Teaching English to Thai adults?

[clivebaxter]

Mrs is a qualified Thai language teacher but has been offered a Job teaching English to groups of factory workers. She is thinking of giving it a try as work as been down the last year due to covid. It's basic conversation in a business environment and her English is good and her knowledge of grammar is better than mine! Any suggestions of what texts or aids to use? There must be something of use on the internet somewhere.

[The Hammer2021]

Check out Daves ESL cafe or buy a book on TEFL..The students will want and require  a course book with work book and regular  games and songs

[OneMoreFarang]

25 minutes ago, clivebaxter said:

Any suggestions of what texts or aids to use? There must be something of use on the internet somewhere.

I am no teacher but I learned lots of things and languages over the years.

My motivation is always highest when I learn something that I want to learn.

So if I would work in a factory which produces toys then I would benefit from learning language around toys and toy production. I.e. learning Shakespeare wouldn't interest me because it wouldn't make my work any easier or more enjoyable. 

[howlee101]

48 minutes ago, clivebaxter said:

Any suggestions of what texts or aids to use? There must be something of use on the internet somewhere.

I sent you some links in a private message

[JayClay]

1 hour ago, The Hammer2021 said:

TEFL..The students will want and require  a course book with work book and regular  games and songs

Adults working in a factory might be a little baffled at a teacher doing regular games and songs...

[The Hammer2021]

12 minutes ago, JayClay said:

Adults working in a factory might be a little baffled at a teacher doing regular games and songs...

Grammar games..translation songs..Games and quizzes are not for children! Darts teaches numbers, pool teaches numbers and colours. There must be a hundred books linked to the idea of 'Grammar games for English'..Google  it..

Even for adults we contextualise the formal and informal rules of language via game playing, role playing songs etc..

[youreavinalaff]

Don't use text books. No need. Just go into the first class. Introduce yourself and then them to introduce themselves.

 

A decent teacher will be able to work out the next steps and the speed at which to teach within 30 minutes. Continue expanding at the pace you think is right, adding more detail as you go along.

 

It really is quite simple. If you try to over complicate things you will confuse your students.

[FritsSikkink]

If she is a qualified teacher, she should know how how to teach and doesn't need you for help.

Edited March 5, 2022 by FritsSikkink

[Gottfrid]

9 hours ago, The Hammer2021 said:

Grammar games..translation songs..Games and quizzes are not for children! Darts teaches numbers, pool teaches numbers and colours. There must be a hundred books linked to the idea of 'Grammar games for English'..Google  it..

Even for adults we contextualise the formal and informal rules of language via game playing, role playing songs etc..

Yes! Sure it is. However, numbers and colors are not much grammar, right?

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

Invaluable reading for anyone interested in teaching:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_approach

 

https://www.sk.com.br/sk-krash-english.html

 

I teach adults online and it mostly consists of just having friendly conversation. Use pictures, objects, gesticulations, get creative if you're not getting across. "Compare notes" about each other's life experiences, re jobs, travel, family. Find out what they're interested in, pull up an article to that effect, and go through it together.

[cliveshep]

I am rapidly coming to the conclusion that culturally Thais are simply too proud and too lazy to want to learn if learning means correction. My lovely wife and I have been married 10 years, she is in my eyes and those of my English family and friends a remarkable girl (exactly half my age this year means still a girl!), a wonderful partner and friend and utterly loyal. As a side issue apart from all her other attributes she has the best legs in Thailand lol. 

 

From the outset her command of English was minimal, we courted via Google translate (a real blessing for two people separated by lack of any common language) and by Skype running alongside, so I could type what I said. In 6 months she could communicate in English and now is proficient BUT gets uptight if I now seek to correct her. We both laugh about her "I'm washing tv" or "I'm cooking the kitchen in the chicken" which mistakes she no longer makes, but some basic errors she will not learn to correct. She asked me to teach her by correcting her errors which I do try to do most gently but she is disinterested now she has come so far.

 

Not that we are fighting, last week in Chang Wattana the I.O as part of the application process made us sit for a web cam picture and then complained to my wife, repeating to the next I.O that we were "too sweet together" as my beautiful girl and I leaned together cheek to cheek for the pic. She ruefully asked us to be more formal as it was making her sad and jealous - Thais clearly don't retain fondness in their marriages! 

 

So I suspect your factory pupils will manifest similar traits, learn some and give up losing interest! 

Edited March 6, 2022 by cliveshep

[tonray]

11 minutes ago, cliveshep said:

I am rapidly coming to the conclusion that culturally Thais are simply too proud and too lazy to want to learn if learning means correction

Great way to disparage an entire population

[cliveshep]

3 minutes ago, tonray said:

Great way to disparage an entire population

Oh, thank you so much for the compliment lol. Tell me - have YOU ever tried to help Thais learn - at their request - only to find their desire wanes with the moon?

 

Not only my wife, I have been asked to teach neighbours English, both mother and daughter, father got too much sense to waste time. Both started out well - but interest petered out. They were too busy, daughter had dance classes, mother working, others the same. They aren't really interested and you try and correct any English speaking Thai manifesting laughable mistakes and even if you are humble and politely ask if you can correct you will not be welcome. They fail to understand that English is one of trhe world's almost universal languages - fly an aircraft and no matter where you are ATCO do NOT speak Thai, it is English.

 

 

[EricTh]

14 hours ago, The Hammer2021 said:

Check out Daves ESL cafe or buy a book on TEFL..The students will want and require  a course book with work book and regular  games and songs

Sorry, even Thai primary school children do not learn by playing games or songs, games are only for kindergarten kids.

 

These are adults who want to use in a business environment. 

 

One should come up with a course that is more suitable for what they want to learn and not just pick any material.

 

(I remember that is what Thai teachers in YMCA teaching Thai language do, that's why most of their courses aren't practical enough for real conversation)

 

Thai students have already learned the English basics while they were in school.

Edited March 6, 2022 by EricTh

[sanuk711]

15 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

Mrs is a qualified Thai language teacher but has been offered a Job teaching English to groups of factory workers.

Just out of interest Clive--what does the factory owner(s) hope to achieve by their workers taking English lessons?

[connda]

I used to create courses for external customers of our private school.  That is essentially curriculum development.  Determine the target audience's needs and create coursework to fit their situation. You don't need books.  You need a white board and creativity.  Occasionally handouts. 

[connda]

Most Thais know some English.  You can get a lot of mileage out of taking what they know and improving their pronunciation (if you are a NES) and grammatical syntax - i.e., teach them colloquial, everyday English so they can deal with English speaking foreigners and hold a conversation. 

[cdemundo]

This book has very specific dialogues on detailed language useful in a factory.

Edited March 6, 2022 by cdemundo

[cdemundo]

Looks like published 2540 (1997) so maybe not in bookshops but I searched the ISBN and found in library in Thailand.

 

 

Edited March 6, 2022 by cdemundo

[cdemundo]

Edited March 6, 2022 by cdemundo

[cdemundo]

Edited March 6, 2022 by cdemundo

[tonray]

4 minutes ago, cdemundo said:

Looks like the farang's guide to ladyboy encounters...ha ha ha

[cdemundo]

5 minutes ago, tonray said:

Looks like the farang's guide to ladyboy encounters...ha ha ha

Always equal parts helpful and funny.

[recom273]

For adults - I used BBC Speakout, no need to give them a book or worksheets but use the structure, you get audio and video with the course too.

Yes, it’s all well and good telling people to use a WB and a smile or play a game, but often students need a focal point, somewhere to start - often in the beginning, if there is no incentive to speak English in the company, these guys will have nothing to say.

 

Books save a lot of time, if you don’t know how to construct a course, they provide structure - otherwise you just end up repeating the same basic content, Students can be very critical even though they don’t understand how you are teaching them, reports get back to management. 
 

That’s not to say that you shouldn’t play games, that you shouldn’t freestyle .. I used to teach a group of dental receptionists, we would finish every lesson with 20 mins of roleplay, how to deal with Malaysian customers, small talk, polite behavoir, etc. - I think it’s quite difficult if the students have no reason to learn English. 

Edited March 6, 2022 by recom273

[2long]

It's important to engage the students at all times. That could be playing games (kids and adults), talking about KPop or football, or whatever the student wants to be engaged in, in the target language. Too many teachers revolve the class around themselves, their own experiences and what THEY want the student to focus on or stay within the teachers' comfort zone. The teacher needs to be active, proactive, flexible, a good listener and (very importantly here in Thailand) an expert in timing, frequency and delivery of error correction.

Not naming names, but a poster not too far about this appears to generalise Thai students of different ages, levels, needs and interests. You just can't do that. They're all human, and most have a better grasp of English than we do of their language. Think about that!

[OneMoreFarang]

33 minutes ago, recom273 said:

I used to teach a group of dental receptionists, we would finish every lesson with 20 mins of roleplay

That sounds interesting. Maybe I should try such a job. ???? 

[recom273]

2 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

That sounds interesting. Maybe I should try such a job. ???? 

Not that kind of role-play - but some of them were cute.

[OneMoreFarang]

8 minutes ago, recom273 said:

Not that kind of role-play - but some of them were cute.

I didn't mention any kind or role play. It must be your imagination. ????

[clivebaxter]

2 hours ago, sanuk711 said:

Just out of interest Clive--what does the factory owner(s) hope to achieve by their workers taking English lessons?

No idea so far. Having looked at loads of material, some links by PM I found this one and thought she is pretty good

 

[Scott]

I taught English in a factory setting for many years.  The reason the class was started was that a group of the engineers were planning on continuing their education but the post-graduate studies were offered only in English -- or at least the text books were in English and some of the teachers were English speakers.  

It started as a small group (4 students) and then grew to a class of about 20.  Others joined for various reasons.  Eventually, the factory actually took over paying for the classes and expanded it to another entire section of the factory, so it turned out that it was 4 nights a week. 

 

The classes were two hours -- but often went over, in part, because they were a fun group.   I used a series, I believe it was Interchange.  I'd stay with a book or a series simply because it's easy to start going all over the place and to lose focus.  There was plenty of conversation in the book and there was grammar so they got practical use on a particular grammatical structure.  

 

For the less proficient students, they were comfortable with sticking to the conversation in the book.  With the more proficient students, it was expanded -- they had to work on reading the conversations with good voice inflection, etc.  

 

An advantage for factory type work, is that they are with their coworkers and there is a sense of camaraderie.  They aren't strangers.  Their relationships are established.