Walen School - Myanmar Language Course

[MacWalen]

Hi guys, I have very competent Myanmar staff as well as many Myanmar students and we have an idea to start teaching some basic Myanmar conversation and also alphabet for those wishing to progress further. Not sure if there were enough interested students to join. Myanmar is opening up for business so I think there might be some interest. I have never heard of a school that would teach it in Bangkok and we might be the first one to attempt it.

I would like to propose a 60 lesson course twice a week at 5 or 7 pm. Promotion price would be only 9,900 Baht per person and we would need at least 10 candidates to start. Let me know your thoughts. Very much appreciated.

Walen School - what about learning some Burmese?

[transam]

Sorry, not me.

[nidieunimaitre]

Does that price include a free ED visa and unlimited stay (as your ad says)?

[mamypoko]

I'm interested....would something like this be after work hours?

(am located in bkk)

[MacWalen]

Does that price include a free ED visa and unlimited stay (as your ad says)?

I am afraid we do not offer an ED visa assistance for this particular course but I guess you could enroll in Thai and take 60 lessons in this course. It would work. If you needed an ED visa assistance you would need to pay 24,960 Baht.

[MacWalen]

I'm interested....would something like this be after work hours?

(am located in bkk)

Yes, it could be at 7 pm or 5 pm, depending what time would work best for most students who wanted to join that course. Anyway, glad you are interested, anybody else?

[Slaps]

I'm interested....would something like this be after work hours?

(am located in bkk)

Yes, it could be at 7 pm or 5 pm, depending what time would work best for most students who wanted to join that course. Anyway, glad you are interested, anybody else?

Do you teach attitude in Thai as well?

I would love to learn that

.

[imovercs]

After all the comments about abuses by the well connected in Thailand we now have a "super member" posting a blatent advertisement under the guise of question. This should be under classifieds and not on a forum

[pinball]

HI,

Keep me up to date I am very interested in this.

Pinball

[Nisa]

Does that price include a free ED visa and unlimited stay (as your ad says)?

I am afraid we do not offer an ED visa assistance for this particular course but I guess you could enroll in Thai and take 60 lessons in this course. It would work. If you needed an ED visa assistance you would need to pay 24,960 Baht.

A number of years back I registered for your Thai class and you guys were great at handling the ED Visa .. I didn't have to life a finger for paperwork. It was a great experience both killing two birds with one stone (learning Thai and being worry free in terms of Visas) but I really enjoyed the class, students, teachers and teaching style.

I don't usually plug companies like this but I recommend your school all the time. I have fond memories of going as does my wife who took your English course.

[Nisa]

After all the comments about abuses by the well connected in Thailand we now have a "super member" posting a blatent advertisement under the guise of question. This should be under classifieds and not on a forum

The OP is a paid advertiser and as such is allowed to post such things. It is also not like he is posting something that has no value/interest to people here or that Whalen is not one of the most recognized schools of its kind in Thailand ... in other words this isn't a post about buying over priced time shares in Burma by some fly by night company we have never heard of.

Edited March 16, 2012 by Nisa

[soundman]

After all the comments about abuses by the well connected in Thailand we now have a "super member" posting a blatent advertisement under the guise of question. This should be under classifieds and not on a forum

Forum "Sponsors" may reasonably promote their goods or services within the sub-forums they sponsor.

The OP "MacWalen" is a forum sponsor.

[Sateev]

The language spoken in Myanmar is Burmese.

[MacWalen]

Apparently both names are used for the language. Also the country is still called Burma by some.

The Burmese language (Burmese: မြန်မာဘာသာ; pronounced [mjəmà bàðà]; MLCTS: myanma bhasa) is the official language of Burma. Burmese is the native language of the Bamar and related sub-ethnic groups of the Bamar, as well as that of some ethnic minorities in Burma like the Mon. Burmese is spoken by 32 million as a first language and as a second language by 10 million, particularly ethnic minorities in Burma and those in neighboring countries. (Although the constitution officially recognizes the English name of the language as the Myanmar language,^[1] most English speakers continue to refer to the language as Burmese.)

This is what I got from the Wikipedia. Things got confusing since they changed the name of the country.

[FritsSikkink]

The language spoken in Myanmar is Burmese.

According the government and The United Nations, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Germany, China, India and Japan it is Myanmar

According governments of many countries, including the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom it is Burmese.

Edited March 16, 2012 by FritsSikkink

[MacWalen]

Seems we have two potential students already!

If we had another 8 we are ready to start. Ya (our Myanmar teacher) is making a list of those who are interested and will be staying in touch with you. Hopefully it can work, she is very excited about the prospect of teaching her language to foreigners. We talked about it before as she is teaching me some words but this time we hope to make it work in practice.

As you may probably guess Walen will not make a whole heap of money teaching Burmese but it would be an interesting thing to do. Learning some Burmese would be particularly beneficial to those who consider possible business in Myanmar, I believe there is money to be made there. I am run a language school but also have a good grasp of business as such. Perhaps will teach more about money and business in the future.

Walen School, knowledge is power - share it

Edited March 16, 2012 by MacWalen

[MacWalen]

Does that price include a free ED visa and unlimited stay (as your ad says)?

I am afraid we do not offer an ED visa assistance for this particular course but I guess you could enroll in Thai and take 60 lessons in this course. It would work. If you needed an ED visa assistance you would need to pay 24,960 Baht.

A number of years back I registered for your Thai class and you guys were great at handling the ED Visa .. I didn't have to life a finger for paperwork. It was a great experience both killing two birds with one stone (learning Thai and being worry free in terms of Visas) but I really enjoyed the class, students, teachers and teaching style.

I don't usually plug companies like this but I recommend your school all the time. I have fond memories of going as does my wife who took your English course.

Khun Nisa, thank you very much for your kind words. A few years later and we are still here and busier than before with more schools in other locations. Your referrals certainly work.

[Ijustwannateach]

I think you would find that many natives of Myanmar/Burma would prefer to call their country that official name- I know because they have told me so!- because they are not technically of Burmese ethnicity. However, English-speaking nation's citizens prefer Burma out of long habit of non-cooperation with the military leadership. Also, the language in question, being the language of the Burmese ethnic group, *is* probably best known as Burmese because it is *not* universal (many groups speak their own ethnic languages, Karen, Shan, etc.- the country is quite fragmented ethnically), however it is the 'central' dialect and the government's (and ruling caste's) native and 'official' tongue. But I defer to any actual citizens of that country, as to what I should call it when communicating with them.

[Nisa]

I think you would find that many natives of Myanmar/Burma would prefer to call their country that official name- I know because they have told me so!- because they are not technically of Burmese ethnicity. However, English-speaking nation's citizens prefer Burma out of long habit of non-cooperation with the military leadership. Also, the language in question, being the language of the Burmese ethnic group, *is* probably best known as Burmese because it is *not* universal (many groups speak their own ethnic languages, Karen, Shan, etc.- the country is quite fragmented ethnically), however it is the 'central' dialect and the government's (and ruling caste's) native and 'official' tongue. But I defer to any actual citizens of that country, as to what I should call it when communicating with them.

Interesting and agree with the name which the people prefer is best but possibly more important is the Assoc. of SE Asian Nations calling it Myanmar if we are in Thailand ... back home I guess we can keep calling it Burma ;-)

.

I did a wikipedia search for Myanmar and it brings you to the Burma page .... http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Burma#Name

In 1989, the military government officially changed the English translations of many colonial-era names; among these changes was the alteration of the name of the country to "Myanmar". The renaming remains a contested issue.[11] Many opposition groups and countries continue to use "Burma" because they do not recognise the legitimacy of the ruling military government or its authority to rename the country.[12] Various non-Burman ethnic groups choose not to recognise the name because of the association of the term "Myanmar" with the majority ethnic group, the Bamar, rather than with the country.[13][14][15]

"Burma" continues to be used in English by the governments of many countries, including the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. The United Nations uses "Myanmar", as do the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Germany,[16] China, India and Japan.[17]

Edited March 16, 2012 by Nisa

[MacWalen]

And according to airasia.com it is Myanmar -)

[FritsSikkink]

I think you would find that many natives of Myanmar/Burma would prefer to call their country that official name- I know because they have told me so!- because they are not technically of Burmese ethnicity. However, English-speaking nation's citizens prefer Burma out of long habit of non-cooperation with the military leadership. Also, the language in question, being the language of the Burmese ethnic group, *is* probably best known as Burmese because it is *not* universal (many groups speak their own ethnic languages, Karen, Shan, etc.- the country is quite fragmented ethnically), however it is the 'central' dialect and the government's (and ruling caste's) native and 'official' tongue. But I defer to any actual citizens of that country, as to what I should call it when communicating with them.

Interesting and agree with the name which the people prefer is best but possibly more important is the Assoc. of SE Asian Nations calling it Myanmar if we are in Thailand ... back home I guess we can keep calling it Burma ;-)

.

I did a wikipedia search for Myanmar and it brings you to the Burma page .... http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Burma#Name

In 1989, the military government officially changed the English translations of many colonial-era names; among these changes was the alteration of the name of the country to "Myanmar". The renaming remains a contested issue.[11] Many opposition groups and countries continue to use "Burma" because they do not recognise the legitimacy of the ruling military government or its authority to rename the country.[12] Various non-Burman ethnic groups choose not to recognise the name because of the association of the term "Myanmar" with the majority ethnic group, the Bamar, rather than with the country.[13][14][15]

"Burma" continues to be used in English by the governments of many countries, including the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. The United Nations uses "Myanmar", as do the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Germany,[16] China, India and Japan.[17]

That is what i said 4 hours before.

[tombkk]

Firstly, I find it great that you offer teaching this language. I am not in the market yet though, I will have to learn Khmer first because I have more business in Cambodia and visit there often.

Very much like the country is called Cambodia and the language is called Khmer, I would call the country Myanmar and the language that is most widely spoken Burmese. The Burmese are the largest ethinic group but there are more ethnic groups in Myanmar, so naming the country after one ethnic group isn't fair. However, each group has their own language, and the language of the Burmese has made it to become official language.

That's my take on it: The official and most widely spoken language in Myanmar is Burmese!

[FritsSikkink]

The Burmese are the largest ethinic group

No they are called the Bamar

[NewlyMintedThai]

Count me as no. 3.

[MacWalen]

Firstly, I find it great that you offer teaching this language. I am not in the market yet though, I will have to learn Khmer first because I have more business in Cambodia and visit there often.

Very much like the country is called Cambodia and the language is called Khmer, I would call the country Myanmar and the language that is most widely spoken Burmese. The Burmese are the largest ethinic group but there are more ethnic groups in Myanmar, so naming the country after one ethnic group isn't fair. However, each group has their own language, and the language of the Burmese has made it to become official language.

That's my take on it: The official and most widely spoken language in Myanmar is Burmese!

Yes, it makes a lot of sense. I am OK with whatever is officially accepted. So shall we call it Burmese then? I am totally OK with Burmese. What matter for me most is what Burmese want to call their language.

[MacWalen]

Count me as no. 3.

Thanks a lot! I will ask Ya to add you to the list. So 7 to go. Anybody else interested? I will make a banner to advertise to a larger public.

[yawai]

Hello Everyone,

Mingalar bar. My name is Ya Wai. I am a Burmese teacher at Walen School. Nice to meet you all. I just wanted to drop by to say HI to all of you. And thank you for interested in learning my language. We already have 3 candidates who are interested so all we gotta do is wait for a few more to be 10.

[Nisa]

Count me as no. 3.

Thanks a lot! I will ask Ya to add you to the list. So 7 to go. Anybody else interested? I will make a banner to advertise to a larger public.

MacWalen, I sent you a PM.

[jibberjabberjibberjabber]

Hi, Yes I am interested in 1 or perhaps 2 places on this course

[MacWalen]

Hi, Yes I am interested in 1 or perhaps 2 places on this course

Ya will contact you shortly. So we have half of the class already. A few more and we can start. We are working on importing some dictionaries from Myanmar. It is hard to find them here and a good dictionary is very helpful.