More Hoops More Hassle Would You Do It All Again?

[makavelithedon]

Hi all,

I was toying this over yesterday and wondered what you are all doing or thinking of doing next?

I was aiming this question more at the normal TELF teacher really which probably makes up some 80-90% (at a guess) of all teachers working here. The hoops appear longer and longer, the hassles more and more and the pay stays the same! How many of you looking back, would come here to do this if you were starting again now? I know I wouldn't. Talking with two friends who have been teaching for a fair old time last night, they wouldn't either. The hassles this year have been unbelievable and now this TL tosh on top!

I have commitments that are not easily broken here at present, but have looked at the new challenges as a positive to make changes and move on. I hope to be able to do so at the end of next year, but if not then definetly at the end of this new 2 year licence period. At which time I think most of us will get the temporary boot on the misguided notion that 'proper teachers' will be lining up to fill vacancies in 3rd world classrooms graced with 50 kids and a small pay rise! A year later a complete about turn will come in but by then damage done people abruptly and thanklessly booted will have moved on vowing never to return! Yes or no, just one humble opinion for the touchy out there.

Also would you recommend anyone else starting here as a teacher? It's got to the stage that I can't even understand why they'd want to even bother. The climate has been changing for any Farang wishing to do more than stay 2 weeks and spend a king's ransom as a tourist as anyone without entrenched ignorance is already aware!

Anyway, without bringing this post down too much with a list of negatives most of you have probably experience on a regular basis I'll be interested on how you see things here on in?

A teacher's perspective please from teachers doing it.

Mak

Edited March 5, 2008 by makavelithedon

[twschw]

If I didn't have the commitments that I have here I would probably not choose Thailand again knowing what I know now. Having said that I am happy here and have no plans to leave.

[Ijustwannateach]

^You took the words right out of my mouth!

[PeaceBlondie]

I never would have come.

[Robski]

Do you think the 'hoops' are more effective at keeping undesirables away from Thai children?

If the answer is yes, then the extra hassle is worth it.

[Ijustwannateach]

^Nope. The undesirables teach illegally and thus never go through any hoops at all. None of those that have been arrested in the last year or so would have had any chance of getting a work permit and visa through proper channels (as far as I can tell)- they were teaching too short a time and/or at schools which routinely don't do the paperwork. Therefore, all the extra hoops do is make it harder for the few truly qualified foreigners who might be interested in teaching here for such low pay.

Not that I'm bitter.

"S"

[zorro1]

If I didn't have the commitments that I have here I would probably not choose Thailand again knowing what I know now. Having said that I am happy here and have no plans to leave.

That is a perfect answer, its says everything and nothing at the same time

[mopenyang]

While my position at a uni has not been affected in the least by any of these additional hoops, I would be reluctant to recommend to anyone that they come here to teach unless they have regular substantial supplemental income. I have seen too many teachers who were unable to enjoy life in Thailand to its fullest because they were trying to live (often, just survive) on their low teaching salaries. This is something that very much much needs to be addressed if Thailand truly expects to be able to recruit and retain professional foreign teachers in the future.

Yes, I would still have come, as it is a very nice place if you can afford it.

Edited March 6, 2008 by mopenyang

[Loaded]

If I didn't have the commitments that I have here I would probably not choose Thailand again knowing what I know now. Having said that I am happy here and have no plans to leave.

That is a perfect answer, its says everything and nothing at the same time

welcome to Thailand!

[PeaceBlondie]

Usually, Thailand is a great place to live.

Usually, Thailand is a stinking, rotten place to start teaching.

(Not an extremely negative view of Thailand; just a negative view of starting to teach here).

[DaiHard]

I only arrived a few months ago and the paperwork wasn't particularly onerous (try Spain or the US in comparison). It was just a little disjointed (2 week work permit before visa extension even though I had a 1 year O visa as it goes on the validity of the entry stamp at the airport so I had to pay extra 750 baht for work permit) other than that no real problems.

Only issue I have is low pay v qualifications needed but that's all been said before.

The fact that it is generally a great place to live and bring up kids (as opposed to the UK for instance) makes up for a lot of the bureacracy.

[twschw]

And did you get your teacher's license too?

[withnail]

Yes, because I enjoy the job and like the 99% of people working here who don't rely on internet forums to find something to worry about, have never considered living in a country where you can arrive as a tourist and decide to live in the next day as jumping through hoops.

Having lived here for a couple of years before deciding to teach I can also honestly say that IMO most of the negative comments you will hear are not exclusive to the teaching profession but rather fairly typical of all farangs who are still trying to decide whether Thailand really is the place for them. Fill in the blank below with any of the following phrases: a family, a bar, a small business, to be a diving instructor, to build a house, and you will have the same number of negative opinions and there will be the same number of people doing it anyway because they want to, have to or are busy being successful at it rather than bitching about it online.

"More Hoops More Hassle Would You Do It All Again?, Starting ________ now would you?"

On top of this, any mention of money is just plain ridiculous. We all knew (or should have done) when starting here that it would not make us rich and that we would have to learn to live here on a certain wage. I have never understood why, with 6 months experience under their belts, many teachers start to complain that the money is not enough. Having said this, everyone I know who has been teaching here a number of years now earns more money than when they started.

Edited March 6, 2008 by withnail