers. Yes, I know, there are many who work anyway.

But, I don't but would consider if allowed.  

This is a great point.

 

Older, experienced teachers are often shunned here.

 

Our school has a policy of: nobody older than 40, no beards, no obese, no blacks. 

 

It is a shame really.

 

 

[thequietman]

10 hours ago, FruitPudding said:

This is a great point.

 

Older, experienced teachers are often shunned here.

 

Our school has a policy of: nobody older than 40, no beards, no obese, no blacks. 

 

It is a shame really.

 

 

So, my friend shouldn't apply to your school then?

 

He has a BA in Ass Kicking. ????

[elephant45]

25 to 40 years old, smile a lot, be good looking , talk to the white board, let everyone play on their smart phones or sleep and cheat on the tests, never discipline anyone especially a little boy and give them all an A+. Perfect teacher. Been there done it....

Also for fun, try to explain the word "Just" to them sometime.....impossible

[scottiddled]

On 12/7/2019 at 7:02 PM, Isaan Alan said:

If you pay peanuts you get monkeys. Any decent native speaker can get triple the salary working in China. In my experience native speakers working in Thailand only do it for lifestyle, girlfriends or wives.

Add to that, the bureaucratic overkill that you need to go thru, including not being able to get a visa for teaching without leaving the the country if you are currently in Thailand. For instance schools must provide a GPS location sheet of where they are, as if the Thai bureaucracy doesn't know where there own schools are,  At one stage I considered working for a school here and went off to Laos with at least 50 pages of documents. In general they don't reimburse visa costs. medical exam costs or provide accommodation. China commonly does all that.

Filipino teachers are good with American accent fluency and work for 50% of the native speaker wage in China.  Sadly most Chinese parents don't want Asian or Asian-looking English teachers, Maybe Thais are less fussy.

There's some truth in there but you're off base in some ways.

 

First, the claim that "any decent native speaker can get triple the salary" in China is a huge stretch. Perhaps at the bottom of the barrel, you have a points. But for qualified teachers, Thailand and China are often comparable. For many, Thailand pays more. I myself had similar offers from Thai and Chinese schools. Cost of living, familiarity with Thailand, and "lifestyle" (but not the kind of lifestyle you're suggesting) tipped the scales to Thailand.

 

Second, you're right to point out that Thai bureaucracy is maddening, but Chinese can be, too. A Chinese school that made me an offer, and has a reputation for good HR and smooth transitions, walked me through the requirements. They were worse than Thailand in many ways. You're correct that Chinese schools may reimburse more of the visa costs, but you're still going to bear the expense of producing documents (including some Thailand doesn't need). And you're probably going to have to pay (in time and money) to get to a consultate; China offered to pay a bit more of the costs, or reimburse me for a visa agent, but that reimbursement came out of a pool of money that I could've used for other relocation expenses (so it's a wash). At best, you're talking about two highly bureaucratic countries. I won't quibble over which is worse. 

 

Third, I find the trope about farang teachers insulting. You're not alone on these forums in voicing it, so I'm venting my anger more broadly here, but "native speakers working in Thailand only do it for lifestyle, girlfriends or wives" came from you, specifically. There are plenty of farang teachers who find the "sexpat" thing disturbing. I'm one of them. I didn't relocate my family here for girlfriends or wives. I did it for money, cost of living, future career opportunities (i.e. climbing the ladder in international education), and because we enjoy Thailand. People are free to critique those who are drawn to Thailand by their libidos, and I'll join in that critique. But you cross a line when you paint all expats, or all expat teachers, with that same brush. I find deeply insulting and consider it to be in violation of the forum's policies (especially when it happens in the Teaching subforum).

[HaleySabai]

On 12/3/2019 at 1:54 PM, Just1Voice said:

Used to have a nice young couple a cross the street. Both graduates with Masters in English from Chula. English teachers, both of them.  Neither one of them could hold an intelligent 2 minute conversation in English. 

Incredible!.....what a bazaar disconnect. This alone should indicate the utter hopelessness faced in the countries bi-lingual initiatives.

[Duck J Butters]

On 12/9/2019 at 9:47 AM, scottiddled said:

There's some truth in there but you're off base in some ways.

 

First, the claim that "any decent native speaker can get triple the salary" in China is a huge stretch. Perhaps at the bottom of the barrel, you have a points. But for qualified teachers, Thailand and China are often comparable. For many, Thailand pays more. I myself had similar offers from Thai and Chinese schools. Cost of living, familiarity with Thailand, and "lifestyle" (but not the kind of lifestyle you're suggesting) tipped the scales to Thailand.

 

Second, you're right to point out that Thai bureaucracy is maddening, but Chinese can be, too. A Chinese school that made me an offer, and has a reputation for good HR and smooth transitions, walked me through the requirements. They were worse than Thailand in many ways. You're correct that Chinese schools may reimburse more of the visa costs, but you're still going to bear the expense of producing documents (including some Thailand doesn't need). And you're probably going to have to pay (in time and money) to get to a consultate; China offered to pay a bit more of the costs, or reimburse me for a visa agent, but that reimbursement came out of a pool of money that I could've used for other relocation expenses (so it's a wash). At best, you're talking about two highly bureaucratic countries. I won't quibble over which is worse. 

 

Third, I find the trope about farang teachers insulting. You're not alone on these forums in voicing it, so I'm venting my anger more broadly here, but "native speakers working in Thailand only do it for lifestyle, girlfriends or wives" came from you, specifically. There are plenty of farang teachers who find the "sexpat" thing disturbing. I'm one of them. I didn't relocate my family here for girlfriends or wives. I did it for money, cost of living, future career opportunities (i.e. climbing the ladder in international education), and because we enjoy Thailand. People are free to critique those who are drawn to Thailand by their libidos, and I'll join in that critique. But you cross a line when you paint all expats, or all expat teachers, with that same brush. I find deeply insulting and consider it to be in violation of the forum's policies (especially when it happens in the Teaching subforum).

You would have to be a complete moron to move to Thailand for the sexpat experience in 2019. The girls here generally aren’t very attractive relative to what you can purchase in places like Amsterdam for substantially less. Girls like this are the norm in Amsterdam: htps://www.beautyescortsamsterdam.com/
 

So yeah, totally agree that only an absolute nimrod would move to Thailand to get laid. There are far easier countries for that sort of thing with much more beautiful women: Netherlands, Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico...

 

Heck, the easiest country to get laid in the world is the good old USA. American women are ultra-aggressive and will hunt you down if you show even the slightest amount of interest. Plus they make a lot more money than Thai girls.

 

I think the sexpat thing is an old stigma from decades ago that just sort of stuck. But only a total buffoon would live in Thailand for this reason in 2019.

[StayinThailand2much]

On 12/7/2019 at 7:08 PM, zydeco said:

One thing to remember. If you sign up to teach English in this country--at whatever level, including university--Thais and Thai society will look down on you. Doesn't matter if you're an older person not much concerned with Thai social pretensions and prejudices. But younger teachers (the type they seem to want most, here) will find themselves treated with contempt and disdain. 

Spot on! Some look down on you, because they know your salary is so low, while others, behind your back, loudly complain how 'much' you make. And the worst are the Thai colleagues, who hate you, cause you: a) get 5,000 baht more then they do, and, b) because you can manage your money better.

 

Not to mention having your meager salary cut for questionable reasons, or employers not paying you at all, but instead hiring the next suckers in line.

[StayinThailand2much]

1 hour ago, Duck J Butters said:

Heck, the easiest country to get laid in the world is the good old USA. American women are ultra-aggressive and will hunt you down if you show even the slightest amount of interest. Plus they make a lot more money than Thai girls.

True. Over the years, in Thailand, I have been hit on by American, Australian, Russian girls, Filipinas, etc., but hardly ever by Thai women. 

[tlandtday]

Get ready for the scamming agencies to hire at the cheapest wage and pocket the difference.  Outlaw the agencies and you will see good wages.

[Lacrimas]

Some non natives are very good with grammar and better qualified than native speakers that maybe are just backpackers coming to Thailand to party.

[StayinThailand2much]

30 minutes ago, tlandtday said:

Get ready for the scamming agencies to hire at the cheapest wage and pocket the difference.  Outlaw the agencies and you will see good wages.

Been there, seen that... Government pays 60,000+ to school, to hire native speakers. Agency hires Westerners for 30,000, or Filipinos for 20,000. School director gets cut of 10,000, or so, officially to 'build school building', unofficially to finance new Benz. Agency pockets the other 20-30,000. To maximise profit, the agency "forgets" to pay you, or fires you just before the long holidays. Then, after the holidays, hires the next loser. Everyone wins, except teachers and students. Best material to study, to learn what to expect in your new job: "The Godfather", "Goodfellas", "Casino"...

[simon43]

On 12/7/2019 at 7:08 PM, zydeco said:

One thing to remember. If you sign up to teach English in this country--at whatever level, including university--Thais and Thai society will look down on you. Doesn't matter if you're an older person not much concerned with Thai social pretensions and prejudices. But younger teachers (the type they seem to want most, here) will find themselves treated with contempt and disdain. 

Huh??  Teachers (real teachers) are highly respected in Thailand (and other Asian countries).  That includes foreign teachers as well.  Although I no longer teach in Thailand, I was always addressed respectively as 'Ajarn Simon'.  This was real respect, not some fake smile....

[SteveK]

They'd have proper, qualified, native English speaking teachers knocking their door down if they did just two things:

 

1 - Paid a minimum of 40k a month (most teachers will want to go home once or twice a year, living in Bangkok on chump change means that's not possible).

2 - Cut back on the moronic bureaucracy and paperwork required for good, qualified teachers to be able to live and work here legally.

 

Or just keep getting English teachers from whichever country will work for buttons, and keep Thailand's standard of spoken English in the toilet.

[cmarshall]

The problems with the poor quality of English instruction in Thai education is just a part of the larger problem of low quality education in Thailand generally.  The lack of qualified teachers is itself a general problem not just English teachers.  Thailand just cannot afford to compete with higher paying countries like Korea and Japan for well-educated native speakers of English.  There may be a few of those here in Thailand for personal reasons, but the marketplace functions like other marketplaces: the good ones go where the money is.

[SteveK]

I am certain that there are tens of thousands of native English speakers out there who would jump at the chance to come and teach in Thailand. Unfortunately, the paperwork, bureaucracy and awful wages means that these people will take their skills elsewhere. Meanwhile, Thailand goes on a recruitment drive for English teachers in the Philippines, which apparently has the poorest academic scores in the region. 

 

I'm sure there are many English teachers in Nigeria, but they'll need the Thai authorities to forward the ticket money first via Western Union before they can come. Apparantly some of them are princes with millions in the bank, though.

 

 

[Krikkiz]

Yes, phils-pepole ???? 

[ParkerN]

2 hours ago, simon43 said:

Huh??  Teachers (real teachers) are highly respected in Thailand (and other Asian countries).  That includes foreign teachers as well.  Although I no longer teach in Thailand, I was always addressed respectively as 'Ajarn Simon'.  This was real respect, not some fake smile....

Sorry to rain on your parade but 'Ajarn' is not a term of great respect, though you may think it to be. There will usually be an expectation attached to it if bestowed by Thais. There are very few real teachers in Thailand. most are time-servers or no-hopers. A spade is a spade.

[StayinThailand2much]

2 hours ago, cmarshall said:

The problems with the poor quality of English instruction in Thai education is just a part of the larger problem of low quality education in Thailand generally.  The lack of qualified teachers is itself a general problem not just English teachers.  Thailand just cannot afford to compete with higher paying countries like Korea and Japan for well-educated native speakers of English.  There may be a few of those here in Thailand for personal reasons, but the marketplace functions like other marketplaces: the good ones go where the money is.

I agree. The problem is the poor quality of the entire educational system, affecting not just foreign language tuition, but all subjects, e.g. maths, science, and, to some degree, even Thai(!), where many students (can only) perform poorly, too.

 

Not sure, whether the people in charge have realised it, but rote learning does not prepare Thai students for the challenges of the 21st century.

[Saltire]

Apologies if this has been mentioned but I have only read page 1 and 20 ???? life is too short ????

 

I wonder why the authorities don't lighten up on allowing volunteers in government schools legally.

 

If they allowed each school to apply for one or two volunteer (NES Only) visas with minimal cost and paperwork, I am sure there would be many who would teach, or at least supplement the English teachers, a couple of days a week, focussing on listening and speaking. No contracts, no salary, no work permits, zero cost.

 

 

 

 

[cmarshall]

On 12/10/2019 at 8:21 AM, StayinThailand2much said:

 

Not sure, whether the people in charge have realised it, but rote learning does not prepare Thai students for the challenges of the 21st century.

But that's not the goal of Thai education which is to maintain a docile citizenry per the dictator's 12 rules.