Tefl Bkk

[BalthazarBeefheart]

I want to teach English and would like some advice about getting started. Any recommendations for a TEFL course here in BKK would be most appreciated. Also any tips on finding employment - I'm more interested in teaching the less fortunate.

Happy New Year to you all.

[Ijustwannateach]

Happy New Year. You need to start by reading Questions About Qualifications, the pinned thread, which will give you some idea of what kinds of jobs you should be looking for with whatever qualifications and experience you have. There is also a list of generally useful threads on page 12 (I think) of that thread. You should read all of those, as well as many more on this forum. When you have a better idea what might suit you from what's available, come back and ask more specific questions.

"Steven"

[BalthazarBeefheart]

Thanks so much for taking the trouble to reply - I did wade through that thread this morning it may well have been too many brandies but I was more confused than when I started. I've had another look but maybe I've not sobered up yet. I just am asking for any recommendations for a TEFL course out here and employment possibilities for teaching the less privileged in LOS.

Thanks Again

Edited January 1, 2006 by BalthazarBeefheart

[Ijustwannateach]

It *is* confusing. But if your specific goals are really to teach underprivileged children (and you're not too worried about the money or career) then you need look no further than most normal government schools, elementary or high school, especially outside downtown Bangkok. The 25-30K B pittance they will pay you certainly counts as charity- and you should get a work permit and visa on top of this to make it easy for you to stay in the country. Try to get strong promises/ commitments regarding the work permit especially before agreeing to do the job.

As far as a TEFL course, if your goal is specifically to teach Thai children conversational English, I don't think you could get any more custom-designed for that or cheaper than one of the TnT courses. CELTA's more grammar-driven, adult-oriented, and academic- probably overkill for your stated needs, and more expensive as well.

That's about as well as I can do for a reply based on what you've given. My first post is still a good idea, as well as many other threads here. It *is* confusing, and you *will* have a few headaches before you begin to get a clear picture of what your choices are. Good luck.

"Steven"

[BalthazarBeefheart]

Steven Thank you so much for pointing me in the right direction - you've help kickstart my new year on a positive note. Many Thanks

[Hermano Lobo]

Thanks so much for taking the trouble to reply - I did wade through that thread this morning it may well have been too many brandies but I was more confused than when I started. I've had another look but maybe I've not sobered up yet. I just am asking for any recommendations for a TEFL course out here and employment possibilities for teaching the less privileged in LOS.

Thanks Again

That is a very laudable goal. But you cannot help unless you have a CELTA/TEFL/TESOL qualification!

More importantly you need teaching experience. You really cannot help 'the less privileged' unless you have a firm teaching background to call upon. Even a short period of teaching English would help as at least you would understand what you are getting into.

Good sentiment is not enough one has to be practical.

[Ladphrao]

"But you cannot help unless you have a CELTA/TEFL/TESOL qualification!"

Spare us the salesmanship for the 4 week wonder courses. No doubt some training is better than none, but the idea of spending 4 weeks in a class being taught techniques based on someone's opinion and experience and not educational theory gained from empirical research makes one "qualified" to any substantial extent over someone without any training is a joke.

"More importantly you need teaching experience" Tell me my good friend, how do you go about getting this if you aren't born with it? Everyone has to start somewhere, the guy can learn on the job. It’s teaching English for goodness sake, how much damage can an inexperienced but well-intentioned individual do? Every year there are thousands of people who come to Asia to teach English who have never taught before. Some take a four week wonder course, others don't. Some turn into great teachers, the vast majority become good teachers and a few will always suck regardless of how long in the job. Most lack technique in the initial stages but often make up for it with energy and effort. As the technique starts coming, the energy and effort often leave, bit of a push. So what if he sucks the first few weeks on the job, will anyone notice or care, as long as he is trying and learning? The idea one has to have experience teaching before becoming a teacher in Thailand is laughable. Less than 10% of English teachers in Thailand have ever taught a class in their home countries.

BalthazarBeefheart does sound a bit naive, and his love of teaching English to the underprivileged will probably be short-lived when he finds most of the students could care less about the subject and no one will act particularly gratefully for his charitable efforts, but weren’t we all naïve-somewhat-idealistic newbies at one time and had similar sentiments before becoming so cynical?

Come on guys, come off your high horses, its teaching English, not quantum physics. Most of us have been speaking English our whole lives (Only skill many teachers have) and have spent years in classrooms and have a good idea of the role of a teacher. I’m not saying don’t get some training, but to call it a necessity to teach simple conversational English is a farce that originates from the marketing efforts of the schools selling the courses. Thai schools will always take someone who is Jai Dee over someone with a four-week wonder diploma every time to teach English.

My advise, take a course, any course, and give teaching a try. What do you have to lose? (If you do have something to lose, step back and give some serious thought before becoming an English teacher, but if you ain’t got much going on career wise at home, what the heck)

English teachers, stop taking yourselves so seriously and acting like you are part of an exclusive club, makes yourselves sound pathetic.

[kenkannif]

Do a search plenty of info here about the various courses. Most will let you spend time in them to compare and contrast. Do becareful though as some are shockingly bad and often will make you pay them to get a job (TEFL College for example). So do be wary!

I 100% disagree with Lad, but each to their own.

[Ladphrao]

Kenkaniff

"Less than 10% of English teachers in Thailand have ever taught a class in their home countries. "

Do you disagree with this in your 100% disagreement? Can only experienced teachers come to Thailand and find jobs? How much teaching experience did you have before landing in LOS? I had exactly zero, as did the vast majority of other teachers in Thailand I know. To state one needs experience to teach in Thailand is rubbish.

Although some may wish that teaching English is a high-paid, highly respectable profession filled with highly trained personnel, the reality is far different.

How much training does it take to walk into a grade school classroom and teach the kids that the picture in your right hand is a dog while the animal in the picture in your left hand is called a cat?

Of course as one advances in skills, and gains some additional training, one moves up the English teaching ladder, but to start at the bottom rungs is not all that difficult.

But maybe I am just speaking for myself, I felt I had an Ok grasp on my native language before starting teaching and didn't find it an insurmountable challenge to speak it in front of others, even though I only had a week of training and not a full 4 week wonder course.

I'm glad those days are behind me:).

[Simmo]

BalthazarBeefheart does sound a bit naive, and his love of teaching English to the underprivileged will probably be short-lived when he finds most of the students could care less about the subject and no one will act particularly gratefully for his charitable efforts, but weren’t we all naïve-somewhat-idealistic newbies at one time and had similar sentiments before becoming so cynical?

Its amazing how that newbie spirit and zeal gets crushed after ... oh lets say ... 3 weeks on the job.

[kenkannif]

Lad,

I think you're wrong, you think I'm wrong.....let's (please) leave it at that...okay???

Being able to speak English doesn't mean you can teach it....simple as. Although I'm sure there are some people that can get away with it.

[Ladphrao]

kenkannif

No problem, we can agree to disagree about the difficulty level of teaching English and the skill level required and also about the amount of training a teacher SHOULD have.

I agree that a teacher SHOULD have some training before starting; you seem to think it SHOULD be a necessity. Ok, we have a slight disagreement.

But the fact remains, (unless someone cares to dispute it) that the majority of native speaking English teachers in Thailand (and the rest of Asia as well) have never taught any subject before going abroad. How did they learn to teach? By doing it in Thailand, Japan, Korea or Taiwan. No one can rationally dispute that tens of thousands of white-faced native English speakers from a variety of different backgrounds have come to Asia without a lick of teaching experience in the past and found work teaching English and many of them have turned into career teachers, while most of the rest did a god job during their short stay. Some of these took a 4 week wonder course before starting and others didn't.

Teachers with some training and experience are better prepared to teach than those without; no argument on my part.

But to claim that one needs to have previous teaching experience and some training is denying the reality of tens of thousands who have successfully taught in Asia with neither experience nor training. It is doable.

1. Did you have a degree in education before steeping into the classroom for the first time?

2. How many years of teaching experience did you have before stepping into the classroom in Asia for the first time?

3. How much training did you have?

Me.

1. No

2. Zero

3. Five days

I admit I sucked pretty bad that first semester, but the students knew I was a newbie and allowed for my lack of skills. I doubt any of their lives were ruined by having a pretty poor English teacher for six weeks. Whether I ever got to be a "good" English teacher is debatable, but I do know I learned and got better on the job and was never fired from an English teaching job, so I couldn't have been a complete failure as an English teacher. The vast majority of teachers I know had similar experiences starting out, many went back to get their four week wonder courses after teaching for a time when they decided this would be their career.

We can disagree about how things SHOULD be with no problems, but you have been around long enough to realize that what I said about tens of thousands of teachers coming to Asia to teach in the past with little to no experience and training is true. You might not like this fact, but it is a fact non-the-less.

Edited February 2, 2006 by kenkannif

[Hermano Lobo]

Perhaps this farang 'La-La Land' attitude in Thailand is responsible for the poor teaching standards.

A Celta course done in Farangland would be better, even better would be to spread it over nine months.

<No links please. KK>

Edited February 2, 2006 by kenkannif

[kenkannif]

Lad,

I'm not going to argue with you so please chill.

Yes, a lot of things happen in the world that shouldn't....rapes, child prostitution, murders etc. Just because they happen, it doesn't make them right.

As a father what you're saying scares me to be honest. Practicing on your students isn't really a good thing.

Spin my posts again like that and I will edit/delete accordingly.

Take it easy please.