Potential Teacher

Greetings, some of you may remember me from previous threads that I made stating my intent to teach English in Thailand. The conclusion to those threads was that I was not qualified enough.

However, I come to you with another question; two years from now I will be a qualified Physical Education Teacher. I have heard that in Thailand, anyone with a degree can do the TFL course and teach abroad, however countries such as Japan require you do be a qualified English teacher. I honestly don't recall much about it, but I remember reading that a possible workaround for this was teachers that do not specialize in teaching English can then take a one year course to be deemed qualified, however any details regarding this eludes me.

I don't know how it works in your respective country of origin, but I just finished a two year course that allows me to do two additional years now and after that I will be a qualified Physical Education Teacher. I do not know if I will still want to teach abroad two years from now, my mindset could change entirely.

That being said, the best thing in life you can have is options. I want to know if this is a viable one.

Edit: To summarize all I'd still need to do;

-Finish the following 2 years of Physical Education

-Do 1 additional year, if needed.

-Take the TFL course in whichever country I choose to teach in.

Is it even worthwhile taking anything with you or is it too expensive?

As someone who has never been on an airplane I lack knowledge regarding this.

Possibly a stupid question, but when you immigrate, do they check your cellphone/USB Flash Drives/HDD for potentially malicious data? I don't really feel comfortable with someone going through my personal files.

Hmm, interesting, thank you for the replies.

As it stands I can speak English and Afrikaans. Would learning to speak Thai open up doors for me?

Personally, I can't really say how good I am at learning a foreign language, what really helped me with English though is the internet - consistently typing and reading English online has taught me some of the most aberrant words I've ever come across. I grew up with an Afrikaans household so that's been around for years.

After watching the music video above I think it'll take me a long time.

And how long to read/write?

Assuming you have a decent teacher and study for 1 hour each day.

How do you really learn conversation Thai?

With all of the Thais teaching English even at the Uni level, but who can't speak English, an NES who could pass a Tefl would have to be better. Too many Thais are being taught vocabulary and grammar but not learning to speak because the teacher can't speak. This is a massive problem in Isaan where many schools have never had an NES.

I have a friend near Sisaket who is a native Thai teacher. Her education is in math and science. Because she learned English at uni especially while getting her master's, she has been designated as the English teacher. Her speaking ability is horrible and we can barely talk. What she can say has such a terrible Thai accent that no child is really going to learn to use the language. Yet they dutifully have English classes with all communication in Thai. It's a joke.

What is an NES?

Sounds like you've already made up your mind about letting him go, if he was, 'sleeping with his eyes open' he quite frankly isn't doing his job and therefor doesn't deserve it.

However this is merely my opinion and I cannot guarantee you that a new pool boy will be any better or even trustworthy.

How much are you paying him?

Also are supplements expensive? I currently use Whey Protein in my diet, was wondering if the supplement industry in Thailand is a prosperous one.

Very prosperous from what I have seen. I wouldn't trust the suppliers, makers and sellers though, sorry to say. No controls on any product here.

That sucks, because I actually count my macronutriental needs (with being a personal trainer and all). I've heard horror stories of supplement companies lying about their contents and even heard that some products coming from China can be poisonous.

That's the one SA attribute, ie the aggressive, assertive thing, I would leave in SA if I was you, know exactly what your talking about will not go down well here,

Yeah I agree 100%, I really hate that type of attitude, it's mostly the women though - I hate to stereotype, but it is.

I was standing behind a lady in BT Games a few weeks ago and she absolutely berated the behind the counter employee over a price difference, apparently something was cheaper on their website than the in-store price. The more he told her that he cannot alter the price (literally unable to) the more angry she got and threw a fit.

As if anger is going change the coding of their system. Sigh.

Appliances are priced quite similar to the UK although some things are more expensive. For example a tumble dryer for drying clothes is more expensive in Thailand. There's not much availability of stand alone upright freezers as I found recently.

These appliance item tend to be one off purchases so I wouldn't dwell on it too much if I were you.

I've heard that supplements are outrageously priced much higher than foreign suppliers.

Computer components are reasonably priced.

Ah, the same as South Africa then, supplements here are for the rich. Luckily 2 kg of Whey Protein lasts me forever.

Large fridge freezers a bit less than UK prices for good brand names. Microwaves are cheaper in the UK. Computer components are comparable in the main as I recall. Blenders are cheap in Thailand.

Not really a lot in the prices overall though. What you do tend to lose out on in Thailand are the guarantees. Beware toasters in Thailand. It took me years to find one that worked for more than 6 months.

Hmm, they must all be chinese then, your thoughts on buying second hand?

they dont seem to last as long as UK products and fail very quickly and try getting a replacement ! customer service does not rule

Really? Is that in regards to farangs or all Thailand's community?

some electricals are cheaper but be warned, nothing in Thailand is made to last. Have had items break the first time they were used, very cheaply made unfortunately and there isnt a lot of service on them. New led flat screen TV buggered up in the first week, took almost 5 weeks before it was fixed & returned, any other country would have replaced it on the spot, not here they are sent away to be fixed. only thing that was replaced instantly was a tp link router, brilliant service from them but it is not to be found with anyone else unfortunately. Buy at your own risk, warranties are hit and miss as they will try to blame you for anything that happens, also beware of any computer/laptop purchases as they will load them with pirate software that is riddled with virus's, buy genuine software only to load yourself but you may have to get it from overseas as a lot of what is sealed "genuine" software here is actually fake/pirated. Stick with the bigger reputable stores or you may be ripped off pretty badly.

Hmm, that is unfortunate to hear with myself not liking conflict. How do you handle a situation where they do not want to exchange your product without 'losing face'? I don't get angry, but in South Africa many people only listen to you after you get assertive with them.

Also are supplements expensive? I currently use Whey Protein in my diet, was wondering if the supplement industry in Thailand is a prosperous one.

With regards to things such as, but not limited to;

Fridge

Laptop

Computer Components

Video Games (are they purchasable in stores or is it mostly direct download) (I am a big World of Warcraft fan)

Microwave

Blender

When compared to your country's prices.

I know transport and food are cheap in Thailand, but what about electronics?

Any advice and wisdom will be greatly appreciated.

1. Most guys come to Thailand for the easily available sex.

(Not always for sex with a woman)

2. Who cares about relationships, enjoy the sex.

(Not as much risk as your western government would have you believe)

This seems interesting, sex is easily available? Is that by means of flirtation or well, darker methods? Myself being from South Africa prostitution is a big industry here, but I wouldn't touch them with a 10 foot pole.

Can you elaborate on the lack of risk? I've had safe sex drilled into my head since I was 6, because of the high number HIV/AIDS sufferers in Africa/South Africa.

You have to realise that for a lot of guys on this forum, the potential for having multiple, hard-bodied sexual partners is/was a big draw so they automatically assume that if someone intends to come here to do a job which is, for the most part, not particularly well paid, there must be another motive.

In their eyes, the Thai people aren't especially interesting beyond the availability of their females, so they can't grasp your motivations.

A lot of these guys are abject failures with women be that within one or a series or marriages or owing to crippling social ineptitude so they come to Thailand to make up for a lifetime of being the chumps that couldn't nail the hot chick for love nor money.

Heh, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. You're also the first person to take the time to respond properly, thank you.

In my opinion, leaving your country can be 'reckless', you are out of your comfort zone and are completely dependent on yourself.

@op,

let me ask you a question,

why did you want to come to thailand to teach?

is it becouse you can come here and teach without going to uni?

or because you can see the temples here,

I believed that the course I was going to do would be adequate, alas it was actually a con, trying to pump under qualified teachers into Thailand while making ludicrous amounts of money (96000 baht per 'teacher'). At the time of reading the e-mail I did not know of Thailand's foreign teaching infrastructure and it turned out be a lot more complicated and not as simple as I originally thought it to be.

So no, I did not want to go to Thailand to teach uneducated and unqualified, I signify this in my thread.

Myself being 21 and a qualified personal trainer, I suspect that ultimately was the reason that I was accused of only wanting to go to Thailand for the girls.

I don't see what your age or job has to do with it.

Lots of Thai people speak English anyway. More than you perhaps realise.

Well you could argue the stereotype, but if you take that away then I don't have anything to rationalize the accusations made against me.

Dude, imagine your are Brad Pitt. Understand?

Brad Pitt is a celebrity, he doesn't even need to leave his house to get 1000's of girls. He could quite literally post on his Twitter, if he even has it, that he's accepting requests for intercourse and fangirls would line up for him - possibly from all over the world.

You really can't use him as an example.

Greetings once again.

In the teaching section I have a thread about Teaching English in Thailand, it was very informative and I thank everyone that participated in it. However, I faced multiple accusations stating that I merely wanted to go to Thailand for the Thai girls. Now I never responded to these individually, I chose to just ignore them, knowing that it is not my reason for wanting to go to Thailand.

Even so, those thoughts have stuck with me since the thread and have started to bother me. In light of that I want to ask a few questions.

1) Is it common for young foreigners to go to Thailand just for the women? Myself being 21 and a qualified personal trainer, I suspect that ultimately was the reason that I was accused of only wanting to go to Thailand for the girls. The reality however is (in my opinion) that going to another country just for the girls is expensive and far more effort than it's worth.

2) How can you even have a meaningful relationship with someone you don't understand? I am not going to learn an entire language just to copulate and anyone that would copulate with someone they do not understand at all is taking a big risk, yes it's sexy and most men probably fantasize about it, but in reality it's far too risky hooking up with someone you know nothing about for obvious reasons. If you can think rationally about it, you wouldn't be doing it.

*sigh*

Whatever happened to the spirit of adventure?

I wish it was that simple, if I do live in a 'armpit of Thailand' I am pretty sure it will suck out any spirit I have.

I'm checking out Ajarn and Thailand Teaching, but it really doesn't seem like a viable idea.

I'd hate to come across as crass, but 'Spirit of Adventure' is not going to put food on the table.

Hi, I just sent you a PM with details to avoid the negative attacks on this forum, I don't understand why people stay here if they are so negative about everything including their own lives....Thailand is great, you'l love it at won't want to go back to SA in short plus you WILL get a teaching position guaranteed - teaching conversation English is certainly not rocket science. Buy your plane ticket and just come, that's all there is to it.

Will you pick up the pieces, when what appears o be a decent kid is left battered, penniless and in dire straights?

Why not look at the reality? Such people do not last long in Thailand. The kinder and more decent, the shorter the shelf life too. Why should he come to Thailand to be exploited by unscrupulous "schools" and foreigners looking to recruit more suckers to work boiler rooms or offer time shares? As mentioned previously, let him come and visit and see if he likes the place. Let him go and visit potential employers and see what crapping into a hole in the ground is like, how unbearable living in a room with no insect screens and no AC is.

That sounds like hell. That sounds like the most rural of areas in South Africa.

Well the choice is becoming more and more clear. I'd rather do this the right way.

Thai girls are not alluring me to Thailand, I'm not even sure what they are like or what they like, I've not really given it much thought either. My main priority would have been to save up money, yet it doesn't seem like I'll be even earning enough to keep my sanity. The 'agency' painted it all in a nice little picture, but that was no more than a facade.

To give a bit of an ending to this thread, because it seems that is the direction it is headed in with all that I have learned;

1) I would love the experience of a new country, I have nothing really keeping me in South Africa. Yet I can't expect to show up unqualified and have the perfect life.

2) I truly would want to be an asset to the country, SA has a lot of under qualified foreigners taking advantage of Black Economical Empowerment. It would be shrewd of me to do the same (and I'd end up in a so-called armpit of Thailand).

So all in all, it's not really a viable option for me.

Thank you all for the knowledge and information you have shared with me. It really pointed me in the right direction and you stopped me from throwing 90k + baht out of the window.

I am sick of reading some of the misinformation in this forum. Let me make it clear, a TEFL course is NOT a legal requirement to work as a teacher in Thailand, nor has it ever been. However if you want to work legally in a school (rather then a private language school), you DO need a degree. It is now the minimum requirement to get a teacher's licence, which in turn is required to get a work permit and extensions on your non-O visa. If you have a degree, but not in education, you will need to study further to proceed from the teacher's licence 'waiver' status to a 'licensed teacher' status. This study does not have to be done in Thailand, although it can be.

This does not mean you can't find work in Thailand, but you have to consider whether you want to work illegally with all the unpleasantness that can lead to. There are sectors where teachers do not need these qualifications, (Private language schools and universities for example?), but I have no experience of these.

I have no intention of working illegally, I was never aware that I would be working illegally had I gone through with the agency.

Sigh, I am saddened though, I would have liked the experience in another country.

So essentially my options are limited to working in the private sector or illegally?

If you do not possess a degree then yes.. and working for private language schools can be maddening. Working 7 days a week. Evenings and weekends.

If you have a degree then you can get a 2 year waiver.

Sent from my i-mobile i-STYLE Q6

I see, I have worked 236 hours a month before, some days 11 hour shifts. It was straight out of high-school and it really wore me out after the first 7 months. I would not like to work that many hours again, regardless of what it is. May I ask what a 2 year waiver is and why private schools make you work so many hours?

First, I have edited out a number of commercial links. You cannot post links to other sites, this is reserved for sponsors only.

Second, welcome to the forum and I hope you get the information you need.

Finally, it is possible to work without a degree and do so legally, but it is very, very difficult and quite unlikely to work for you. There are different titles than 'teacher' than can get people a work permit. I wouldn't count on that option, however. You can work in a language school (a lot of those don't offer work permits). You might be able to work at a University and avoid the Teacher's Council nonsense.

At any rate, welcome and best of luck.

I do apologize, it can't look very good if someone with 10 posts starts linking to other websites.

I am sick of reading some of the misinformation in this forum. Let me make it clear, a TEFL course is NOT a legal requirement to work as a teacher in Thailand, nor has it ever been. However if you want to work legally in a school (rather then a private language school), you DO need a degree. It is now the minimum requirement to get a teacher's licence, which in turn is required to get a work permit and extensions on your non-O visa. If you have a degree, but not in education, you will need to study further to proceed from the teacher's licence 'waiver' status to a 'licensed teacher' status. This study does not have to be done in Thailand, although it can be.

This does not mean you can't find work in Thailand, but you have to consider whether you want to work illegally with all the unpleasantness that can lead to. There are sectors where teachers do not need these qualifications, (Private language schools and universities for example?), but I have no experience of these.

I have no intention of working illegally, I was never aware that I would be working illegally had I gone through with the agency.

Sigh, I am saddened though, I would have liked the experience in another country.

So essentially my options are limited to working in the private sector or illegally?

He stays because he has no options. Having no degree makes it difficult for him to get a job at home, at least one with a salary he can support them both with. And as a foreigner in Thailand he's only really qualified to teach, and in his case he's not really even qualified to do that. If you come here, at your age you should be very wary of starting a relationship.

Again, if you decide you want to try teaching here, I suggest you do your TEFL course in Thailand. It will allow you to form a support network from the start, and the friends you'll meet in class could be very helpful down the line. Check out this site: http://seetefl.com/ (no I don't work there, just a satisfied customer).

Getting out into the world and learning to do everything yourself is the most important part of the adventure, in my opinion. Contact the school I mentioned above, and see what they have to say about it. From experience, once you're on the ground here, it's really not that difficult.

FIrst assignment: figure out how much 90,000 baht is in your country's currency. That's the absolute bare minimum you should have saved before coming out here.

That is a lot of money, any particular reason why I would need so much?

Also how would I be losing money in particular? Other than the necessities. Are there many attractions that tourists are lured to?

It's really not that much money, sorry.

1) While overseas, you should always have enough for a ticket home. (30,000 baht, or in this case, about 30% of what would be your savings.)

2) On the tightest of budgets, you'll spend at least 18,000 baht, or another 20%, during the month you're taking your course

3) Job hunting and settling into an apartment, on a shoestring budget, you're looking at another 15,000 baht, easily.\

Edit 4) Another 20-30,000 during your first month of work, before you've received a paycheck.

So already we're at 63,000 of your 90,000. Consider the other 27,000 your safety net, or, in all likelihood, the additional money you'll be spending enjoying the country in your first month or two here.

Those are all 100% true and very insightful, my inexperience with immigration must be showing heh.

All things considered so far, it (the course) does seem too good to be true. If I ever go to Thailand I at least want to be an asset to the country. No way I can become adequate at teaching in such a short period.

Yes, OP, please clarify. Is this a career move?

I work at the same school as a guy who has no degree, yet in his infinite wisdom married a Thai lady. He is stuck now. You on the other hand, are not limited in your options.

If you just want to travel for a year, you could do a TEFL at SEE in Chiang Mai. They advertise on this site, and are a reputable TEFL school in Thailand. The staff there are very nice, and will help you get your bearings. Chiang Mai is also a nice place to start out in Thailand, though the job market there is very competitive. There are many schools in the north who have a difficult time finding native English speakers. So I'm sure you'd find work, especially if you complete your course in May, which is prime hiring season.

If you decide to come, make sure you have a few months living expenses saved up, too.

Not entirely a career move, however if I find it enjoyable I don't see why I wouldn't stay longer, but I also don't want my expectations to be too high. Does he stay in Thailand because of his marriage or because he does not want to leave her? Or is there a legal obligation to stay?

The problem I do face though, when not going through an agency, is that I have to do everything myself - not that I don't want to, I just don't know how to go about it. I know about passports and VISA's, but how do i get into Thailand with the purpose of doing my training, staying for a year, possibly more etc etc. I don't know how to go about that.

He stays because he has no options. Having no degree makes it difficult for him to get a job at home, at least one with a salary he can support them both with. And as a foreigner in Thailand he's only really qualified to teach, and in his case he's not really even qualified to do that. If you come here, at your age you should be very wary of starting a relationship.

Again, if you decide you want to try teaching here, I suggest you do your TEFL course in Thailand. It will allow you to form a support network from the start, and the friends you'll meet in class could be very helpful down the line. Check out this site: http://seetefl.com/ (no I don't work there, just a satisfied customer).

Getting out into the world and learning to do everything yourself is the most important part of the adventure, in my opinion. Contact the school I mentioned above, and see what they have to say about it. From experience, once you're on the ground here, it's really not that difficult.

FIrst assignment: figure out how much 90,000 baht is in your country's currency. That's the absolute bare minimum you should have saved before coming out here.

That is a lot of money, any particular reason why I would need so much?

Also how would I be losing money in particular? Other than the necessities. Are there many attractions that tourists are lured to?

Go to the Ajarn forum if you haven't found it already. A friend of mines who teaches out here swears by it for information and resources.

I'll check that out, thank you.

Yes, OP, please clarify. Is this a career move?

I work at the same school as a guy who has no degree, yet in his infinite wisdom married a Thai lady. He is stuck now. You on the other hand, are not limited in your options.

If you just want to travel for a year, you could do a TEFL at SEE in Chiang Mai. They advertise on this site, and are a reputable TEFL school in Thailand. The staff there are very nice, and will help you get your bearings. Chiang Mai is also a nice place to start out in Thailand, though the job market there is very competitive. There are many schools in the north who have a difficult time finding native English speakers. So I'm sure you'd find work, especially if you complete your course in May, which is prime hiring season.

If you decide to come, make sure you have a few months living expenses saved up, too.

Not entirely a career move, however if I find it enjoyable I don't see why I wouldn't stay longer, but I also don't want my expectations to be too high. Does he stay in Thailand because of his marriage or because he does not want to leave her? Or is there a legal obligation to stay? The problem I do face though, when not going through an agency, is that I have to do everything myself - not that I don't want to, I just don't know how to go about it. I know about passports and VISA's, but how do i get into Thailand with the purpose of doing my training, staying for a year, possibly more etc etc. I don't know how to go about that.

I am white, and I did hear that non-Caucasians have a hard time getting jobs in Thailand. May I ask why that is?

As regards saving money, personally think you will be hard pressed to save any significant amounts to pay for further study once all your expenses are covered...a little bit may be but not much

Coming from SA, think you would already know the answer to the question I have quoted, but then again at 21 you missed all that... width=20 alt=tongue.png>

Hahaha alright I understand what you mean by why they mostly accept white people, I really do.

It's nice to find so many South Africans on here.

Have you ever been to Thailand or been involved with teaching in Thailand?

I have not been to Thailand no, this is my first involvement in it. Do you know what I look like? (I'm serious, not being cheeky)

Only you can answer that, I dont know what you want from your life or what your hopes and aspirations are.

Do you want a career that comes from having transferrable skills and qualifications that will enable you to work wherever and whenever you choose?

Where do you envisage yourself being in say 5,10 or 15 years time and what do you hope to have achieved by then?

The first thing you have to decide is, what to I want from life, then decide the best course of action to make it happen.

Very true, I guess it's at least an option to explore and I have since learned a lot about life in Thailand and somewhat the situation there, but I should do it properly, I obviously want to be of benefit to country should I ever teach there.

I guess I need to think about it more, look at my options and decide.

Thank you.

Edit: My format failed hard here, hopefully it is still readable.