Why An International School

[lannarebirth]

future proof your kids if you can. IB is a huge advantage for Western uni. places.

My experience is the kids that have come out of some of the top private international schools in Thailand are more "World ready" with really good social interaction skills and of course an IB qualification under their belt for further education anywhere and eventually better job opportunities.

If you can afford private international in Thailand it is the best way to go. Spoiled brats that is down to the parenting not the school.

Couldn't agree more except to say I don't think it makes much difference if it's IB, Cambridge Acreditted or US acreditted AP. Any of those will allow a child to have whatever options they choose. Placing a child in the Thai school system means you are limiting your child's options and speaking for myself, I don't think that's right.

[rgs2001uk]

future proof your kids if you can. IB is a huge advantage for Western uni. places.

My experience is the kids that have come out of some of the top private international schools in Thailand are more "World ready" with really good social interaction skills and of course an IB qualification under their belt for further education anywhere and eventually better job opportunities.

If you can afford private international in Thailand it is the best way to go. Spoiled brats that is down to the parenting not the school.

Couldn't agree more except to say I don't think it makes much difference if it's IB, Cambridge Acreditted or US acreditted AP. Any of those will allow a child to have whatever options they choose. Placing a child in the Thai school system means you are limiting your child's options and speaking for myself, I don't think that's right.

The only thing I will say on the subject, theres a world of difference between the Thai guys I play golf with and the ones I play snooker with.

Doesnt take a rocket scientist to work out who are the better educated, speak at least two languages, three is common, have the better prospects and dont seem to have any money or employment problems.

[muythai2013]

future proof your kids if you can. IB is a huge advantage for Western uni. places.

My experience is the kids that have come out of some of the top private international schools in Thailand are more "World ready" with really good social interaction skills and of course an IB qualification under their belt for further education anywhere and eventually better job opportunities.

If you can afford private international in Thailand it is the best way to go. Spoiled brats that is down to the parenting not the school.

Couldn't agree more except to say I don't think it makes much difference if it's IB, Cambridge Acreditted or US acreditted AP. Any of those will allow a child to have whatever options they choose. Placing a child in the Thai school system means you are limiting your child's options and speaking for myself, I don't think that's right.

The only thing I will say on the subject, theres a world of difference between the Thai guys I play golf with and the ones I play snooker with.

Doesnt take a rocket scientist to work out who are the better educated, speak at least two languages, three is common, have the better prospects and dont seem to have any money or employment problems.

my wife speaks 3 languages, great employment, no money problems, she attended a government school with her 2 brothers, one an engineer the other was a lawyer.

her sister has a fine marketing job and my wifes an accountant.

could one of your rocket scientist explain that to me please.

I think you all still missed the point, I cant speak for all government schools but the one i'm refering to is a good school, I cannot say its not when it is.

[Colonel_Mustard]

I think you all still missed the point, I cant speak for all government schools but the one i'm refering to is a good school, I cannot say its not when it is.

Obviously you have been quite fortunate in finding a good Thai school for your kids. Given the opportunity, I would say most expats would prefer a decent international school.

Anyway best of luck to them at their present place. There's a lot to be said for just being happy at school, regardless of what kind it is.

[stejames1975]

120k a month would be plenty to afford a decent international education in Chiang Mai, but a struggle in Bkk. With the exception of one very high priced school, there are a number of good choices in CM running from around 100,000 per year for the kindergarten years to around 300,000 per year at the High School age - not cheap, but affordable on 120k if you think it important enough.

You pays your money and takes your choice!

[ExpatJ]

If you could easily afford it, would you send your kids to a state school or an international school? 99.9% would opt for the international school.

Lets be honest, the only people who try to argue that state schools are better than international fee paying school are those who cannot afford to pay the fees and who are trying to make themselves feel better about their kids going to a state school.

Having said that many state schools are fine and kids go one to great universities and have happy lives- and in any case there really should be no stigma or self pity if one does send ones kids to a state school.

is that a fact, so you know what i earn, you should never assume things.

i get 120000bht per month, how much are the school fees,

if i say its because my wife does not like it then thats the reason, you will find very quickly during the moments im not suspended here that i talk straight.

i dont assume or make things up as you just did, and lets face it, not knowing me thats exactly what you just did, admit it,

I believe you, but as others have said with your salary the international schools are not reasonably affordable.

[muythai2013]

thats ok, I was not going to send them to an international school regardless of the cost, only because we are happy with the school she was in.

I was simply making a point that some government Schools are ok(although not many), and i mistakenly said all international schools are no good.

reading here international schools seem ok for children.

[farang000999]

i know as soon as i read the OP that it would end up really being about $$$$ and the OP's insecurity.

[barefoot1988]

glad to hear you had some good results with public schools and hopefully this is not some self consoling thread

[kurnell]

There are international schools that cost less than 300k if you are good at negotiating and have something to offer.

[fletchsmile]

There's always going to be good and bad in both sectors.

Realistically though you only need look around you. Thailand's level of education across the whole of society is a reflection of the state system. It simply doesn't compare to the average level in developed western countries. If you look at the Thais you know who have been thru the Thai private system or international school, on average they do much better than those from Thai state schools in terms of business, careers etc. If you want an education comparable to the west you're going to have to pay for it.

There are always going to be successes coming out of the state sector and failures coming out of the international private sectors, but you have to look at the general trends. For the successes coming out of the state sector you also have to wonder how much more they might have achieved in one of the best international schools, with better facilities, smaller class sizes etc etc

We put our kids in international school. Yes they're expensive and if back in the west we'd probably choose a normal school - not private. Education in Thailand is one of those areas in life for me, that you don't pick a cheaper option just to save money. Healthcare being another.

[muythai2013]

There's always going to be good and bad in both sectors.

Realistically though you only need look around you. Thailand's level of education across the whole of society is a reflection of the state system. It simply doesn't compare to the average level in developed western countries. If you look at the Thais you know who have been thru the Thai private system or international school, on average they do much better than those from Thai state schools in terms of business, careers etc. If you want an education comparable to the west you're going to have to pay for it.

There are always going to be successes coming out of the state sector and failures coming out of the international private sectors, but you have to look at the general trends. For the successes coming out of the state sector you also have to wonder how much more they might have achieved in one of the best international schools, with better facilities, smaller class sizes etc etc

We put our kids in international school. Yes they're expensive and if back in the west we'd probably choose a normal school - not private. Education in Thailand is one of those areas in life for me, that you don't pick a cheaper option just to save money. Healthcare being another.

agree all round but we did not choose the school to save money, it was not the issue.

we are back in Australia now anyway,

[coffeeman]

there are pro's and cons for both.

first of all at a state school, your child will learn to speak thai, he or she will be fluent in thai and speak as a native speaker.

your child in international school will never learn to speak thai fluently, trust me those 2 hour lessons once a week, is like

us learning french or spanish back in school. waste!

in a state school, it's free! so you will save almost 250.000 dollars which you would of paid for international schools.

that money invested in a dow fund, would end up bringing you 500.000 dollars when your kid leaves UNI,

happy graduation son! here you go!

international school will see the friends come and go all the time,

state school you will keep your friends your whole time.

state school,will make you more street smart and more informed on the culture.

international school will just make you a brat hanging out with embassy type kids and really know nothing of thailand.

better education? what the hell does that mean! MATH is MATH!

in state school your kid will learn THAI! you ever tried writing it?

you kid will know ENglish too, because you speak English. and you will have him study it.

you can't study thai part time and be fluent..unless your wife is thai and speaks to him in thai 24/7

ohhh many farang here can't send their kids to state schools anyway.. can they?

many farangs dont have thai spouses.

International schools are over priced, over hyped, and just a place for people passing through.

if my wife was thai, and I was planning on living in thalland for 20 years, my kid would be in state school!

not because I can't afford international school.

but because I would want my kid to be fluent, and think native in thai, English can be the second language

being a native speaker in ENglish is not important compared to being a native speaker in thai.

for me , its a no brainer.. State school.

and home education in English.

or of course a private thai school

[cbrer]

They are as you raise them.

Personally I don't believe in the Thai government school system as it makes me think of the Nazi Youth League.

[Ricardo]

Surely it is about where you expect your kids to spend the rest of their lives ?

If they will remain here in Thailand, then a good Thai school should be fine, but if you want them to have the freedom-of-choice to go anywhere & do anything, then only an international-standard school will do, and very few of those are free/low-cost government-run ones.

I love my kids, but I don't want them living-at-home for life, they deserve to have the same opportunities I myself had, to pursue further-education & move to wherever my career and life-choices take me.

Speaking/reading/writing Thai like a well-educated native only helps, if you will be staying here, otherwise it's global-languages like English (now) and Mandarin (in the future) which they will really need.

Understanding Thai, as well as other, cultures is also good. But will the full indoctrination be helpful, or a serious drawback, when it comes time to compete in the global jobs-market ?

Given the cash, I would go for full international-school, failing that at least a private-school with a serious EP, as a minimum.

[ExpatJ]

there are pro's and cons for both.

first of all at a state school, your child will learn to speak thai, he or she will be fluent in thai and speak as a native speaker.

your child in international school will never learn to speak thai fluently, trust me those 2 hour lessons once a week, is like

us learning french or spanish back in school. waste!

in a state school, it's free! so you will save almost 250.000 dollars which you would of paid for international schools.

that money invested in a dow fund, would end up bringing you 500.000 dollars when your kid leaves UNI,

happy graduation son! here you go!

international school will see the friends come and go all the time,

state school you will keep your friends your whole time.

state school,will make you more street smart and more informed on the culture.

international school will just make you a brat hanging out with embassy type kids and really know nothing of thailand.

better education? what the hell does that mean! MATH is MATH!

in state school your kid will learn THAI! you ever tried writing it?

you kid will know ENglish too, because you speak English. and you will have him study it.

you can't study thai part time and be fluent..unless your wife is thai and speaks to him in thai 24/7

ohhh many farang here can't send their kids to state schools anyway.. can they?

many farangs dont have thai spouses.

International schools are over priced, over hyped, and just a place for people passing through.

if my wife was thai, and I was planning on living in thalland for 20 years, my kid would be in state school!

not because I can't afford international school.

but because I would want my kid to be fluent, and think native in thai, English can be the second language

being a native speaker in ENglish is not important compared to being a native speaker in thai.

for me , its a no brainer.. State school.

and home education in English.

or of course a private thai school

That's fine if you want your kids to spend their lives in Thailand, probably earning a local Thai average wage too. But for those of us who want to give our kids a chance to thrive in UK, Aus, US etc, a Thai school and uni is not going to cut it more times than not.

[StefanBBK]

They are as you raise them.

Personally I don't believe in the Thai government school system as it makes me think of the Nazi Youth League.

A bit harsh of a comment, but ok.

I do like some aspects of private Thai schools, for example the values tought. Such as respect, national pride (which in germany is considered bad), values in regards to religion, tolerance etc.

Thai kids in international schools learn very little about their country, their history, their culture.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[cbrer]

Thai kids in international schools learn very little about their country, their history, their culture.

Another plus!

[cbrer]

Personally, like many, I won't be able to afford to send my daughter to an International School. The money it would cost is better off being put into property and investments for them, in my case.

What she will get is evening and weekend home schooling designed as play.

Worldly knowledge.

The experience of watching and helping her mother's business.

And hopefully at the end of her 12 years of schooling a trip to my country to study for a Western degree.

Returning to Thailand as a fully bilingual, Western educated (degree level) woman with fully foreign name but Thai I.D. I think will set her up well for whatever she chooses to do.

One thing is for sure anyway, she isn't going to be some Lakorn zombie.

Spend two or three hours with your child in the evenings teaching them about the World, science, math, cultures and societies, while playing with them or doing arts and crafts, and hopefully deconditioning them from their Thai schooling and I think they might end up okay.

[Thailaw]

I really wonder why threads like this get started -- for the OP to assuage his/her guilt of not providing his/her child with a reasonable education; to convince him/herself that it really wasn't such a bad choice to put his/her child in Thai government school; to hear from a small group of equally confused people that Thai government schools are an acceptable educational choice; all of the above? The fact is that, while of course there are a few (very few) exceptions, Thai government schools are horrible, and fail to provide an adequate education, especially in those areas that matter (and should matter) the most to western parents living in Thailand -- English proficiency. The facts are that every measurement of the English proficieny of children taught in Thai government schools places them at the absolute bottom or very close to it.

From asiancorrespondent.com 21st March 2012:

"The average English test scores between 20-30% in the national standardized O-NET over the past three years mark English as the worst performed subject among primary and secondary Thai school pupils. The score distributions show even more deplorable performance with large groups of pupils getting only 10-20% in the national O-NET which is also deplorable in its own right.

Keeping the dismal record consistent, Thai university applicants scored an average 28.34% in English in the recent university entrance exams. It is little wonder that Thailand produces a “workforce with some of the world’s weakest English-language skills.” In a recent IMD World Competitiveness Report Thailand was ranked 54th out of 56 countries globally for English proficiency, the second-lowest in Asia. Singapore was third, Malaysia 28th and Korea 46th (Reuters & The Korea Herald)."(emphasis added).

Most western parents want their children to have opportunities inside and outside Thailand, and to have the mobility to move easily between the two -- that without question requires high level English proficiency. Other aspects of Thai government schools are also troubling -- too much emphasis on wrote memorization and little or no emphais on thinking and problem solving. Socialization in Thai government schools may also have issues/problems, but there are also issues/problems in private/international schools, just different.

My children go to a private, international school, and I would not consider for a fraction of 1 second that any Thai government school was acceptable for their education. Yes, we add to their educational experience at home, but the core of their learning comes from school. Even the Thai government know how bad the Thai government educational system is, and some want to change it (some in government are very happy with the low level of education that fuels low wages and makes Thai exports cheap and their businesses highly profitable). But that will take years (or decades) at least. Until then, private/international schools are the only choice for a child's education in Thailand.

That the OP's child had a "good experience" is a Thai government school is great (and very lucky) for him, but it says nothing about the general quality of Thai government schools, and especially about their ability to teach English proficiency, which is deplorable. If you want your child to be a maid or a motorcycle taxi drive (shame on you if you do!), then Thai government schools are an option. For those of us that want to give our children the opportunity and skills for a bright and fulfilling life and future, they are not. QED.

[cbrer]

I really wonder why threads like this get started -- for the OP to assuage his/her guilt of not providing his/her child with a reasonable education; to convince him/herself that it really wasn't such a bad choice to put his/her child in Thai government school; to hear from a small group of equally confused people that Thai government schools are an acceptable educational choice; all of the above? The fact is that, while of course there are a few (very few) exceptions, Thai government schools are horrible, and fail to provide an adequate education, especially in those areas that matter (and should matter) the most to western parents living in Thailand -- English proficiency. The facts are that every measurement of the English proficieny of children taught in Thai government schools places them at the absolute bottom or very close to it.

From asiancorrespondent.com 21st March 2012:

"The average English test scores between 20-30% in the national standardized O-NET over the past three years mark English as the worst performed subject among primary and secondary Thai school pupils. The score distributions show even more deplorable performance with large groups of pupils getting only 10-20% in the national O-NET which is also deplorable in its own right.

Isn't the poor level of English in the educational systems and its graduates a bit of a blessing for a fully bi-lingual fluent in English Thais? Add the Thai worship of light skin and the 'face' of a foreign name employed by a company.

Makes them top of the heap if taken from local perspective.

I personally deplore the Thai educational system, but believe parenting, homeschooling and how they are brought up is more important than sending them off to all but the top three international schools in the country.

[Thailaw]

Isn't the poor level of English in the educational systems and its graduates a bit of a blessing for a fully bi-lingual fluent in English Thais? Add the Thai worship of light skin and the 'face' of a foreign name employed by a company.

Makes them top of the heap if taken from local perspective.

I personally deplore the Thai educational system, but believe parenting, homeschooling and how they are brought up is more important than sending them off to all but the top three international schools in the country.

I agree with you entirely -- "in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king" and the man with perfect vision is a God. Opportunities for well educated young adults that are fluent in English should be bright for years to come. They will be at the top thanks to the miserable Thai government educational system. Perhaps, for parents that care about their kids enough to pay for a private/international school education, that may be the silver lining to an otherwise deplorable situation. But I am not heaping praise on Thai private/international schools, nor do I believe that a child must be in one of the "top three". It, of course depends on the child, and his/her needs and talents. Most international schools in Thailand are over priced and many do not provide an education that is commensurate with the tuition charged. There are many good private Thai schools with strong English programs that provide a very good overall education for their students. I would prefer that my kids were in school in Singapore, and they may eventually end up there when they are a bit older. Thailand is a great place for an old fart like me, but it is not necessarily a good place for children to be raised and educated.

I would change your last paragraph to: "I personally deplore the Thai educational system, but believe parenting, homeschooling and how they are brought up is [equally as] important [as] sending them off to [a good quality private/]international school [that emphasizes creative thinking and proficiency in written English]." I hope (and expect) that you would not disagree with those edits.

[asiasurfer]

I agree with the OP. I and my wife have the same opinion about these International Schools, especially the high end ones.

One problem with the kids' discipline is that teachers in private schools often shun correcting any misbehaviour of their pupils. The reason for that is because the students may complain to their parents, parents complain to the school, eventually parents taking their kid out of school possibly causing bad reputation for the school. The person who will be really in trouble is the teacher which caused all that "upheaval".

Of course I'm not talking for all schools, but I think a good state school or a medium priced private school will do...

[Trembly]

I agree with the OP. I and my wife have the same opinion about these International Schools, especially the high end ones.

One problem with the kids' discipline is that teachers in private schools often shun correcting any misbehaviour of their pupils. The reason for that is because the students may complain to their parents, parents complain to the school, eventually parents taking their kid out of school possibly causing bad reputation for the school. The person who will be really in trouble is the teacher which caused all that "upheaval".

Of course I'm not talking for all schools, but I think a good state school or a medium priced private school will do...

Discipline is far worse in state schools because kids just simply cannot be expelled. Moved to another school, yes. Expelled, no. Besides, greater numbers = greater budget.

[coffeeman]

very nice responses, but let's not forget something which is also important. state schools back home are FAILING terribly! gangs in school, shootings, drugs, fights, lack of good teachers, sex, boozing, weekend parties, rude children, troubled kids etc etc etc

so if we are going to talk negatively about state schools, I would probably rather my kid was in a good state school in bangkok compared to one in Chicago or a bad area in England. etc.

the schools back home scare me now, not like it was back in my day, sure we had problems, but I am convinced it much worse now.

Ideally having your child in state school for kindergarten, and half of primary (elementary school) would be perfect! the child will learn a culture! he will gather an IDENTITY this is very important, mixed race children can easily feel like they don't belong especially the ones raised here or out of the west.

if the child is in thai school from the first and there until he is 10, he will feel thai, his mum is thai, he has an identity, then in middle school, you put him in private school, or you go back to your country to give that child the experience to round the child off as a bi-lingual mixed race child. as the OP has done.he said his child is back in OZ now.

if to farangs are raising their farang children here, then I wouldn't recommend thai state school (well I would if you plan on staying for 20 years.) but if you are only here for a short time , then of course don't bother.. but for the people who have mixed race children, it's important that child can relate to his peers in the future, he will one day have to sit down with thais, what is he going to say?" oh yeah I went to private school my whole life, I don't even speak thai"!

or he could say, I grew up thai, then was educated in the west!

this builds character! this builds indentity, this builds relationships.

the half thai needs to be understood, needs to breath, and needs to accept and understand.

this is very important in education also, and a lot of parents forget this, they only look at facts and figures,

but people need to look spiritual also, it's not easy being a mixed race person when you grow up!

when people are cheering on your country at the olympics, or in the worldcup, who are you cheering on?

when people ask you where are you from? where do you say?

ohh my passport is thai and American, but really I was educated in an international school,

my dad is American! my mum is thai!

Im............ummmmmmmmmmmmmm ............ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

thai state school makes your child thai! it gives him an indentity,

international schools just keeps you in transit for ever! and if you never return to the states or your home country for your child to feel American ,or British,

your child will forever have no indentity!

think about that.

[coffeeman]

double post

[StefanBBK]

Thos post gets too complex for me. I don't think we can come up with any universally agreeable pount of view.

everyone has his own expiriences and preferences.

I would not consider a government school for my kids, as I truely believe they are not good.

I would not consider an International school, as they do not teach anything Thai, not even proficient reading/ writing. I am not convinced that an american or british curriculum is what I want my kids to study.

Therefore we chose a good private, bilingual school. We went from an exclusive one, were most parents drive Porsche or BMW's to another, reaso. Being in the former private school kids were not well tought, as teachers did all for them.

In the school they are now,learning goes much better.

Again, all we can do here is share first hand expirience. What is true for one school of a type may be wrong for another.

For the sake of our children, I hope we all get it right.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Trembly]

very nice responses, but let's not forget something which is also important. state schools back home are FAILING terribly! gangs in school, shootings, drugs, fights, lack of good teachers, sex, boozing, weekend parties, rude children, troubled kids etc etc etc

so if we are going to talk negatively about state schools, I would probably rather my kid was in a good state school in bangkok compared to one in Chicago or a bad area in England. etc.

the schools back home scare me now, not like it was back in my day, sure we had problems, but I am convinced it much worse now.

Ideally having your child in state school for kindergarten, and half of primary (elementary school) would be perfect! the child will learn a culture! he will gather an IDENTITY this is very important, mixed race children can easily feel like they don't belong especially the ones raised here or out of the west.

if the child is in thai school from the first and there until he is 10, he will feel thai, his mum is thai, he has an identity, then in middle school, you put him in private school, or you go back to your country to give that child the experience to round the child off as a bi-lingual mixed race child. as the OP has done.he said his child is back in OZ now.

if to farangs are raising their farang children here, then I wouldn't recommend thai state school (well I would if you plan on staying for 20 years.) but if you are only here for a short time , then of course don't bother.. but for the people who have mixed race children, it's important that child can relate to his peers in the future, he will one day have to sit down with thais, what is he going to say?" oh yeah I went to private school my whole life, I don't even speak thai"!

or he could say, I grew up thai, then was educated in the west!

this builds character! this builds indentity, this builds relationships.

the half thai needs to be understood, needs to breath, and needs to accept and understand.

this is very important in education also, and a lot of parents forget this, they only look at facts and figures,

but people need to look spiritual also, it's not easy being a mixed race person when you grow up!

when people are cheering on your country at the olympics, or in the worldcup, who are you cheering on?

when people ask you where are you from? where do you say?

ohh my passport is thai and American, but really I was educated in an international school,

my dad is American! my mum is thai!

Im............ummmmmmmmmmmmmm ............ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

thai state school makes your child thai! it gives him an indentity,

international schools just keeps you in transit for ever! and if you never return to the states or your home country for your child to feel American ,or British,

your child will forever have no indentity!

think about that.

I'm a loog-krueng with three nationalities who went to international schools and I never had any problems with my identity, within or without. I never felt confused, I never had any problems regarding acceptance, I can 'slum it' just like any 'native' if it suits me (in other words, I have full mobility in every direction across the spectrum of Thai society) and I speak all the main dialects of Thai bar the Southern one.

I saw capabilities rather than vulnerabilities; without thinking I turned what I was into strengths. It never even occurred to me to regard them as weaknesses.

Adaptability can be honed in juxtapositions such as international school / Thai surroundings outside school. Even at home I could not escape the juxtaposition of my country-girl mother from Chiang Rai with the old-school Englishness of my father with his endless stream of documentaries and television programming recorded on VHS and sent from England. . . in Bangkok!

[ExpatJ]

I agree with the OP. I and my wife have the same opinion about these International Schools, especially the high end ones.

One problem with the kids' discipline is that teachers in private schools often shun correcting any misbehaviour of their pupils. The reason for that is because the students may complain to their parents, parents complain to the school, eventually parents taking their kid out of school possibly causing bad reputation for the school. The person who will be really in trouble is the teacher which caused all that "upheaval".

Of course I'm not talking for all schools, but I think a good state school or a medium priced private school will do...

Is this really the reason you choose not to send your kids to a top international school? Lack of discipline, not lack of money? I understand why some parents self justify their inability to send their kids to the best schools (im in the same boat), but i think its self defeating and utterly transparent to everyone what is going on.

[Trembly]

I agree with the OP. I and my wife have the same opinion about these International Schools, especially the high end ones.

One problem with the kids' discipline is that teachers in private schools often shun correcting any misbehaviour of their pupils. The reason for that is because the students may complain to their parents, parents complain to the school, eventually parents taking their kid out of school possibly causing bad reputation for the school. The person who will be really in trouble is the teacher which caused all that "upheaval".

Of course I'm not talking for all schools, but I think a good state school or a medium priced private school will do...

Is this really the reason you choose not to send your kids to a top international school? Lack of discipline, not lack of money? I understand why some parents self justify their inability to send their kids to the best schools (im in the same boat), but i think its self defeating and utterly transparent to everyone what is going on.

I studied at international schools and have taught in Thai government schools. I don't know where people get this idea that government schools have more discipline from. The students are trained to do a lot of wai-ing and sawatdeekhrapping but even that isn't always free of ostentatious sarcasm.

Government schools have very little recourse with poorly behaved students and seem to care even less, judging by the meaningful actions of staff and management (or lack thereof).

This is not fiction : http://www.stickmanb.../reader7485.htm . I don't know if it is supposed to be apocryphal but it applies to at least 50% of the classes that I've taught (I have no doubt that it would be more if I couldn't speak Thai), from primary to lower secondary school. The children face nil or negligible consequences for behaving like that. Read it and have a think about why or how behaviour like that prevails in the vast majority of Thai state schools. Here are some key words in case you need some pointers : corporate culture, teacher morale, teacher training, management culture.

International schools on the other hand have highly paid staff who are trained to spot problems very early on and nip them in the bud. In the unlikely event that international school students found the bottle to behave like they did in that stickman submission there would be serious consequences, not least because it affects the reputation of the school and therefore the school's ability to attract more fee-payers. Quite simply, teachers and management in international schools are generally professional enough to ensure that behaviour like that couldn't even take root in the school environment. In a government school those students might not even be reported and expulsion is not practiced.

International schools also retain professionally licensed counselors for students who have real problems and need to talk confidentially.