drifterrafirma

I've spent the last 3 months living with Thai people, and their dependence boggles the mind. I remember one time a Thai friend of mine was mad at me because I didn't show up to her house as expected and she "couldn't sleep alone." Now name one act more solitary than sleeping. MAYBE being comatose. But, personally, if I was comatose I would rather have people around, because usually if you're comatose you'll be needing some medical attention, whereas when you are simply sleeping, you generally do not. She had to find somebody else to come over so that she could go to sleep.

Are you suggesting that I wanted to initiate arguments by starting this thread? I am a prospective teacher looking for some guidance and nothing more. I apologize for failing to give you cause to insult me based on my low post-count, or whatever other foolish and ignorant reason you may have for assuming bad intentions on my part.

However, I would like to thank those took the time to make civil, helpful comments. I am still trying to decide whether I want to pursue a career in teaching or professional fighting. Either one will see me in Thailand soon enough; if teaching, I will teach in english in Thailand, if fighting, I will attend a muay thai camp. Sadly, the constant bickering and negativity of the teachers on this forum has led me to wonder whether I would really want to work alongside such sad souls.

Since I started reading this thread, it has grown from three pages to 19. And not even one full page could be filled with the few intelligent comments made. Would it be possible for a moderator to step in and put an end to this nonsense?

I am trying to decide which TEFL school I should attend in Thailand. What school did you attend? Knowing what you know now, would you have chosen a different school? If not, what made your school a wise choice?

David

Based on what you know of these two institutions, which would you rather attend with immediate post-certification employment in mind?

Some Thai friends of mine took me to a restaurant called Dara Thai in Flagstaff, AZ. It was farkin' delicious and they seemed very pleased with it, too, so I can only assume that it was authentic. Everyone that works there is Thai. Come to think of it, I never heard any of the employees speak english. I drove 9 people 80 miles in a vehicle with 2 seats to eat there, and it was definitely worth it.

I eat about two Thai meals per day, usually breakfast and dinner. Lunch is whatever I can find wherever I can find it, but regardless of how good it might wind up being, it can never compare to Thai food. My taste buds have begun a love affair...

Growing up on the Mexican-American border, I'm no stranger to spicy foods (I love whole roasted jalapenos, seasoning with serranos, and am willing to drench just about anything with habanero or cayenne salsa). But Thai food brings all new meaning to the word spicy. A packet of Thai spicy noodles makes munching on jalapeno seeds seem like sucking on an ice cube. Yet I wouldn't have it any other way.

One thing I don't understand is how all these tiny Thai girls can consume rice by the pound as if it were air while I am satiated after one bowl. It must be genetic.

Thank you so much for your advice Loaded! I'm so happy I found this forum!

I had intended to go to Thailand to take a TEFL course in November of this year and then search for a job immediately upon completion of the course. However, I recently read on another resource website that December is the worst month of the year to seek employment as a teacher in Thailand. Would it be advisable to wait until March or April to take my certification course so that I will be available in May, the beginning of the Thai school year, or are there vacancies that need filling year-round? I would like to get started as soon as possible, but if waiting until the beginning of the school year will increase my chances of finding both a job and a job with decent pay, I would be happy to wait.

I followed a link on the Thaivisa website to the Chichester College site, and it looks fairly promising. Is anybody familiar with this institution? Also, they guarantee job placement following completion of their TEFL course. Is it possible that they might set you up at a horrid job just to fulfill their promise? Finally, with a certification from this school, is there any sort of base salary I might expect? Thank you all so much for your assistance.

Excuse me while I eat my words. The online certification that I referred to earlier is in fact a TESL certification rather than TEFL. Other than the obvious fact that S=Second and F=First, is the cirriculum much different? It seems like any language course would teach it's language as the student's second language, unless the student enters the course unable to speak any language, which is, of course, ridiculous.

In response to your question, PeaceBlondie, I live in Grand Canyon, AZ, USA. In case you are wondering if there is a city in Arizona called "Grand Canyon" which is not actually situated on the edge of the Grand Canyon, the answer is no. I do actually live in the Grand Canyon, which is why it would be so difficult for me to physically attend any class. The nearest town is 80 miles from where I live, and I have not been able to locate any institution there that offers TEFL certification.

In reponse to kenkannif's query as to whether or not an online certification would be worth the money considering the disadvantages that it suffers, there is an online certification available for 312.50 USD. That seems to be a fairly reasonable price, but then again, I'm not very educated on such matters. Is that in fact a good price?

As far as in-class work is involved, there is a small school here at the Grand Canyon which I am sure I could volunteer for, as they are always desperate for assistance. However, I will have to wait until our school year resumes in the spring.

Hello everyone! This is my first time posting on this forum, though it is not my first visit to the site. I have been rather zealously reading through the various posts for the last month or so trying to find answers to all of my questions without having to ask them, but there is one answer that has eluded me.

When a school is evaluating your qualifications, is there any differentiation between a TEFL certification aquired online and physical TEFL class attendance? I live in a rather remote location where online education is the only option available (post-high school, that is), and traveling weekly to attend classes is well nigh impossible for me. However, if I would be discriminated against due to an online certification, I would be more inclined to find some means by which I could attend an actual class.

I think that this website/forum is fantastic, and I truly appreciate the time that you informed individuals take to answer questions. Well, a storm seems to be coming in from the north, which will most likely be accompanied by a power outage, so I ought to send this before all is lost. Goodbye for now!

David