Son Misbehaving At School

[TerryLH]

"Fail to vote, take drugs, being vulgar in public, the list goes on you get a fine. Its just part of life."

Where do you get fined for not voting? How much do they fine you?

I agree with Garro, the hair cutting thing is normally for long hair.

[LivinLOS]

"Fail to vote, take drugs, being vulgar in public, the list goes on you get a fine. Its just part of life."

Where do you get fined for not voting? How much do they fine you?

I agree with Garro, the hair cutting thing is normally for long hair.

I am told Australia

[thaicbr]

Well as a Teacher i would say its certainly wrong at that age range. BUT from M1 to M5 which i currently teach i sometimes take a deposit or rental charge on a pen that i've had to lend the student, because they havn't brought theirs with them. I do give the money back after the class (it ensures i get the pen back). I'm trying to prove the point that they had 10 baht to buy a pen in the first place(the lazy buggers)

[Scott]

I have seen some shocking punishments since I started teaching here. Granted some of these happened a long time ago.

My first week of school, a teacher put 3 young boys (maybe G. 2 or 3), pulled their pants off and had them dance in their underwear. No complaint from parents, no reprimand from Admin was given. I was completely shocked.

About 5 years ago, we had an Admin Assistant tie a kid to the flag pole during morning assembly. This one ticked off the father, who was a local politician and the Admin person actually denied it and blamed the homeroom teacher, who took the fall for it!

Apparently there is a large, untapped reserve of creativity when it comes to bizarre punishments. Sure would be great if it could be channeled into a positive direction.

[BigSnake]

Hi dad, Charity starts at home, my humble opinion/bottom line is your son need some HOME Disclipline, the school and teachers have their hand full already with all the learning materials, books, exams etc, Disclipline SHOULD start/end with mom and dad(maybe grand/ma/pa)

[onethailand]

Did you ask the school whether they were aware of this practice?

I haven't heard of this being done in Thailand - certainly not at my kids' school. But when I was in school, we were given monetary fines - the funds which went to the cost of a year-end party.

[macduff]

I'd pull your child out of the school.Your yearly fee's are unimportant it seems.Find a new school and make sure that malarky does'nt happen again.

[Ijustwannateach]

More realistically and importantly, you probably need to decide what WOULD be an appropriate disciplinary response that YOU would back up as a parent against your own and every other child at school- then you need a bunch of parents (from a PTA meeting, perhaps) to give the school a united and supportive front on this issue. Otherwise, you're left with the school being at the mercy of dozens of inconsistent parental scruples.

[JimShortz]

I certainly agree that fining kids is rather strange - certainly 6 year olds! Nevertheless, in the international school I teach at one of our science teachers "fines" Secondary age kids (11 up) 5 Baht if they want to go to the toilet during class time. This is of course something that they can easily avoid by using the toilet at more appropriate times (between classes!) if they so choose. Last year he raised over 2,00 Baht, and this year it was down to 600 Baht, so it is clearly having the desired effect... He donates the money to one of the school's charities at the end of each year, and everyone seems very happy with the arrangement!

[culicine]

I would contact the MoE regarding this. I doubt they would approve of fining children. Most schools don;t want to upset the MoE, so it would be wise to find what their stance is first. If they don't approve of fining students I would tell the school to stop they action and let them know if they don't then you will be contacting the MoE.

[bungy007]

Exactly what i am going to be doing next time i am over - appointment with the principal. After the amount of cash i throw at this place, i'm a little miffed to say the least.

I taught in a bi-lingual programme in central Bangkok for over 7 years and in the EP a particular Thai teacher made it policy in her class to fine the students 5 baht for speaking Thai. This policy was often used both in and out of school - such as summer camp. Nobody got to know what happened to all of the money and no accounting was kept. I think this may be a 'tool' taught to some Thai teachers.

[beano2274]

I used to have a fine system of 1 baht for every spoken Thai world in an English Program, the money was only collected by a student, then at the end of the Semester the money would be used to buy cakes or Ice creams, I even chipped in myself if needed.

It was only used as an incentive to speak English.

[neverdie]

"Fail to vote, take drugs, being vulgar in public, the list goes on you get a fine. Its just part of life."

Where do you get fined for not voting? How much do they fine you?

I agree with Garro, the hair cutting thing is normally for long hair.

I am told Australia

Yes, its Australia, the land of taxes and infringements.

I actually got a fine for not voting, when I did vote, so I elected to take the matter to court & represented myself. Subsequently the charges were dismissed at court and costs awarded against the electoral commission....don't ya love it when david stands up against goliath.

Ohh, from memory the fine was $50 or perhaps $45 (about 1800 baht in todays terms), but that was a few years ago.

[bungy007]

"Fail to vote, take drugs, being vulgar in public, the list goes on you get a fine. Its just part of life."

Where do you get fined for not voting? How much do they fine you?

I agree with Garro, the hair cutting thing is normally for long hair.

I am told Australia

Yes, its Australia, the land of taxes and infringements.

I actually got a fine for not voting, when I did vote, so I elected to take the matter to court & represented myself. Subsequently the charges were dismissed at court and costs awarded against the electoral commission....don't ya love it when david stands up against goliath.

Ohh, from memory the fine was $50 or perhaps $45 (about 1800 baht in todays terms), but that was a few years ago.

Yes its always good when the little man gets to see justice done and in his favour. As for Thai discipline, let's not forget that most Thai schools are money making machines - especially EPs. Thus, the views of management on the subject will be coloured by how much any action will effect next year's registration figures: Too harsh and it could hit their pockets, big time Arizona! Going through the motions without any serious consequences for the 'perp' or turning Nelson's eye is often the Thai way. See the BIB's attitude to motoring offences.

Edited June 21, 2009 by bungy007

[isanb]

Hi,

I did'nt know if this should go into the teaching or family forums, so i'm sticking it here and letting the forum Deity's move if need be.

Anyway, checking up on my 6 year old's school progress, I heard about 2 cases where he either did not do his work up to scratch, or was being a bit rowdy. Nothing too bad in my book as he's usually in the top tier when it comes to his learning.

Anyways, the punishment for these two incidents was that he was "fined" 5 baht. This took me back a little - it's not the amount i'm concerned about, it's the method - He usually gets 20 baht to buy some snacks etc. Is this normal in Thai schools? He's in quite a good one - not an international school but none the less in the international curriculum course with foreign teachers etc.

So my question is twofold. Is this the normal way of handing out "punishment" in Thai schools, compared to the extra homework/detention i was used to, and what are the thoughts of other parents in the forum ???

./P

I guess if they do that to my son, my next topic will be "Dad Misbehaving at school"

[callum06]

Hi,

I did'nt know if this should go into the teaching or family forums, so i'm sticking it here and letting the forum Deity's move if need be.

Anyway, checking up on my 6 year old's school progress, I heard about 2 cases where he either did not do his work up to scratch, or was being a bit rowdy. Nothing too bad in my book as he's usually in the top tier when it comes to his learning.

Anyways, the punishment for these two incidents was that he was "fined" 5 baht. This took me back a little - it's not the amount i'm concerned about, it's the method - He usually gets 20 baht to buy some snacks etc. Is this normal in Thai schools? He's in quite a good one - not an international school but none the less in the international curriculum course with foreign teachers etc.

So my question is twofold. Is this the normal way of handing out "punishment" in Thai schools, compared to the extra homework/detention i was used to, and what are the thoughts of other parents in the forum ???

./P

Anyways, the punishment for these two incidents was that he was "fined" 5 baht.

I do the same in my classes, it is a type of punishment that the child can understand, he has been naughty and now he will get LESS snacks because of his bad behaviour in the classroom.

I have a list of the children in my classroom and how much they have been fined over the term (open knowledge at my school and the list is in my classroom where everyone can see it) the money is used for a class party at the end of term!!

It works with me and the parents don't have any problems with it, sorry

[callum06]

I would contact the MoE regarding this. I doubt they would approve of fining children. Most schools don;t want to upset the MoE, so it would be wise to find what their stance is first. If they don't approve of fining students I would tell the school to stop they action and let them know if they don't then you will be contacting the MoE.

Are you drunk??

[khaowong1]

Personally I think that's terrible. Haul-keel him, whip him, bogwash him... whatever, but I've never heard of fining. Start doing that and then you get into the whole "5 baht is more to some families than others" debate.

At one school I taught at in Songkhla (way back when) they used to shave a chunk out of kids hair for being late. I thought that was hilarious.

yes, this is the method they use here in Lopburi also... late, rowdy, hair too long, dressed wrong, etc...

[culicine]

I would contact the MoE regarding this. I doubt they would approve of fining children. Most schools don;t want to upset the MoE, so it would be wise to find what their stance is first. If they don't approve of fining students I would tell the school to stop they action and let them know if they don't then you will be contacting the MoE.

Are you drunk??

Certainly not. I am quite serious. If a teacher needs to resort to such punishments, they need a few lessons themselves in classroom management. Or any other kind of teacher training that the so-called teachers in this country desperately need. Fining students in any cultural context is totally unnecessary. There are plenty of other ways to control student behaviour.

[bungy007]

I would contact the MoE regarding this. I doubt they would approve of fining children. Most schools don;t want to upset the MoE, so it would be wise to find what their stance is first. If they don't approve of fining students I would tell the school to stop they action and let them know if they don't then you will be contacting the MoE.

Are you drunk??

Certainly not. I am quite serious. If a teacher needs to resort to such punishments, they need a few lessons themselves in classroom management. Or any other kind of teacher training that the so-called teachers in this country desperately need. Fining students in any cultural context is totally unnecessary. There are plenty of other ways to control student behaviour.

Agreed. However, the Thais don't really seem to work on a sliding scale - it's all or nothing. By that I mean, they turn a blind eye and give warnings after warnings and then suddenly throw the kitchen sink at a problem. It all comes down to cultural differences again.

[Scott]

I think going to the MOE is a little over-the-top. It's a matter of asking the school to reconsider this punishment and to insure accountability for staff. If the school refuses or insists on doing it, then you might want to consult with someone at a higher level.

Schools are known to 'make' children attend extra classes, summer sessions etc. These are also questionable practices in my opinion, but they get by with them.

Most schools will seriously re-think a punishment based on a parent complaining.

[callum06]

I would contact the MoE regarding this. I doubt they would approve of fining children. Most schools don;t want to upset the MoE, so it would be wise to find what their stance is first. If they don't approve of fining students I would tell the school to stop they action and let them know if they don't then you will be contacting the MoE.

Are you drunk??

Certainly not. I am quite serious. If a teacher needs to resort to such punishments, they need a few lessons themselves in classroom management. Or any other kind of teacher training that the so-called teachers in this country desperately need. Fining students in any cultural context is totally unnecessary. There are plenty of other ways to control student behaviour.

Fining students in any cultural context is totally unnecessary.

Says who??

If a teacher needs to resort to such punishments, they need a few lessons themselves in classroom management

Again each to their own.

Or any other kind of teacher training that the so-called teachers in this country desperately need

Agreed

There are plenty of other ways to control student behaviour

Please add some of your hot tips to control student behaviour

[Jungian]

I never heard of such a thing and I'm sure I would have a talk with the principal or head master of the school. I give my daughter 50B per day to buy snacks and such and it appears that the other parents give their children money too.