Student Views: Best Thai Language Schools And Methods

[Scottish Thailander]

Ok.

As what I feel was originally a very useful and informative thread has been forced to close at a great loss to everyone, I feel we need a "safe, relaxed, fully independent and "school and sponsor free" thread in which to exchange our honest personal views on the pros and cons of each school, method, and/or tools available to help us poor mortals get the Thai language in all its glory into our heads, and our lives.

To try to ensure that this safe student haven is protected. . .

I would kindly request schools, and school directors, representatives, or anyone in any was associated with a school (with the exception of actually being a bona-fide, fully independent, otherwise non-associated student obviously) to refrain from posting on this particular thread. If for some reason you just can not refrain from commenting then please do so on your own seperate thread.

Many thanks in advance for your compliance.

To ensure a balance, and this threads long and useful life, I would also ask posters to refrain from "attacking" any particular schools or persons. Please highlight any 'cons' in a polite and non-aggressive manner. We all want to know the 'cons' of schools, methods, tools, etc. but please add these comments constructively so that we can all learn from them without unduly upsetting anyone. Honest feedback without anger, malice, or undue prejudice is requested.

To kick off the thread I am going to 'steal' a post from tod-daniels from the now deceased "Best Thai Language School" thread as it was the most recent and most thorough appraisal of a students experience of attending such a large variety of Thai language Schools.

(Thanks tod - Appologies, I know it is bordering on breaking the rules but with the best intentions I have #'d a couple of words to try to start this thread off without controversy. The #'d comment can be found on the original post if anyone, for whatever reason, finds it necessary to seek it out.)

Once you have read/re-read it, please add your own honest and useful feedback on "your personal experiences" of schools, methods, and useful tools (books, websites, etc.).

Lets make learning easier and more fun again!

(Or at least be able to talk freely about our problems and get advice on how to resolve them!)

ST

Okay now that it seems this pinned topic is at least semi back on track about language schools here's a list I've compiled of various schools I've toured and/or taken their free lessons;

I admit this is a longish post; but I believe carries quite a lot of information

DISCLAIMER: The following is totally MY opinion of thai language schools; their material, their teachers and their perceived value (what I call; "bang for the baht") as far as what you get for the money you pay. My experience will, in all likelihood, be different from yours, and my opinions MAY indeed run contrary to yours too.

PLEASE; By all means feel free to post about your experiences at any of the listed schools or ones I've missed. The more people who post their experiences and observations the better informed potential students of the thai language can be in making a decision in attending a school of their choice.

Also realize different people have different goals in learning the language, some use it as a means to an end via the education visa route and take the language as a freebie, some want to speak, some read, some write and/or a combination of all of the above. What works for me, might be a <deleted> method for you, and vice versa.

I urge ANYONE interested in learning thai to attend and sit the free lessons at as many schools as they have time for BEFORE paying the tuition. It is only your time and travel invested and well worth trying on several different methods, before deciding on the one which works for you.

Unity Thai - http://www.utl-school.com

#########

One of the oldest and most well-known thai language schools and TONZ of people have attended it.

Material - quite dated, yet still cohesive

Teachers - honestly seem dedicated to teaching people to speak and learn the thai language

Value - their 'intensive' courses (21-24 days every day for 3 or 4 hours) are good value and I know many people who've taken several levels and came away speaking quite clear thai.

My Thai Language - http://www.mythailanguage.com

Another recent (a year or so) addition to the thai language market.

Material - well designed, thai on one side of the page, phonemic transcription and english on the other so if you can read, you need not be distracted by the english or transcription

Teachers - firmly dedicated to actually imparting the thai language to foreigners

Value – good

Pro-Language (Bangkok) - http://www.prolanguage.co.th

I mention the Bangkok branch as it seems this company might be a franchise and various posters have commented on the lack of cohesive learning at other branches in the country.

Material - well thought out, not as dated as Unity, lessons build upon earlier ones.

Teachers - seems to be a crap shoot, and if you start a class with one you don't like, don't be afraid to ask for a new teacher. Some only want to spout thai rhetoric instead of actually teach (especially so in the thai conversation class)

Value - not as cheap as some it is still good value

TLS - http://www.tls-bangkok.com

A good language school which caters predominantly to other Asian nationalities learning thai, although they are expanding their market to attract more native English speakers and now offer group classes as well.

Material - Good material, again well thought out, well presented, etc

Teachers - because they cater to asians, you will have to get into a class that is NOT taught in Japanese, Korean, or Chinese. They are now employing teachers who have experience teaching thai to english speakers and have come a long way in this regard

Value – good

Paradigm Language Institute - http://www.paradigm-language.com/

Little used or known school, but with that being said, they offer a wide variety of courses.

Material - some of the least dated material I have seen, well thought out, nicely presented.

Teachers - Good, informative, and dedicated

Value – good

Language Express - http://www.languageexpress.co.th

A relatively newcomer in the thai language niche. Brand spanking new school in a very convenient location

Material - Last time I was there they were using Benjawan Poomsan Becker's books: Beginning, Intermediate & Advanced as their course material. This is not the detriment one might think. Believe me (despite what ANYONE may claim; there are NO new innovations in learning this language) While I am about as far from a fan of Benjawan as anyone can be; she has probably done more single-handedly than any other thai national to encourage foreigners to learn this language.

Teachers - good, well spoken, and dedicated

Value – good

Piammitr Language School - http://www.piammitrschool.com/

Little known school, trying to carve a slice of the thai language pie for themselves. They are in the process of redesigning their text books

Material - good, somewhat dated but still not the worst by a long shot

Teachers - again a crap shoot, some are good some are less so. If you're in a class with a bad one ask for another.

Value – good

SMIT - http://smitlanguage.ac.th/main/

Again not so well known, but still a contender, and I've met many people who have attended there in the past.

Materials - well thought out, somewhat dated but still good,

Teachers - friendly professional, and dedicated (for the most part)

Value – good

AUA - http://www.auathai.com

One of, if not the oldest thai language school catering to foreigners in Bangkok.

Material - none. They now use the ALG (Automatic Language Growth) Method to teach spoken thai. You observe two teachers (actors) who talk about a wide variety of topic with various props. There is NO class interaction, no question/answer period, and it is observation ONLY. Their claim is; after attending 600 hours you will suddenly being speaking in tongues, I mean in thai.

Teachers - interesting, amusing, and entertaining, however as there is no interaction other thai observation I cannot comment further. They do seem dedicated to their methodology.

Value - this is one of the cheapest thai language schools a person will ever attend, and buying time in blocks gets you a further discount.

I believe AUA is a valuable school to attend ONLY if you have a grasp of at least basic spoken thai. At that level of thai comprehension and attending even a few hours a week will certainly increase your listening skills as it's only in thai with no engrish spoken in class.

Baan Aksorn - http://www.baanaksorn.com/index.php

A good school that is somewhat expensive, however they TEACH you speaking, reading writing, and are a no nonsense school. If you are employed by someone who will foot the bill, go there..

Material - extremely well put together

Teachers - as I said, they are no nonsense, and you're not going to just coast by in this schools program

Value - expensive but for the quality of education you receive and you have an unlimited education budget, go there

Jentana & Associates - http://www.thai-lessons.com

Another lesser known but high quality school. The owner Jentana caters more to corporate people who need intensive thai in a limited time frame. Also develops a personal program catered to the individual based on what that person wants, be it, speaking, reading, writing.

Material - very diverse, as many courses are individually tailored to a customers needs.

Teachers - very well trained and professional

Value - another expensive school but again if you've got someone footing the bill, a good choice.

Andrew Biggs Academy - (no website info about the thai classes) but here's his site link anyway http://www.andrewbiggs.com

The name says it all. He is probably the most recognizable foreigner here in this country, and he's certainly marketed his trademark "shaved head and big ears" into one serious money making machine in the english language market.

Material - very new, developed if I am not mistaken by a professor from a well known college, well thought out, and well presented. (this is another set of text books I want but don't have)

Teachers - when I attended the evaluation there was only one (last year some time when the thai language aspect of his school was just getting off the ground), but she was very good and professional.

Value - mid range, but for the money very good

Berlitz - an international language company that teaches far more languages than I care to list

Material - GREAT textbook, (and as an aside IF anyone has the Berlitz book and will let me copy it, PM me)

Teachers - good, follows the book, and dedicated

Value - expensive as all get out, but a good corporate choice

Lest anyone thinks I am discriminatory in my posting penchants; here's a school (I freely admit to attending for a year) and which needs no introduction on this forum;

Walen School of Thai - http://www.thaiwalen.com

Here are some other websites for the various schools I perused but have muddy memories of. After touring 25+ schools, some are less memorable than others but in no way does that mean they are not quality schools (only that I am getting old and have a failing memory)

Thai Language Solutions - http://www.thaisolutions1502.com

TLA School - http://www.tlaschool.com

Thai Language Hut - http://www.thailanguagehut.com

Sumaa Language & Cultural Institute - http://www.sumaa.net

Thailish Language School - http://www.thailanguageschool.com

I am sure there are more as there is NO shortage of thai language schools in Bangkok. I wonder why, with the plethora of language schools here, foreigners don't speak better thai or sometimes any thai at all, especially long-stayers. Then again I wonder the same about the plethora of "engrish" teachers I've met and why the thais don't speak better engrish too.

As an aside; It is my hobby to collect thai language text books from the various and sundry schools here. Most schools will not sell their textbooks outright unless you attend (savvy marketing), and then you can only buy the book for the level you attend. If anyone has any text books I can copy, PM me and we'll take it from there.

Hope this post will help get the thread back on track to its actual title, (and away from the pissing match it seemed to have deteriorated into).

(edited for spelling mistakes, but probably still didn't get 'em all)

[Parvis]

Scottish Thailander, I applaud you for starting a new thread for Students interested in learning Thai. I certainly hope it will be successful in discussing methods - pro and con.

Softwater - your comment "hit a nerve" and I quote:

"As for the naturalistic approach to optimizing language learning, I'm sceptical simply because the variables are so great. However, you could be right, but I think you may have to be the one to pioneer the study, Parvis!"

Interesting thought.

[Scottish Thailander]

Scottish Thailander, I applaud you for starting a new thread for Students interested in learning Thai. I certainly hope it will be successful in discussing methods - pro and con. . . .

Thanks. Hopefully we get enought useful comments on here to get this thread 'pinned' as a reference resource too.

ST

Edited November 15, 2009 by Scottish Thailander

[Scottish Thailander]

. . . .

"As for the naturalistic approach to optimizing language learning, I'm sceptical simply because the variables are so great. However, you could be right, but I think you may have to be the one to pioneer the study, Parvis!"

Interesting thought.

Ok, I am probably not as much of an 'academic' as some of you so maybe you can clarify something for me.

Babies (and L2 learners I assume) start learning a language from hearing it first. Would you, therefore, classify the process of a "listen with mother" type scenario as "naturalistic"? For example, listening to a native L2 speaker (or an MP3 of one) and reading along (silently or better still aloud) with a text like the Maanii readers.

I found that these readers (like many before and since seem to have found) that this a great and free way to get started with listening, reading, speaking, and comprehending Thai. And if you copy it out then it helps with writing and spelling too.

ST