Can Any Teacher Please Help! Racism In Schools.

[Somtamnication]

I teach at govt. schools and I am always the dam_n falang. However, to the OP, talk with the head teacher at the school, remind them that your child HAS A NAME and to use it. Do it with a stern smile (yes, those exist). The HT will then go to the teacher in question and tell her the falangs are pissed off. lol.

You need to do it before it gets out of hand.

[Kilgore Trout]

Thai is a contextual language. Farang is used to describe everyone not Thai. no big deal.

Absolutely false, how many times do we have to go over this.

"Farang" is a racial term referring to "white people."

Asians, Africans, Middle Easterners etc. are not in any way, shape or form referred to as Falang, and as we all know a "white person" with Thai citizenship is still considered "falang."

Please get your facts straight.

[MAJIC]

For all you Apologists out there,Try asking your Thai Girlfriend/Wife,the following:

Q..........When I take you back to my Country,will you be the "Farang?" as in Foreiner?

A.......... Guaranteed she will protest and will say something on the lines of:......"no no no, I am Thai" or "I will always be Thai" (or words to that effect)

So if Thais don't want to be pinned with this word "Farang",it must be derogatory,and undesirable as a label, that being the case,why should we Westerners be happy being called it?????

They also still call us "Farangs" while Residing in our Countries

Which I have heard said many times,in the UK!

Oops! It means "Caucasian". So no matter where you go, you are still one and your Thai wife or GF never will be.

Try again.

I have looked in many good English Dictionaries,and I can't find any interpretation of the words, Farang or Falang?

Nice try!

[MAJIC]

Talking to the head of the school--if the teacher persists, is a good option. A lot of administrators will stop something, even if they don't agree, because they don't like to have upset parents.

Where I work, the students and Thai teachers are specifically forbidden to refer to the Foreign teachers as Farang. It's a word that I occasionally hear at the school, but it is never in reference to a teacher or student.

I have never known a teacher to actually refer to a child as 'farang' by a teacher. It sounds quite inappropriate and it is appropriate for the parents to object.

If only all schools,were as forward thinking as yours obviously is,

then the problem would not be there for future generations.

[onionluke]

My son was having a bit off difficulty down at the local villge pre-school 3 and 4 year olds.It was a holding pen really . It was farang this and farang that and he was on the recieving end of beating by his school chums and so on . It came to the day when he came home and called me farang as aposed the usual call of daddy . He was under alot of pressure and was trying like hell to fit in . I didn't envy his position and started looking for a new school . We found a private school in the town 10 km away . I am very happy with where he is now . I think it is part of the course for my son , i will just have to try and make it an easier ride .

note : The chances are stacked against him , he is half Scots .

[jdinasia]

I have looked in many good English Dictionaries,and I can't find any interpretation of the words, Farang or Falang?

Nice try!

HUH?

Why would the Thai word for caucasian (or guava) be in an English dictionary? In the above scenario your GF is correct .. even in England in the Thai language you would still be "farang" and she would still be "Thai" ... In English, however, she would be asian and you would be .......

Your mistake is in thinking "farang" means "foreigner", it does not.

To the OP ----- Somtamnification has a good read on how to go about the practicalities in your situation.

[harrry]

My son was having a bit off difficulty down at the local villge pre-school 3 and 4 year olds.It was a holding pen really . It was farang this and farang that and he was on the recieving end of beating by his school chums and so on . It came to the day when he came home and called me farang as aposed the usual call of daddy . He was under alot of pressure and was trying like hell to fit in . I didn't envy his position and started looking for a new school . We found a private school in the town 10 km away . I am very happy with where he is now . I think it is part of the course for my son , i will just have to try and make it an easier ride .

note : The chances are stacked against him , he is half Scots .

He shouldn't have called his schoolmate sasanachs

[onionluke]

My son was having a bit off difficulty down at the local villge pre-school 3 and 4 year olds.It was a holding pen really . It was farang this and farang that and he was on the recieving end of beating by his school chums and so on . It came to the day when he came home and called me farang as aposed the usual call of daddy . He was under alot of pressure and was trying like hell to fit in . I didn't envy his position and started looking for a new school . We found a private school in the town 10 km away . I am very happy with where he is now . I think it is part of the course for my son , i will just have to try and make it an easier ride .

note : The chances are stacked against him , he is half Scots .

He shouldn't have called his schoolmate sasanachs

Ah !! I can see him now . Standing in the playground in a Glasgow school shouting back " am no a chinky , am a thai ya bastarts"

[jcartermad]

It anoys the hell out of me. You go to Tesco and some kid shouts "farang." This never happens in Europe or American. 3 year old kids don't shout "foreigner" when they see someone is MAYBE from somewhere else. I have heard students say "we like our farang teachers". I try and correct them, not harshly but just add that it is an EP lesson as the correct word is foreigner. It seems to work but when I hear Thai teachers mention farang in their conversations I could scream!

I just sit there and ignore the use of the word. Dumb or accepting? I don't know for sure.

[SteeleJoe]

For all you Apologists out there,Try asking your Thai Girlfriend/Wife,the following:

Q..........When I take you back to my Country,will you be the "Farang?" as in Foreiner?

A.......... Guaranteed she will protest and will say something on the lines of:......"no no no, I am Thai" or "I will always be Thai" (or words to that effect)

So if Thais don't want to be pinned with this word "Farang",it must be derogatory,and undesirable as a label, that being the case,why should we Westerners be happy being called it?????

They also still call us "Farangs" while Residing in our Countries

Which I have heard said many times,in the UK!

Oops! It means "Caucasian". So no matter where you go, you are still one and your Thai wife or GF never will be.

Try again.

I have looked in many good English Dictionaries,and I can't find any interpretation of the words, Farang or Falang?

Nice try!

It's from the Indo-European group of languages. It's not in English dictionaries.

It's very clear to anyone who speaks Thai, or even anyone who pays attention to Thais speaking, what it means. Whether or not one should take offense is debatable. What it means (or whether it applies to Thais no matter where they are) is not.

[otherstuff1957]

Actually, Farang comes from the word French, who were among the first Europeans to spend a lot of time in this part of the world. In Cambodia they say Barang and in India it's Ferengi.

Come to think of it, it is quite insulting to be called a Farang!

[SteeleJoe]

Actually, Farang comes from the word French...In Cambodia they say Barang and in India it's Ferengi.

A common belief that is almost certainly wrong.

The Portuguese were here long before (they brought the Guava -- or farang in Thai). The Persians were here -- and influential -- even before them.They almost certainly brought the Indo-persian word that Farang is derived from (as is a dozen other very similar words in various languages with essentially the same meaning -- including the 2 you cite.)

That's the short version of what I've said too many times here and elsewhere.

Edited May 30, 2011 by SteeleJoe

[SomTumTiger]

I have found that most of the time, I don't understand the whole story, and a few reasonable questions will usually resolve the issue. I know dispassionate responses don't rule the day on TV, but that would be my suggestion.

[elliss]

,

IMO,

it is not in your daughters best interest too make an issue over it .

if you do , then she WILL be marginised.

if i am repetedly refered to as a farang , as i have been previously by a member of my ex,s family ,

i refer to that person as khoun thai , and not use their name .

:jap:

[rijb]

,

IMO,

it is not in your daughters best interest too make an issue over it .

if you do , then she WILL be marginised.

if i am repetedly refered to as a farang , as i have been previously by a member of my ex,s family ,

i refer to that person as khoun thai , and not use their name .

:jap:

Nice!

[mrtoad]

Having read this thread and many valid points, I myself as a parent of a child in an an ELP would be highly annoyed if she was being called "Farang" by a teacher, as opposed to her first name. Thankfully, it doesn't seem to have been an issue at her school, where there are a number of mixed race children.

I just think in the end the teacher is unprofessional, and inappropriate - and yes, I would not be keeping my child at a school that allowed that nonsense to continue.

[GentlemanJim]

,

IMO,

it is not in your daughters best interest too make an issue over it .

if you do , then she WILL be marginised.

if i am repetedly refered to as a farang , as i have been previously by a member of my ex,s family ,

i refer to that person as khoun thai , and not use their name .

:jap:

elliss

You clearly have no idea what is in my daughters best interests, your last sentence displays that. I have my daughters best interests at heart and that is why, if and only if it is appropriate, I will always liaise with her teachers to ensure any potential issues are resolved in a timely manner. I will never abdicate my responsibility as a parent who needs to be my daughters mentor, friend, role model and Father when I walk her through the school gate. Throughout the education of all my children I have always established good close relationships with their teachers and taken an active interest in matters of education and helping wherever possible in school extra curricular activities, and my little girl will be no exception. I will be as full a part of school life as is desired, which I appreciate in Thailand may be not so much. I assume from your last sentence above that whilst telling me I do not have my daughters best interests at heart, you suggest a better alternative would be to teach my 3.75 year old child that if a teacher refers to her as 'farang Smith', then she should simply call the teacher Khun Thai? Quite breathtaking advice, and that wouldn't get her 'marginised' would it! Quite OK for an adult, though not quite my style, I would just say 'oh, my name is Jim' and smile. Your strategy might undermine the teachers authority somewhat, and that is something I will never have my child participating in.

Update

For all of you excellent people who offered sincere advice I thank you. Today we had 5 minutes with the teacher in the morning. I explained in a slightly jocular matter what we understood to have taken place. The teacher's jaw dropped completely and she expressed that nobody in the school, either teacher or child is allowed to call any foreign student 'farang' nor would they, it simply is not how they try and develop their children she told me.

On collection of my daughter in the afternoon the Teacher came over and apologised that an event as I described had indeed taken place. It was a part time teacher from another School, being used as a temporary fill in. She assured me it was the first time she had heard such a thing in 15 years at the school. I told her there was absolutely no need to apologise and thanked her for clarifying a matter that I was simply confused over as it was raised by a under 4 year old. She thanked me and we both departed company very happy. So a successful outcome contributed to, in no small part by being able to take time out and mull over all the constructive advice and knowledge that was offered on the thread.

Thanks again Guys! Result.

Edited May 31, 2011 by GentlemanJim

[SteeleJoe]

Nice one.

[bermondburi]

got two kids in school here. One called Alex and one called Tawan. I would be disturbed if the teacher was calling them anything else than their names however jokey it was. Names are there for a reason. To call that person. At the same time though my son will quite happily say that he is a farang / thai mixed baby and say that I am a farang ( not call me farang , he calls me Daddy ) Got no problems with that because that's what I am. In the classroom though I think it's better if everyone just gets called by their names. Does this teacher call another kid chinky or darky ? probably not.

[newbie001]

good news for you gentlemen Jim.

For most respondents to this thread they seem to not quite understand the issue. It isn't the use of the word fallang. It is calling a kid fallang instead of their name.

Yes, someone might be asian, but in a school system a teacher should not call that person, hey you Asian sit down.

The word in itself isn't offensive but if it is used in replace of a proper noun or referring to someone's differences when they are not necessary then it is indeed racists.

If you are the only white person in a room and someone asks where is so and so, someone could easily say the fallang. It would make sense to easily find the person.

But if you are at a restaurant with a group of Thais and the waiter said, khun krap, to everyone when asking them what they wanted but turned to you and said fallang krap. That again would be racist.

The westerners that I have met here that don't get offended by the word are the same ones that call their partners Thai wives/girlfriends. So in a sense they are racist also.

[hehehoho]

I have a heard a number of Thai teachers call half-western kids 'Farang Noi' - little farang, both to the child and when talking about them.

Private kindergarten with fees of about 100,000thb per year.

[newbie001]

since they have a word for mixed children ,I doubt your statement. Hearing the kids called Look Kreung would be common but farrang noi. I hardly doubt it. So I must call BS on that one. At a 100,000 baht kindergarten I doubt that also. Or are we to believe that you work there?

[skybluestu]

since they have a word for mixed children ,I doubt your statement. Hearing the kids called Look Kreung would be common but farrang noi. I hardly doubt it. So I must call BS on that one. At a 100,000 baht kindergarten I doubt that also. Or are we to believe that you work there?

My 1yr old daughter often gets called farang noi. An international school recently opened where I live with KG fees of around 100k per year, maybe it's not BS.

[hehehoho]

since they have a word for mixed children ,I doubt your statement. Hearing the kids called Look Kreung would be common but farrang noi. I hardly doubt it. So I must call BS on that one. At a 100,000 baht kindergarten I doubt that also. Or are we to believe that you work there?

Nope.

The kids in question look almost completely western and are commonly called 'farang noi' instead of their name, by a number of staff. I either pick my niece up or drop her off most days and hear it probably once a week. I cannot actually recall hearing them call anyone leuk-krung (ลูกครึ่ง).

Edited June 4, 2011 by hehehoho

[hehehoho]

^^ Don't think a 100,000thb kindergarten is too expensive. Base fees are around 85k, plus all the other stuff like lunches, uniforms, costumes for every ceremony they can dream up etc.

[tromboneman]

racism is what you do. try argue with what people say.

[hehehoho]

Can you say that slower/louder? Google translate doesn't show anything for it.

[user82374298374]

Welcome to Asia, OP.

;>

[Honolulu]

My daughter is mixed. 50% Thai-50% Irish/American. She understands her situation and is absolutely tickled that she is so much more than an "ordinary Thai". She knows that she will have duel citizenship as a Thai and as a citizen of the most powerful country on earth. It amazes me how proud she seems of her heritage, and she is constantly reminding others of this fact. "I'm not a Thai, (she says) I'm a Farong". So we don't share your burden.

Having said that, it would be improper for a teacher to address her in any way other than her proper Thai nickname. I would definately think about speaking to the teacher. But there is no reason to be unreasonable. One thing Thais love is a good bribe. Mabey the teacher is a capitalist! Ask her to please use your childs proper name, for obvious reasons, in the classroom setting, and expect a nice tip from a grateful parent at the end of the school year. That might nip it in the bud. And you can always go "over her head" later if need be.

[SteeleJoe]

That ought to get some responses...