Anyone Homeschooling Their Kids In Thailand?

[bbw]

hi there, full disclosure, i am working on a book about Thailand and wondering if there are any parents out there who have chosen to skip the Thai school system and international schools in favor of homeschooling? If you've done so or are considering it, please let me know!

[lannarebirth]

There have been several threads on this topic. Here's one:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Home-Schooli...hool+homeschool

The search feature may help you find more.

[bbw]

There have been several threads on this topic. Here's one:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Home-Schooli...hool+homeschool

The search feature may help you find more.

thanks for that!

[g00dgirl]

I am leaning towards a style of homeschooling that is called unschooling.

I would make that choice not because I am in Thailand, but in other countries as well, as I don't believe the school system is the best option for children whose parents can afford to and are enjoying to spend their days with their children.

For working parents who can not look after their kids while working, school is still a reasonable option. However I believe that the regular school system as we have it is not suited well for the information age we live in and alternative schooling styles (Sudbury or similar) might be better choices.

I have thought about this a lot and read many books about these topics until I came to this conclusion. When I started thinking about my childs education, a top of the range international school seemed to be the best choice, but I changed my mind completely now.

Edited March 2, 2010 by g00dgirl

[bkkjames]

I am leaning towards a style of homeschooling that is called unschooling.

I would make that choice not because I am in Thailand, but in other countries as well, as I don't believe the school system is the best option for children whose parents can afford to and are enjoying to spend their days with their children.

For working parents who can not look after their kids while working, school is still a reasonable option. However I believe that the regular school system as we have it is not suited well for the information age we live in and alternative schooling styles (Sudbury or similar) might be better choices.

I have thought about this a lot and read many books about these topics until I came to this conclusion. When I started thinking about my childs education, a top of the range international school seemed to be the best choice, but I changed my mind completely now.

Don't disagree with a lot you have written. I wouldn't trust my child's physical health with a 3rd party - why would I trust his mental health. (not only here by the way).

Not saying that memorizing history books is a bad thing, but too much education these days is based around read and remember over problem solving / experiencing.

From a professional point of view - the types of grads I have seen come and go from top universities over the years here really worry me.

[bbw]

I am leaning towards a style of homeschooling that is called unschooling.

I would make that choice not because I am in Thailand, but in other countries as well, as I don't believe the school system is the best option for children whose parents can afford to and are enjoying to spend their days with their children.

For working parents who can not look after their kids while working, school is still a reasonable option. However I believe that the regular school system as we have it is not suited well for the information age we live in and alternative schooling styles (Sudbury or similar) might be better choices.

I have thought about this a lot and read many books about these topics until I came to this conclusion. When I started thinking about my childs education, a top of the range international school seemed to be the best choice, but I changed my mind completely now.

Don't disagree with a lot you have written. I wouldn't trust my child's physical health with a 3rd party - why would I trust his mental health. (not only here by the way).

Not saying that memorizing history books is a bad thing, but too much education these days is based around read and remember over problem solving / experiencing.

From a professional point of view - the types of grads I have seen come and go from top universities over the years here really worry me.

i think that's why some parents consider homeschooling.

critical thinking and problem-solving skills are great but at the end of the day you also have to know something about something. without a knowledge base you have no context from which to draw conclusions and make insights.

i'd guess many parents want a good balance of both for their kids. having talked to some parents about it here in bangkok, it does seem like homeschooling is an incredibly difficult thing to pull off unless you have tons of time on your hands and either lots of money to hire tutors for specific topics or happen to be an expert in biology, chemistry, physics, calculus, etc.

[Niranut]

i'd guess many parents want a good balance of both for their kids. having talked to some parents about it here in bangkok, it does seem like homeschooling is an incredibly difficult thing to pull off unless you have tons of time on your hands and either lots of money to hire tutors for specific topics or happen to be an expert in biology, chemistry, physics, calculus, etc.

I've posted most of what I know in the link to the PP mentioned above.

But just wanted to comment on the suggestion that homeschooling is difficult without lots of money for tutors and such. I would encourage you to take some time to speak with more homeschooling families here in Thailand (or anywhere, really). The vast majority of those that I know do so on quite a budget, as they are single income families since the mother often stays home to do the homeschooling. While some do use private tutors, the point of co-ops and other homeschool groups is to pool resources for all aspects of homeschooling, one of which is to work together on some of the higher level math and science courses. It is common for co-ops to come together and hire a tutor for several students, thus cutting costs considerably for each individual family.

Also, for families in remote locations (again both in Thailand and elsewhere), curricula for high school math/science (including AP courses) and even college level courses in all subjects are readily available. For example, the company that I am currently using is comprehensive in every way. Once my kids reach the high school level, EVERYTHING they need comes in their annual box of curriculum supplies (this includes microscope w/supplies, animals for dissection, all supplies for experiments, etc.). And the actual teaching itself can be done by the parent (if they are knowledgeable), but can also be done via CD-ROM/DVD and/or online time with a professor either one-on-one or in an online class. If you do a google for "Homeschool physics curriculum," "homeschool biology curriculum," etc. you can get a good idea of the wealth of resources available and how they are readily adaptable and provide a quality of education regardless of where you are or what your budget is.

And a point to the suggestion that parents need a lot of time. One of the advantages of homeschooling is that actual "school" time is a fraction of what kids in a classroom setting would spend, simply because when you work in such a small group it is easy to identify when your children are ready to move on or when they need to spend a little extra time on something. Additonally, as homeschool children move through middle school and into high school, the amount of time that parents spend daily goes down considerably, while the amount of time students spend daily goes up. This is because kids are able to work much more independently as they get older.

A quick example of time requirements from the curriculum that I'm using:

Pre-K and K: students and parents each spend 1-2 hrs. per day

1st, 2nd grade: student 2-3 hrs, parent 1.5-2 hrs

3rd grade: student 3.5-4.5 hrs, parent 2-3 hrs

4th grade: student 3.5-5 hrs, parent 2-3 hrs

5th & 6th & 7th grade: student 4-6 hrs, parent 2-3.5 hrs

8th grade: student 5-7 hrs, parent 2-3.5 hrs

9th grade: student 5-7 hrs, parent 1-2.5 hrs

10th & 11th & 12th grade: student 6-8 hrs, parent 1-2.5 hrs

Of course, these are just general guidelines, but the other families I know who use the curriculum all fall into the suggested time ranges.

There are also studies which have come out recently all of which conclude that all homeschooled children in the research either performed at the same level of their peers in the classroom setting, or excelled beyond that-- with many excelling in all subject areas. I don't have the links to the study with me right now, but google can help you track those down for you, I'm sure

Out of curiousity, what kind of book are you working on, exactly? What is it about homeschooling that you would like to include?

[gregb]

Once my kids reach the high school level, EVERYTHING they need comes in their annual box of curriculum supplies (this includes microscope w/supplies, animals for dissection, all supplies for experiments, etc.).

Animals for dissection? Do you mean there is a Thai company supplying these kits? Or are you talking about ordering from overseas? If overseas, how exactly do you get import permits for the animals?

Very curious about this. Without violating the TV rules on advertising, can you give us the name of such a company supplying this? If this company is overseas, have you or anyone you know actually successfully imported the biology training kit with live animals?

[Niranut]

Once my kids reach the high school level, EVERYTHING they need comes in their annual box of curriculum supplies (this includes microscope w/supplies, animals for dissection, all supplies for experiments, etc.).

Animals for dissection? Do you mean there is a Thai company supplying these kits? Or are you talking about ordering from overseas? If overseas, how exactly do you get import permits for the animals?

Very curious about this. Without violating the TV rules on advertising, can you give us the name of such a company supplying this? If this company is overseas, have you or anyone you know actually successfully imported the biology training kit with live animals?

There are probably Thai companies that do this, but I was referring the all-inclusive curriculum that I use, Sonlight, which is a U.S.-based company. My kids are still too young for high school science (they're doing pre-k now ), but I do know of a couple other overseas families here in Thailand and one in China who have successfully received the science supply kits. This is the page which list the different science kits that are available to complement the different science programs to choose from: http://www.sonlight.com/science-supplykits.html Other companies also offer similar kits and supplies. Some countries do restrict some of the kits, and this is often noted in the product description. But as for Thailand, they have allowed it in the past, and as far as I know nothing has changed.

[daydreambeliever]

I am leaning towards a style of homeschooling that is called unschooling.

I would make that choice not because I am in Thailand, but in other countries as well, as I don't believe the school system is the best option for children whose parents can afford to and are enjoying to spend their days with their children.

For working parents who can not look after their kids while working, school is still a reasonable option. However I believe that the regular school system as we have it is not suited well for the information age we live in and alternative schooling styles (Sudbury or similar) might be better choices.

I have thought about this a lot and read many books about these topics until I came to this conclusion. When I started thinking about my childs education, a top of the range international school seemed to be the best choice, but I changed my mind completely now.

We are also inspired by John Holt's ideas on "unschooling" and use a child-led approach to learning whereby our daughters are encouraged to explore, discover and manage their own learning in a supportive, stimulating environment with access to a wide range of resources in the hope that this will eventually empower them to think for themselves and produce qualities of self-esteem, tolerance, integrity, fairness, understanding, sensitivity, compassion, assertiveness, creativity, individuality, humour, self-motivation, and common sense.

If there are any other families in the Phuket area who might be interested in establishing an informal supportive network for sharing ideas, resources, learning methods, play times and educational activities please pm me. Thanks.