paully

The reason given does sound like nonsense, Steven. But, of course, we only have what she said to go on and it may be, as others have said, that there was insufficient documentation or something like that. I do hope she can get the decision reviewed, she sounds like a fine student.

I don't think the guys here realy want to talk about a farang woman do they? I'm refering to the people at the Work Permit offices and Immergration, government schools, odd places like that which do in fact exist in Thailand. I've never had a job in my home country. Or was it the ones I had required a high school education? I don't recall, where is McDonalds anyhow? Do they require a high school education? "Would you like a happy meal sir?"..humm... and if John Karr did not convince you NOTHING is actually checked I don't know exactly what to say.....Susan

John Karr is a poor example to choose in relation to certification, Susan, because by all accounts he was a properly certified teacher in the US, albeit not a successful or morally upright one. He would have checked out okay on the degree certificate front.

I also doubt that the Ministry of Labour here together with the Ministry of Education and Immigration Department can't tell the difference between a degree certificate and a TEFL certificate. They're not as dim as you suppose.

[

. Really what I'd like to know is whether teaching without a qualification in Thailand is a common occurrence.

Yes, quite common. Call it 75percent unqualified in a western mindset or even higher if an education degree is in the mix.

Where's your '75% unqualified' figure coming from, Susan, and what do you mean by 'in a western mindset'? It's a little disingenuous to compare TEFL teachers in a country like Thailand with, say, secondary school teachers in state schools in the UK. You don't have to be fully qualified as a teacher to teach EFL in Thailand or in the UK. A TEFL qualification is still a qualification and perfectly sufficient to teach English as a Foreign Language.

If you really miss Smeg, he still operates (and is regularly and understandably ridiculed) on another forum. He's been banned from everywhere else.

Yes, at that rate you might as well wear a baseball cap with "I'm a Loser" on it. Saves telling the story.

My wife first applied in June only to be told that an interview was to be held in August then the date was changed to early September.I was chessed of with this as i was in Thailand for 4 weeks July/August.

Still have my fingers crossed.Seems like they must be very busy

Is your wife on the waiting list for earlier interviews at VFS, binnsy? Mine had her interview changed to a couple of days earlier last week after a cancellation. We were told by one of the VFS staff that they can only book 9 interviews a day at the Embassy for settlement applications, thus the lengthy waiting list. Only another 2 weeks to go for the wife's interview now, so fingers crossed.

The latest report I have (from last week) is that sponsors are not allowed inside the embassy compound.

Scouse.

Of course, Scouse, there is nothing to stop a UK national (who is also a sponsor) from gaining entry to the UK Embassy on another pretext, eg to see the consular section on the first floor and then waiting on the ground floor (but without the right to attend the interview in the booths along the right-hand wall). The last couple of times I've been there, within the last 6 weeks, there have been perhaps 8-10 Thai people at most waiting in the visa section on the ground floor. It's near-deserted there now that VFS does all the application donkey work.

I haven't heard of any of the books on your list either, Tony. Is your friend in/near Bangkok? I say this because there are a couple of good EFL bookshops there as well as Kinokunya in Siam Paragon. The best EFL shop is on a small soi a little north of (ie: behind) Central World, walk along the road on the left-hand side cross the bridge and it's the soi immediately after the railway track on the left. I can't remember the name of the shop, but its' EFL selection is, IMO, the equivalent of the best EFL shops in the UK (can't speak about Australia). If he goes in there for a browse, he'll find something useful. Nothing like looking at real books yourself and making your choice.

^ Congrats to the new co-moderator!

It's an interesting one isn't it? Certainly in the UK the perception has been that women teachers are 'better' for younger kids, both boys and girls, but they are trying to encourage more male teachers in primary schools now. There were concerns that young boys were 'losing out' in terms of progress compared to girls in mixed classes and there were few male role models.

Could it be that single-sex education, under teachers of the same sex as the pupils, was correct after all?

^ Yes, that's the nub of it, Steven, in regard to private schools. This is also the reason why salaries for farang teachers in Thailand are highly unlikely to increase by very much in the forseeable future, more's the pity - less profits for rich owners.

Hi, Unwell. The student bursary for the PGCE is not listed as an example of 'public funds' so you should be okay on that score. But, as Scouser says, you'll probably need more evidence of funding for a visa for your wife plus accommodation, particularly if she can't line up a job in the UK beforehand. Can your family in the UK help in this regard? Last year before doing my PGCE I enlisted the assistance of my long-suffering mum as a sponsor and also as accommodation for the purposes of my wife's UK visa, although in the event we rented our own place after arrival.

Sorry to sound suspicious, but are you for real? I'm sure many could help you with background information on school recruiting of foreign teachers in Thailand, but what is your 'angle'?

Rajabhats and government universities can be a good option if time is important to you. Many (but not all) allow you to leave campus as soon as you've done your teaching hours plus a few 'office' hours. So this give you the option of fitting in evening work and outside work if you can arrange it - and you'll need to given the low basic salary. Some places also have some lucrative outside work: my old uni had work at 1,000 baht or 800 baht per hour, but not all year round.

If you've got time on your hands, you might want to do an MEd in an aspect of teaching research/methodology. More useful than one in Tesol IMO.

I've missed the deadline to get into the pgde this year so i kinda have a year on hand. I'd thought of doing an MEd in TESOL thinking it would help me to get jobs at these schools when i'm applying. I know the language we teach is in english but it might prove i understand the needs of ESL students in the class. would such a qualification help me get these jobs ya think or a lot of effort for nothing?

I suspect it'll be effort for nothing. I don't think an MEd in TESOL will add anything to your PGDE, but a couple of years in the UK post-PGDE will.

well a few others have said similar things, basically that a 4 week TEFL might help me but an MEd isn't really worth the effort unless i'm wanting to go into TESOL as a career.

I've missed the deadline to get into the pgde this year so i kinda have a year on hand. I'd thought of doing an MEd in TESOL thinking it would help me to get jobs at these schools when i'm applying. I know the language we teach is in english but it might prove i understand the needs of ESL students in the class. would such a qualification help me get these jobs ya think or a lot of effort for nothing?

I suspect it'll be effort for nothing. I don't think an MEd in TESOL will add anything to your PGDE, but a couple of years in the UK post-PGDE will.

You, along with the unhappy trio, have convinced me. I am now a true believer of the cause. I was delusional in thinking it was working in a dynamic growth industry in its early stages with numerous future possibilities. Now I see the light, all education in Thailand is bad, always has been bad, and always will be bad. I also now see the value in constantly trying to tear-down and endlessly criticize the industry we are part of. I now see why the trio has devoted their lives and countless hours to the cause and I now realize instead of criticism, they deserve our gratitude. Can you imagine how worse off we would now be if there were not scores of ESL teachers along with the trio endlessly harping about every detail of teaching in Thailand?

I was wrong in feeling good about my career choice and being optimistic about the future. I will call my publisher and cancel my book contract and end all the research projects I am working on or planning. Since I am in education in Thailand, it is obvious nothing I could do would be worthwhile, so why even try? I was mistaken, I thought in some very small little way I might have been doing something to help some people by providing them an opportunity to be exposed to a different cultural viewpoint than their own, and I also thought I was growing and constantly learning from what I mistakenly thought was a wonderful opportunity to work in this fascinating country with people from different cultures in an international environment. How wrong I was! I now know, thanks to you and the trio, that I am wasting my time and I will gain nothing from teaching in Thailand, except the scorn and ridicule of real members of academia and real teachers, and I should be spending my time in incessant gripping about the Thai educational system, Thais, and Thai culture in general.

I want to thank you, and the trio, so much for helping me understand what is really going on around me and making me realize how really awful everything is. I am sure my life will get significantly better now I have accepted the real truth of my situation and give up trying to do anything constructive and accept that I am a victim of the Thais and the Thai educational system and join into the life of constant complaining and overall negativity.

Cheers

Steady on, old son. Just one or two lines of biting sarcasm are usually sufficient.

IJWT, nice to 'see' you again too. All is well with you, I hope?

Fishcatcheuse? Fischerfrau? Femfisher?

I know this will probably get me banned (again) but there are actually some pretty good international unis here in Thailand and they have to meet the same accreditation requirements as Unis in farang land.

Not really, mate. I've taught at 2 international universities in Thailand and can assure you that the quality is not to be compared with universities in the West. In fact, I wouldn't even be able to get a job at a western university in the absence of a PhD or (minimum) MBA.

Does Scouse or anyone know if it is possible to apply by post via VFS for a settlement visa if you (ie my Thai spouse and I) are currently outside Thailand? I believe that this was possible before at the UK Embassy in order to get an interview date, but is it possible now? Thanks for any thoughts.

Meemiathai - I am fully aware of this, and I know that there is always a possibility of this escalating again.  But quite frankly there is nothing I can do, I am not prepared to have to run away and leave the place I live and work and love - I have already lost my lovely house (and a tooth!)

So, as far as I can see, it is just best for me to play it calm, move on and stay away from him - no doubt he will get himself a new girlfriend sooner or later, as he cant bear to be alone.

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Yes, that's exactly the way, Soph, stay away, ignore him and DO NOT give in or change your mind because 'he's being nice again'. Let the sad loser inflict himself on another unfortunate girl, not your problem any more.

The four 'P's (the students) are right, of course: after 12 years of study they certainly should be capable of thinking in English, even at a fairly basic level. But, if they've had mainly Thai teachers and given that they're Thai students, it's not exactly a surprise that they're not able to.

^ Not likely to be issued 'there and then' unless the Embassy is particularly empty. More likely to be 'come back tomorrow afternoon to collect the passport with visa'. But, if there are any issues with the paperwork, etc, the consular officer will ask your GF to come back for an interview in a few weeks. Good luck.

I think PB was more annoyed about the principle of an overstay fine in the case of sickness or hospital treatment rather than just getting the stamp out of his passport. It does seem ridiculous that a fine could be levied where someone was clearly unable to cross the border because of quite a serious injury, namely a dislocated shoulder. Unlikely to be faked merely to present yourself at the border a few days late, I would have thought.