A Problem At School

[Artisan]

So here's my question. How come students call their teachers names like "Mr. Mike". Doesn't he have a surname? If you're going to use the first name, why not just call him Mike? TIA

I'm also surprised at your question. Surnames are seldom used in Thailand and the use of the simple titles Khun and Mr. express politeness and respect.

[EmCross]

So here's my question. How come students call their teachers names like "Mr. Mike". Doesn't he have a surname? If you're going to use the first name, why not just call him Mike? TIA

I'm also surprised at your question. Surnames are seldom used in Thailand and the use of the simple titles Khun and Mr. express politeness and respect.

I agree with Artisan it does show respect and I really don't mind this form of address for the teachers, I think it would show a lack of respect just to call them by their first names; in the UK it would be Mr. (surname) or sir.

But I do think the 'teachers respect day' that the school had last week was an absolute waste of time for both children and teachers and the time could be better spent teaching the children. My feeling is respect is earned by their attitude and how they behave with the children and not by having ceremonies and giving flowers etc (all in Thai by the way) for hours on end. The children should have respect for the teachers every day (which most of them do) and not one day a year.

[stevemiddie]

Regardless of what anyone thinks stevemiddie i wish you luck in your chosen profession and enjoy your time at BEST.

Thank you.

I agree the old building could do with being modernised. Its far from ideal. The new one is pretty good and the children seem happy.

One of the problems that we face as teachers is the class of mixed abilities. Some children are slow learners, others are lightning fast. So at what level and speed do we teach?

Do we go at the pace where the slow learners will understand better? That risks falling behind schedule and the brighter children will get rapidly bored and disinterested.

Do we go at the speed of the brighter faster learners? Then we risk losing the slow learners altogether as they will not comprehend anything. Then we fail as teachers.

I would like to see another class created. One where we could say...........put all the superstars in the "DIAMOND CLASS" and go onto furthur and more advanced education for them. Test their abilities to the fullest.

The flip side? Create a class speciffically aimed at the slower learners. Not a class where they would be ridiculed by others but a class that concentrated on bringing them upto speed. That may require a more qualified teacher with experience in that field.

This is something that we discuss as foreign teachers because ultimately we are here to educate, not to just collect a paycheck.

There are many suggestions that the foreign teachers will put forward to the Thai managers. Some are listened too..........some are not. Fact is its a Thai school with Thai philosophies and no doubt cost factors always come into it.

The point i,m trying to get across is this.............as foreign teachers here at BEST, we have a pretty good bunch who are dedicated to doing the best we can for your children.

At the end of the day...............only parent power will be the most effective tool for instigating change.

Edited June 16, 2007 by stevemiddie

[EmCross]

Well said stevemiddie, I like your attitude and some of the ideas put forward here are interesting but are they likely to be listened too or implemented?

I do like many of the teachers at BEST (farang) and as I said before I do believe they are doing their best for the children generally the problem does seem to be more the state of the school and the facilities which really could be improved with a little time and effort by the management. For instance how much would it cost to invest ins some decent sports equipment? not that much I don't think in Thailand.

I am also a believer in parent power to get things done and certainly agree with you there!

[stevemiddie]

some of the ideas put forward here are interesting but are they likely to be listened too or implemented?

Good question

[rambler]

Regardless of what anyone thinks stevemiddie i wish you luck in your chosen profession and enjoy your time at BEST.

Thank you.

I agree the old building could do with being modernised. Its far from ideal. The new one is pretty good and the children seem happy.

One of the problems that we face as teachers is the class of mixed abilities. Some children are slow learners, others are lightning fast. So at what level and speed do we teach?

Do we go at the pace where the slow learners will understand better? That risks falling behind schedule and the brighter children will get rapidly bored and disinterested.

Do we go at the speed of the brighter faster learners? Then we risk losing the slow learners altogether as they will not comprehend anything. Then we fail as teachers.

I would like to see another class created. One where we could say...........put all the superstars in the "DIAMOND CLASS" and go onto furthur and more advanced education for them. Test their abilities to the fullest.

The flip side? Create a class speciffically aimed at the slower learners. Not a class where they would be ridiculed by others but a class that concentrated on bringing them upto speed. That may require a more qualified teacher with experience in that field.

This is something that we discuss as foreign teachers because ultimately we are here to educate, not to just collect a paycheck.

There are many suggestions that the foreign teachers will put forward to the Thai managers. Some are listened too..........some are not. Fact is its a Thai school with Thai philosophies and no doubt cost factors always come into it.

The point i,m trying to get across is this.............as foreign teachers here at BEST, we have a pretty good bunch who are dedicated to doing the best we can for your children.

At the end of the day...............only parent power will be the most effective tool for instigating change.

over the past 24 hrs or so there have been some very good posts ref above; Its called streaming and was suggested many times while i was a teacher at BEST,what u say about mixed ability is spot on but i personally im against the idea streaming was introduced at the school i worked at in BKK 7+ yrs ago turned out to be a total disaster it angered many parents,and created many student to student problems ,the brighter kids can help the slower ones 'pier teaching' nothing wrong with that,and how could it be done are you suggesting streaming for individual subjects in a bilingual format with so many nationalities would be very difficult.Going to school is not only about reading ,writing,maths and the like its also about making friends,helping others,developing social skills at times being happy and sad ,streaming is not the answer and to think this could actually be done at BEST is a joke really the place struggles to sort out things like basic hygiene also lets not forget we are 1 month in the new term and i paid for my sons books well in advance some of these are not even in school so impossible to hand out becos publication has stopped, i ask how can the students be studying the particular subjects where the books are missing i have asked at school reply; oh i not sure what happen book come or not...maybe give money back .a refund is not really a solution .The school needs an active PTA with regular meetings so that we could be ignored collectively rather than individualy !!!!

[lemel]

I posted this in Feb and did not get much of a response!

I had my daughter in Best in the kindergarden, but in Feb we took her out after we found out that one of the teaching assistants was hitting the children. We informed the headmaster and he said he would have a word. It then happened again and we heard from someone else that it had happened to another small boy. We had a meeting with the Thai headmaster and the bottom line was he was not prepared to do any more, as if the lady in question did not listen to him, then what can he do. He then said there are other kindergardens in Pattaya go try them. Not quite the answer one would expect from such a person in his position.

Up to you where you put your kids but I would not recommened that school to anyone!!!beware

[booman]

Any problems with Marywit out in Banglamung?

[rambler]

Any problems with Marywit out in Banglamung?

only heard good stuff about the place booman , got a mate works there will ask him not sure as to the amount of English subjects that the kids get taught.will get back to u.

[booman]

I know the pre elementary school children have two teachers one Filapina and one Thai in each classroom, 'spose it's sponsored by the Catholic church. The facilities look really nice. Not quite sure what the costs are, but I heard it is really reasonable.

[lannarebirth]

So here's my question. How come students call their teachers names like "Mr. Mike". Doesn't he have a surname? If you're going to use the first name, why not just call him Mike? TIA

I'm also surprised at your question. Surnames are seldom used in Thailand and the use of the simple titles Khun and Mr. express politeness and respect.

Surnames are seldom used in Thailand among equals that's true. I don't consider the student and the teacher to be equals, do you? I contend calling someone Mr. Mike is not a show of respect at all and is just a touchy feely affectation. Not unlike parents who call their children "buddy" and try to be their friend rather than their parent. If they wanted to show respect to the teacher they'd use the surname wouldn't they?

edit/ Anyway, didn't mean to hijack the thread. BTW it's not a Thai thing at all. My sister is a teacher in the states and the same practice goes on there. I asked her why and she said it was to make the teachers seem more approachable to the children. Whatever.

Edited June 16, 2007 by lannarebirth

[Jimmyd]

My opinion: The students do what other people do. No disrespect intended. The opposite in fact--they call teachers 'Mr. Steve' because they believe it's giving respect like everyone else. To say they think saying 'Mr. Steve' is less respectful than saying 'Mr. Johnson' is crazy to me. They don't know any better.

[lannarebirth]

My opinion: The students do what other people do. No disrespect intended. The opposite in fact--they call teachers 'Mr. Steve' because they believe it's giving respect like everyone else. To say they think saying 'Mr. Steve' is less respectful than saying 'Mr. Johnson' is crazy to me. They don't know any better.

Students do what they're taught to do, don't they? My guess is they're told to call him Mr. Steve. It's far from the most important thing going on in the world. I just find it curious. Sorry again for the thread hijack. Carry on.

[barryofthailand]

In Asia Surnames are rarely used, so addressing the teachers by Mr. or Khun and their first names is definately showing respect in accirdance with Thai culture.

My son is in his fifth year at Best and I have found the staff both Thai and foreign to be very professional and helpful. I don't think their is another school on the Eastern seaboard that measures up to Best. Their is a waiting list to get into this schoo.

Barry

[stevemiddie]

In Asia Surnames are rarely used, so addressing the teachers by Mr. or Khun and their first names is definately showing respect in accirdance with Thai culture.

My son is in his fifth year at Best and I have found the staff both Thai and foreign to be very professional and helpful. I don't think their is another school on the Eastern seaboard that measures up to Best. Their is a waiting list to get into this schoo.

Barry

Thank you. Also the only one licensed by the Ministry of Education for Bilingual as well i believe. ( on the seaboard )

[rambler]

In Asia Surnames are rarely used, so addressing the teachers by Mr. or Khun and their first names is definately showing respect in accirdance with Thai culture.

My son is in his fifth year at Best and I have found the staff both Thai and foreign to be very professional and helpful. I don't think their is another school on the Eastern seaboard that measures up to Best. Their is a waiting list to get into this schoo.

Barry

I agree with you Barry my son is at the school ,all the staff (with the odd exception)seem to ok i do know from experience how some get abit dishearted by school policies/planning lack of resources etc but in general they do a good job.A friend of mine did enquire very recently to enroll his children it would appear there isnt a waiting list to get in at the moment at least,however he decided against after looking round mainly becos of the general state of the school (untidy and unclean) he was suprised that i send my son there but as i explained hes getting a truly bilingual education,he enjoys going and for all its faults its still the best of a bad bunch locally.I too think no other school of this kind can measure up to Best as its clearly way out in front when it comes to dirty toilets,classrooms and poor sports facilities all of which could be easily sorted out.

[EmCross]

I too think no other school of this kind can measure up to Best as its clearly way out in front when it comes to dirty toilets,classrooms and poor sports facilities all of which could be easily sorted out.

You can read this comment several ways Rambler, "way out in front when it comes to dirty toilets, classrooms and poor sports facilities" I do not have anything to compare it too but I don't think this is something to be proud of!

But in the way I think you meant this comment I agree is certainly would not take a lot of effort to put these things right and would make a huge difference to the school as a whole. It puts me off the school and I have complained about it so I can imagine anyone looking around for the first time would definitely be put off.

[JimmyTheMook]

Satit is head over heels better than BEST.

Will look into the Marywit school.

Also considering St.Andrews for the future , paying $10,000 per year seem like a real kick in the ass.

[TheAceFace]

Does anybody have any first hand experiences with ISP and do they offer a genuine British curriculem?, any comments would be welcome. Going to stop by there when Im back.

[JimmyTheMook]

Does anybody have any first hand experiences with ISP and do they offer a genuine British curriculem?, any comments would be welcome. Going to stop by there when Im back.

Not a good school , more like a hustle with the Wutichort Bilingual school in front of it.

I understand the owners also run Friendship Supermarket , so it is simply another cash cow of a school.

[TheAceFace]

Does anybody have any first hand experiences with ISP and do they offer a genuine British curriculem?, any comments would be welcome. Going to stop by there when Im back.

Not a good school , more like a hustle with the Wutichort Bilingual school in front of it.

I understand the owners also run Friendship Supermarket , so it is simply another cash cow of a school.

Jimmy, this is the one on Suk Rd North Pattaya right? I was hoping this would be a good place if a little pricey.

[JimmyTheMook]

Does anybody have any first hand experiences with ISP and do they offer a genuine British curriculem?, any comments would be welcome. Going to stop by there when Im back.

Not a good school , more like a hustle with the Wutichort Bilingual school in front of it.

I understand the owners also run Friendship Supermarket , so it is simply another cash cow of a school.

Jimmy, this is the one on Suk Rd North Pattaya right? I was hoping this would be a good place if a little pricey.

Yes , right on Sukumvit Road.

For the price they charge you would be better off with another international school.

[EmCross]

Does anybody have any first hand experiences with ISP and do they offer a genuine British curriculem?, any comments would be welcome. Going to stop by there when Im back.

Not a good school , more like a hustle with the Wutichort Bilingual school in front of it.

I understand the owners also run Friendship Supermarket , so it is simply another cash cow of a school.

Jimmy, this is the one on Suk Rd North Pattaya right? I was hoping this would be a good place if a little pricey.

Yes , right on Sukumvit Road.

For the price they charge you would be better off with another international school.

I have not heard any good reports about this school and did not like the look of it when we went around a few years ago that is why we chose BEST school although I think the standards at BEST have gone down since we put our children there. We are still looking for a better alternative with in our price range.

[TheAceFace]

Does anybody have any first hand experiences with ISP and do they offer a genuine British curriculem?, any comments would be welcome. Going to stop by there when Im back.

Not a good school , more like a hustle with the Wutichort Bilingual school in front of it.

I understand the owners also run Friendship Supermarket , so it is simply another cash cow of a school.

Jimmy, this is the one on Suk Rd North Pattaya right? I was hoping this would be a good place if a little pricey.

Yes , right on Sukumvit Road.

For the price they charge you would be better off with another international school.

I have not heard any good reports about this school and did not like the look of it when we went around a few years ago that is why we chose BEST school although I think the standards at BEST have gone down since we put our children there. We are still looking for a better alternative with in our price range.

Hi Em

I will just have to judge for myself when I am back, I am definatley gonna seek somewhere other than BEST (I really hope it does improve, however I can not see this in the short run).

The school fees at ISE/ISP?? 75000 seem ok, I will have a good look around there, can you please comment on what you did not like about the place or other rumours you have heard apart from high turnover in staff?

St. Andrews seems a little far to travel.

Regents, too pricey.

Any others in pattaya that offer a proper Brithish education?

Cheers

Ace

[barryofthailand]

Their is no better alternative other than best. The standards has gone down a bit in the last few years, but compared to the other alternatives, best is still way ahead of the others. You have to remember, you are in thailand. The educational standards are set by the ministry of education, and those standards are lower than the western standards. You aloso have to remember that at Best the bi lingual program is taught by native English and Thai teachers. Satit does not have a Bi lingual program, and malivit the same. Yes they teach english, if you want to call it that, but very few students At Best almost every student can speak English.

Barry

[Artisan]

The school fees at ISE/ISP?? 75000 seem ok, I will have a good look around there, can you please comment on what you did not like about the place or other rumours you have heard apart from high turnover in staff?

St. Andrews seems a little far to travel.

Regents, too pricey.

Check out Post #6 from sriracha john. He says, and I agree, that the ISE's fees are based on grade level of the student, but an example is that for Kindergarten to 5th grade, it's tuition is 340,000 per year.

I priced this school for my daughter and it was going to cost me a total of 400,000 baht per year which was made up from the tuition fee, travelling, insurance, uniforms etc. etc.

75,000 baht? Where did you get this information?

[JimmyTheMook]

Their is no better alternative other than best. The standards has gone down a bit in the last few years, but compared to the other alternatives, best is still way ahead of the others. You have to remember, you are in thailand. The educational standards are set by the ministry of education, and those standards are lower than the western standards. You aloso have to remember that at Best the bi lingual program is taught by native English and Thai teachers. Satit does not have a Bi lingual program, and malivit the same. Yes they teach english, if you want to call it that, but very few students At Best almost every student can speak English.

Barry

You are one of the few who seems verry happy with BEST, my neighbor just yanked his kids out of BEST and put them in Maryvit.

BEST has a really high turnover of teachers and the place is old and filthy with the kids running all over the place.

[whatchamacallit]

The school fees at ISE/ISP?? 75000 seem ok, I will have a good look around there, can you please comment on what you did not like about the place or other rumours you have heard apart from high turnover in staff?

St. Andrews seems a little far to travel.

Regents, too pricey.

Check out Post #6 from sriracha john. He says, and I agree, that the ISE's fees are based on grade level of the student, but an example is that for Kindergarten to 5th grade, it's tuition is 340,000 per year.

I priced this school for my daughter and it was going to cost me a total of 400,000 baht per year which was made up from the tuition fee, travelling, insurance, uniforms etc. etc.

75,000 baht? Where did you get this information?

You're absolutely correct - if you're going to send your kid to any of the following schools:

1. The Regents

2. St. Andrew International

3. Garden International

4. International School of the Eastern Seaboard

Expect to pay between 300K to 450K (tuition, transportation, lunch, & books) annually. For new students there is a one time enrollment fee anywhere from 50K to 100K. So maybe the 75K is the enrollment fee, not tuition. I visited all the above mentioned schools and did my homework before I enrolled my son at St. Andrews.

[rambler]

Their is no better alternative other than best. The standards has gone down a bit in the last few years, but compared to the other alternatives, best is still way ahead of the others. You have to remember, you are in thailand. The educational standards are set by the ministry of education, and those standards are lower than the western standards. You aloso have to remember that at Best the bi lingual program is taught by native English and Thai teachers. Satit does not have a Bi lingual program, and malivit the same. Yes they teach english, if you want to call it that, but very few students At Best almost every student can speak English.

Barry

hello barry...for the most part i agree with what you say i would like to add Best does have a comprehensive bilingual programme , a high percentage of the kids speak English quite well ... but many of the teachers are not native they are from the philipines(a money saving scam by the owner)this isnt a big deal but they should not be passed off as native as is done on the school website which i might add is never updated.parents are constantly told that fees must go up to cover the high salaries paid to the foreign staff simply not true salaries at the school are poor i can certainly confirm that (5 yrs service at BEST) as i have said in previous posts my gripe is not with the teaching though it could be better but with the day to day running / policies of the school and most of all the general state of the place notably the old building . My top 5 places to study bilingualy in Pattaya 1. Best 2. Satit 3.Eagle bar soi 7 4. Mcdonalds 5. Wutichot....... I did hear a funny story last week ,whilst enjoying a beverage with a friend that works at Satit he said they had a teacher start work quite a hippy rasta man by all accounts his first English class was based on polite introductions such as yo man ! give me some skin pleased to say he was taken away in the rubber truck shortly after . WE DO LIVE IN A STRANGE CITY DONT WE.

[JimmyTheMook]

The school fees at ISE/ISP?? 75000 seem ok, I will have a good look around there, can you please comment on what you did not like about the place or other rumours you have heard apart from high turnover in staff?

St. Andrews seems a little far to travel.

Regents, too pricey.

Check out Post #6 from sriracha john. He says, and I agree, that the ISE's fees are based on grade level of the student, but an example is that for Kindergarten to 5th grade, it's tuition is 340,000 per year.

I priced this school for my daughter and it was going to cost me a total of 400,000 baht per year which was made up from the tuition fee, travelling, insurance, uniforms etc. etc.

75,000 baht? Where did you get this information?

You're absolutely correct - if you're going to send your kid to any of the following schools:

1. The Regents

2. St. Andrew International

3. Garden International

4. International School of the Eastern Seaboard

Expect to pay between 300K to 450K (tuition, transportation, lunch, & books) annually. For new students there is a one time enrollment fee anywhere from 50K to 100K. So maybe the 75K is the enrollment fee, not tuition. I visited all the above mentioned schools and did my homework before I enrolled my son at St. Andrews.

What made you select St. Andrews from that list ?

And do you feel it is worth it ?