Thai Kids At Bangkok's International Schools Risk Getting 'Lost In Translation'

[webfact]

Letting down the language

Marquie Leelatham

Special to The Nation

Thai kids at Bangkok's international schools risk getting 'lost in translation'

BANGKOK: -- Bangkok's international schools pack a surprise for first-time visitors, and it's not short skirts or vulgar language, which are in fact nowhere to be found. The surprise is how little Thai is spoken and how poorly - by the Thai students.

Most Thai student attending international schools can speak English reasonably well, but their Thai vocabulary and grammar is worryingly bad.

While Bangkok is proud to have 75 entries on the International Schools Association's list of local institutes, there's no cause for celebration in the fact that so many of the Thais enrolled mispronounce Thai words and can't write the language properly.

The problem alarms teachers and parents not so much because the youngsters fumble the pronunciation of mahassajarn and sassatrajarn but because the students are Thai and ought to know better. They've been hearing the language since they were born, after all.

It's become evident that these schools' native Thai students are now speaking Thai less fluently than their second or third languages.

The surprise in the situation is mitigated somewhat by the fact that Thais make up only about a fifth of the student population at many of the international schools, such as Bangkok Patana, so they're constantly surrounded by people who speak Thai little, if at all.

The timetable of a typical Thai secondary student at Bangkok Patana might amount to just four periods per week, totalling less than three hours. And in the IGCSE (secondary-level examinations) the Thai language is not considered a key subject and is thus less important in the eyes of the students.

Asked why she and her fellow Thai students often find Thai so hard to master, 15-year-old Pakpinya at Bangkok Patana says the alphabet is difficult. "And I speak English with my friends and sisters and I've never been to a Thai school, so my whole life has been spent speaking English," she says. "I listen to English songs and watch English TV, so I don't really get to practise any Thai."

Leela, 14, offers a similar explanation. "My Thai friends have been educated the British way since kindergarten and get the minimal amount of Thai at school each week, so they haven't had the same education that Thai schools give Thai students.

"Besides, I have foreign friends who only speak English, so I don't really get to speak Thai that often," she says.

The prevailing Western influence in music, films, literature and the news media means international students are, for example, more inclined to prefer musicians like Drake and Blessthefall over Thailand's Room 39.

The fundamental rule at the international schools is that English must be spoken at all times except during Thai-language lessons, so it's easy to neglect the native tongue. Pakpinya admits that some of the Thai students struggle with their Thai-language assignments, to the extent that they use Google Translator, an online service that's far from accurate in Thai. Thai proverbs are a complete riddle to them.

Patcharee, another 15-year-old at Bangkok Patana, fails to understand her fellow students' difficulty. "If you speak Thai on a daily basis with your family, then speaking Thai fluently and accurately isn't very hard," she says.

Pajongwart Poonkaew, who teaches Thai at Triam Udom Sueksa School, points out that the international schools usually only convey the basics of the native language. "So when the students move on to Thai schools and try to speak fluently, it can be very hard for them."

Well-known Thai-language lecturer Kijamanoch "Kru Lilly" Rojanasap has a suggestion. "It's essential to incorporate Thai into your daily life, whether it be through music, movies, books or whatever," she says.

"It's very important that parents speak Thai to their children so that they can be fluent, because it's shocking that some Thai students nowadays can't speak Thai clearly or read or write at all."

In her 10-plus years as a teacher of the language she's encountered several Eurasian and Thai students who failed the subject because they weren't using Thai in their daily lives. And yet students at the international schools can take advantage of Thai tutoring schools specifically established to tackle this issue, such as the Kru Too Centre, Kumon and Bilingual.

Nana Boonorm, a 14-year-old attending Ruam Rudee International School, agrees that Thai has to be part of everyday life. She's able to write in Thai accurately and efficiently.

"Thai workbooks can be really boring, so teenagers should listen to Thai music and pick up the lyrics, and read Thai comic books," Nana says. "They should use Thai on the social networks like Instagram or even Facebook."

Nana says her friends who play Thai video games tend to speak and read Thai better than those who only speak Thai with their families. She credits this to the games' interactive features. You can enjoy using the language and improve your command of it.

Nevertheless, she believes Thai youngsters who have been overseas since childhood will naturally struggle with Thai. It must seem foreign to them, she says. Nana reckons it's good that Thai youth embraces other cultures and English in general, but they should maintain their "Thai roots and don't forget you're Thai".

Just how solid their attachment remains to those roots might save them from becoming "lost in translation" when dealing with their mother tongue. As difficult as it is for foreigners in Thailand to get beyond the basics of the Thai language, these native children, a minority in their own Bangkok schools, are at risk of getting lost as well.

-- The Nation 2012-07-13

[CelticBhoy]

Asked why she and her fellow Thai students often find Thai so hard to master, 15-year-old Pakpinya at Bangkok Patana says the alphabet is difficult. "And I speak English with my friends and sisters and I've never been to a Thai school, so my whole life has been spent speaking English," she says. "I listen to English songs and watch English TV, so I don't really get to practise any Thai."

Don't these kids speak with their parents at home? I don't get it!!!

[SlideRiceFC]

Yes, apparently these students have families and friends that only speak English and everywhere they go in Bangkok the clerks and shopkeepers all speak fluent English as well. Hmm, now I certainly don't find that hard to believe.

[chrisinth]

Asked why she and her fellow Thai students often find Thai so hard to master, 15-year-old Pakpinya at Bangkok Patana says the alphabet is difficult. "And I speak English with my friends and sisters and I've never been to a Thai school, so my whole life has been spent speaking English," she says. "I listen to English songs and watch English TV, so I don't really get to practise any Thai."

Don't these kids speak with their parents at home? I don't get it!!!

I think this might be a boarding school. If not, then mother and father are likely away working to get their children into the school. Changing times, all over the world, not just Thailand where the parents see it neccessary to put work (for income) above family principles.

Sad.

[chrisinth]

Yes, apparently these students have families and friends that only speak English and everywhere they go in Bangkok the clerks and shopkeepers all speak fluent English as well. Hmm, now I certainly don't find that hard to believe.

Don't think you will see many international school educated kids as clerks and shopkeepers/workers in Bkk. Might get some, but not many.

[EmptyBasementBin]

Comes as across as a bitter, jealous, xenophobic article.

[MaxLee]

How in special cases can kids learn both languages at the same time. I mean you reach a certain age in your youth where you resent "studying anything, including language"...

I see it coming that the government blames the "evil farangs and their cultural brainwashing", when the Thai government swines "brainwash the people themselves...

[SlideRiceFC]

Don't think you will see many international school educated kids as clerks and shopkeepers/workers in Bkk. Might get some, but not many.

No, the few that I've met seem to spend most of their free time spending their parents' money but I was not actually saying the clerks and shopkeepers were international school students. I know it's a bit early so perhaps you misread my post.

[EmptyBasementBin]

If in fact Thai students at Int. Schools can speak English better than Thai it is a testament to how good the educational system is. I'm sure that once they graduate and go off to study at proper universities in the West that not being able to pronounce certain words in some small language that is used in one small country isn't going to hold them back all that much.

[seminomadic]

Can't read or write their parents' language. Just a dam_n shame, the incredible depth and breadth of the native literature that will be unavailable to them. Their brains are probably being horribly altered at these schools too, what with those wicked "critical thinking" and "analytical skills" being indoctrinated into them.

****ing foreigners.

[Kalbo]

Nevertheless, she believes Thai youngsters who have been overseas since childhood will naturally struggle with Thai. It must seem foreign to them, she says.

Another display of extreme ignorance, that is all too common here.

Abbisit Vejajiwa was born and raised in the UK, went to Eaton and Oxford (where I'm pretty sure they don't teach Thai) and is one of the

most eloquent Thai language speakers in the country.

There is another great man, the very revered 'Father', who was born abroad, (USA ?) and subsequently raised and schooled for a good part of his childhood in Switzerland until he was 19, if I remember correctly, and he certainly seems to have had no problem struggling with Thai.

[chrisinth]

Don't think you will see many international school educated kids as clerks and shopkeepers/workers in Bkk. Might get some, but not many.

No, the few that I've met seem to spend most of their free time spending their parents' money but I was not actually saying the clerks and shopkeepers were international school students. I know it's a bit early so perhaps you misread my post.

Need another coffee!.. Sorry SlideRiceFC, just re-read your post and I got that well and truely wrong!

[crobe]

Very much a case of a reporter here finding an isolated incident to justify a rant.

I have children at one of the international schools and so we know a lot of the Thai children there and their parents.

The vast majority at the schools are foreign or mixed parents, but there is a small and growing element of Thais sending their children to these schools as they see it as a better education system than the Thai schools.

Most of the Thai students are day students, and so their primary language remains Thai at home, but is English at school or with their school friends, but we do not experience that their Thai is diminished, in many cases it suffers less from the bad colloquialisms that most teenagers pick up.

There is a very small minority - only one or two cases in each school, where the Thai parents living locally do send their children to the school to board - we know of a couple of cases where the parents are doctors who do this.

Because of this the students have less exposure to Thai, as their parents and family are not always around and they are in the same situation as any boarding school student in a foreign country - their exposure to the local language is only through language lessons and excursions outside of the school at weekends and holidays.

I believe it may have been such cases that the reporter has found and used as justification, but as in all lazy reporting with the nation - did not bother to look at the background and explain the circumstances of the children which would have made for a more rounded article

Crobe

[Orac]

The authors details are interesting though I am not sure how relevant:

Fifteen-year-old Marquie Leelatham is a Year 10 Student at Bangkok Patana School and @marquieleelat on Twitter

taken from previous article here:

http://www.nationmul...g-30174231.html

[LucidLucifer]

Sounds like an article written/sponsored by someone that wants to promote Thai bilingual programmes over international schools. I fear there is an ulterior motive behind this.

Saying that, there will always be a certain compromise made. It is natural and unsurprising that the language a child is exposed to the greatest, especially in an academic setting, will then become their strongest. But given how important English is over Thai in the international community, and how skills in English will benefit that individual and therefore the country, I fail to see the big issue beyond nationalism.

[scorecard]

Yes, apparently these students have families and friends that only speak English and everywhere they go in Bangkok the clerks and shopkeepers all speak fluent English as well. Hmm, now I certainly don't find that hard to believe.

I simply don't believe the line about "...everywhere they go in Bangkok the clerks and shopkeepers all speak English....."

But I am very aware of one very wealthy Thai family (just one example only):

- Both parents travel abroad constantly for business and spend very little time with their children.

- Both parents speak fluent English (they were both educated in Geelong in Australia, from the start of 4th grade in Primary, right through to completing their Masters degrees).

- Both parents have have a very strong desire for their kids to speak fluent English. They have a whole house full of Philippino staff: house manager, cooks, maids, drivers, all of whom have advanced education (easy enough to find from the Philippines), plus one Pinoy man late twenties who is a qualified and experienced high school teacher - he is there as a school coach and to supervise homework and he is the official contact person with their international school, and he is responsible to constantly update the parents. All of the staff have excellent salaries and other benefits. They are forbidden to ever speak Thai to the children.

- I've been to the house several times, all the Pinoy staff have excellent communication skills and they speak very clear English (have to or they wouldn't have the job).

- The Pinoy house manager contacts a senior person at the company office when repairs to the house, cars etc., are needed.

- All of these kids go to an expensive but good international school where the Thai student numbers are very low, and the main language of the whole student body is English.

- If the kids must interact with a Thai person (e.g. a government officer) then someone from the company office is assigned to go with them. Why? Because their Thai language skills are very poor (all skills, reading, wrting, listening and speaking).

This is an isolated example and it's clear that the parents have gone overboard.

Edited July 13, 2012 by scorecard

[kotsak]

And in other news.. Basic education levels worrisome

[swillowbee]

The authors details are interesting though I am not sure how relevant:

Fifteen-year-old Marquie Leelatham is a Year 10 Student at Bangkok Patana School and @marquieleelat on Twitter

taken from previous article here:

http://www.nationmul...g-30174231.html

.

... ummm, just in case readers here skipped over Orac's contribution, the article's author is only ... 15 ... years ... old!

[jonclark]

International schools are there to cater for expat parents who want their children to continue mainstream uk / us education whilst the parents have to work abroad without breaking up the family unit. Internatinal schools are not there to teach the native population. And in the greater scheme of things Thai is a minor language and treated a such.

I think before the author goes on the rant she or he should have considered this point. She / he should have also consider the O net results for that last few years which show that only (about - [from memory]) 25-30% of mainstream Thai government school students achived the pass level for Thai, and those students had been speaking, reading and writing it in school since they were probably five years old. And in these schools Thai is a much more important aspect of the curriculum.

I wonder what percentage of the adult population today is able to read or write to M6 level? Perhaps the author of the OP would be willing to take the test??

[dsprtliving]

The author lost me straight away with "can speak English reasonably well.".....This is quite a broad comment, and begins the article by implying that despite attending International schools, Thai students do not or can not achieve excellence in using English. One might think the author seems a bit jealous perhaps of the opportunities the children will get for better lives?

[CanInBKK]

Most Thai student attending international schools can speak English reasonably well, but their Thai vocabulary and grammar is worryingly bad.

I think the above line should be amended to include "worryingly bad English grammar" as well, case in point is the same line above.

[LucidLucifer]

International schools are there to cater for expat parents who want their children to continue mainstream uk / us education whilst the parents have to work abroad without breaking up the family unit. Internatinal schools are not there to teach the native population.

Not quite. They are there to serve the expat community, yes, but they are also there for the native community.

The rest of the points in your post were very good.

[PV123]

The author lost me straight away with "can speak English reasonably well.".....This is quite a broad comment, and begins the article by implying that despite attending International schools, Thai students do not or can not achieve excellence in using English. One might think the author seems a bit jealous perhaps of the opportunities the children will get for better lives?

I know the author personally and she is in one of Bangkok's well-known International schools, and has been published many times before. I assure you that she is in no way jealous, as she is one of them herself?

And she is not implying that either

[PV123]

Can't read or write their parents' language. Just a dam_n shame, the incredible depth and breadth of the native literature that will be unavailable to them. Their brains are probably being horribly altered at these schools too, what with those wicked "critical thinking" and "analytical skills" being indoctrinated into them.

****ing foreigners.

Actually I can read and write in Thai....

[PV123]

Comes as across as a bitter, jealous, xenophobic article.

cool!

[LucidLucifer]

Not going to mention anyone specifically, but I don't speak English to everyone, I speak Thai to my Thai friends, my mother and my family -apart from my sister- and I AM fluent Thai, if I wasn't then I wouldn't be taking my IGCSE Thai would I?

I took GCSE French, and believe me, it doesn't take a high level of proficiency to get a good grade.

I'd like to compliment you on your level of English though, If you are truly 15, I am impressed. You are clearly a very able girl, and I am sure you have a bright future in front of you.

Your English puts certain native speaker on here to shame.

I also don't think anyone has attacked you personally. The contents of the article and the author, yes, but not you.

Edited July 13, 2012 by LucidLucifer

[mrtoad]

A strange article really, I can't see that Thai children only speak English at home with their parents, or only watch English language movies and T.V.

Seems to be the sort of drivel that would come out of The Ministry of Culture. Maybe the author is aspiring to a position there in the coming years.

Other notable over-seas educated people of note, seem to have little problem speaking Thai - Abahsit, Thaksin and Yingluck, although the later two seem to only speak Tinglish.

[HeavyDrinker]

Actually I can read and write in Thai....

Well, if you are Thai, one should jolly well hope so...

[Unkomoncents]

Sounds like the the international school kids are in for more difficult "required" classes if they hold Thai passports. I know a family that moved to the US so that they could gain US citizenship and then happily came back and enrolled their kids at ISB, knowing that with their US passports, they would not have to take the tedious Thai language classes imposed on ISB students who hold Thai passports. For many of these Thai families, there is little incentive to learn Thai or have it as a principal language. They will work for multinational corporations in Thailand or abroad or own and manage factories with international clientele. The Thai language is useful if you want to work for a company that pays between 10-15,000 THB/month with no career development or real opportunity to develop as a professional (for the rest of your life). Thai is necessary if all your business is with Thais, in which case, you likely don't have a desirable position or future (given the economic realities in the Kingdom).

Edited July 13, 2012 by Unkomoncents

[Morch]

Funny, I keep hearing similar complaints from my Thai family about language skills of younger generations who attend non-international schools (and not bad ones as such things go).