On Friday I chatted with a provider for the Thai Language and Culture course. they were willing to schedule the course in February in Udon Thani. i need to know if there is any interest in the course ASAP. It would cost 5000 baht and be about 20 hours in length. It would probably be on a weekend. If you are interested in taking the course send me a p.m. before Jan 28th with your contact info.

Any details on this course? Is this required for english language teachers in the Thai school system?

Any details on this course? Is this required for english language teachers in the Thai school system?

I would say that there is no short or definitive answer to that question. If you have an hour or so to spare wade through this:

A long thread about this subject

Unfortunately, although that thread may be very enlighting about the state of the Educational system in Thailand, it probably won't answer your question. My advice would be to relax, expect nothing and be prepared for anything.

Heh heh- as OS says, there's no clear answer. Many schools have gone along with the TCT's poorly prepared, poorly explained, and poorly executed scam to extract money- er, plan to increase 'knowledge of "Thai culture"'- but it's an open question whether they do so as an additional way for certain administrators to feather their own nests with part of the fees, or whether it is actually brought up as an issue at the time of visa and work permit renewal. The right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing, and both hands are under the table.

Why would anybody in their right mind take either the culture course or the TCT exam battery? Within 60 days, the MOE will be issuing new requirements. They are talking about teacher training which will be subsidized by government-issued coupons, but who knows what type of training will be required and who will need to take the courses. It would be foolish to sign up for anything right now. My understanding is that all of the certified TCT courses (the 1 year course in lieu of a B.Ed.) have been canceled.

Can anyone else confirm this? It would vindicate my suspicions over the last year or so that the MOE never seemed to endorse any of the official TCT courses, and of course cast serious doubts on the long-term utility of any further 'course schemes.' My continuing recommendation: get an education qualification overseas, where it will both stick permanently in and out of Thailand, and be a final stopper to any further qualification extortion schemes.

Can anyone else confirm this? It would vindicate my suspicions over the last year or so that the MOE never seemed to endorse any of the official TCT courses, and of course cast serious doubts on the long-term utility of any further 'course schemes.' My continuing recommendation: get an education qualification overseas, where it will both stick permanently in and out of Thailand, and be a final stopper to any further qualification extortion schemes.

How about an article in the Bangkok Post?

Just the Ticket by Steve Graham, Bangkok Post, 20/01/2009 (Education section editorial)

The new year is already more than half a month old, and with a new government in power, hopes have been raised that education will figure highly on the agenda. Dr Somwung Piriyanuwat of the Office for National Educational Standards and Quality Assessment has stated that agencies are ready to revamp the training and recruitment of teachers. The process can start immediately and will be ready in 60 days as the legislation has already passed through the Council of State.

Could this be the answer to all our New Year wishes? While details are scarce, the idea of a new government prepared to tackle the education problems of this country must fill our hearts with hope, albeit nine years after the 1999 Education Act came into being.

A coupon system will be arranged to offer scholarships to prospective teachers so that they can learn at certified institutes. This would allow the recipients to attend the institute of their choice, and the institutes would then reclaim the funds from a supervisory institute.

This could be a solution to the lack of qualified English-language teachers and to the struggle of implementing a communicative learner-centred curriculum with little or no formal training.

Word of caution: All ideas, new or old, are doomed to failure if they are not properly implemented. Not all teachers are good administrators, and they need guidance as to how to implement the policy changes.

Bangkok Post : Just the ticket

The right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing, and both hands are under the table.

This sentence deserves some kind of award.

Heh heh heh- thanks, Mbkudu, I'm blushing...

Zaphod, great call and great link, thanks for that!