Thailand needs to boost language skills for skilled workers

[jaltsc]

i speak 7 languages and i always say to thai people that english is one of the easiest language of the world.i really dont understand why they dont get it.

i also make the same critic to the anglosaxon comunity who because they speak allready english, normally or in general never make the sufficient effort to learn other languages to be understand.

I think you mean to be UNDERSTOOD.

Understand?

Not to mention "Critique"...My apologies. I did mention it.

[selftaopath]

Isn't it a fact that English is "taught" in schools for many years and Thai "Universities" also teach English?

We have a neighbor whose daughter "graduated" from a Teachers University - 5 YEAR program. She is now an English Teacher. She can't speak a word of English. What does this suggest a/b Thai teaching abilities?

[selftaopath]

Thailand has deliberately and proudly kept itself apart from the rest of the rest of the world for centuries.

This isolated society has created a species apart from the others.

Darwin's law of natural selection suggests that the Thai species is no longer fitted for survival in a competitive arena.

Very well said. Thank you.

[selftaopath]

ASEAN is the ticking bomb for Thailand. Already good Thai nurses are fearful for their Thailand jobs when cheaper Phil. show up with more skills and ENGLISH, too. Thailand does not know what is gonna hit it !

Protectionism will clamp down and ASEAN ideals will shrink.

Thai protectionism can be seen often. I wonder if/when will neighboring countries or developed countries do the same to Thailand re: protectionism? Thailand very often seems like a "one way street."

[jaltsc]

Isn't it a fact that English is "taught" in schools for many years and Thai "Universities" also teach English?

We have a neighbor whose daughter "graduated" from a Teachers University - 5 YEAR program. She is now an English Teacher. She can't speak a word of English. What does this suggest a/b Thai teaching abilities?

Everybody who is incapable of learning has taken to teaching.- Oscar Wilde

[ParadiseLost]

i speak 7 languages and i always say to thai people that english is one of the easiest language of the world.i really dont understand why they dont get it.

i also make the same critic to the anglosaxon comunity who because they speak allready english, normally or in general never make the sufficient effort to learn other languages to be understand.

I think you mean to be UNDERSTOOD.

Understand?

I was going to make some remark about being a Jack of all trades, but yours is good enough...

When will people learn - if you are going to profess intelligence, especially when commenting on language skills, then does it not make sense to at least get the spelling and grammar correct...?

Don't think I am a 'grammar nasty' - I think English is a really difficult language to master and appreciate people making a worthwhile statement, using imperfect structure. I would be too embarrassed to correct someone and don't see the need.

[spidermike007]

DUH! Every once in a while this distant planet called Thailand amazes many of us. For them to even exclaim this, is astonishing. Thailand has been lagging behind the world for decades now, in most areas of education, so it should come as no surprise to anyone that this problem exists. I guess for someone in any position of influence to admit there is a shortfall of any kind here is a good thing. But, will the government finally start giving the kinds of support to education that they will need to do in order to move this country into this century? Will the teachers finally get off their pedestal, and start encouraging the students to question their veracity, and their education in general? Nothing short of a massive overhaul of the entire educational system is required. Thailand is being left in the dust by it's more ambitious and more successful neighbors such as China, India, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

[willyumiii]

If there is a way for Thailand to leave ASAEN, I think they will when the see how many international jobs in Bangkok are going to be lost to English speakers from other ASEAN countries.

It has really hurt the Thai people that so much of the money appropriated to increase English skills over the years has "disappeared".

I think the new car and truck dealerships have benefited from a lot of that money.

The students did not.

As stated above, if they can, I think Thailand will find a way to " take their ball and go home" so to speak. and make it difficult for non Thai English speakers to work in Bangkok.

[ParadiseLost]

TAT could run the campaign to promote this - their English skills aren't too bad. It's not their fault the facts exist only in fantasy land...

[ParadiseLost]

If there is a way for Thailand to leave ASAEN, I think they will when the see how many international jobs in Bangkok are going to be lost to English speakers from other ASEAN countries.

It has really hurt the Thai people that so much of the money appropriated to increase English skills over the years has "disappeared".

I think the new car and truck dealerships have benefited from a lot of that money.

The students did not.

As stated above, if they can, I think Thailand will find a way to " take their ball and go home" so to speak. and make it difficult for non Thai English speakers to work in Bangkok.

There are other barriers too; I recently considered doing a CPIM, after consulting to manufacturing concerns for +20 years. CPIM is an American certification, recognised internationally. Or so I thought...

It turns out it would be a waste of time as there is a Thai certification which all Thai companies require. It can only be taken in Thai.

There are sure to be other examples of this. Accounting comes to mind.

[selftaopath]

It’s all talk, clearly Thai government officials don’t want a country of people fluent in English. There is a saying “by his actions you shall know him”. Don’t listen to what they say, look at what they do. It’s obviously a top down decision; those in control won’t even allow all the expat’s that have offered to teach English for free to help their people. It’s not hard to structure a language program; the Thai’s are more than capable of learning English, most all of the upper-class Thai’s that run the country and control big business speak English; the people in power don’t want it.

Why they don’t want it one can only speculate, maybe they want to keep a dumbed down lower class that are easier to control, the wisdom of the world is available free on the internet if you can read and understand English. Maybe they fear educating the lower class would cause them to lose their source cheap labor.

I could not agree more. How else can this be explained?

[bangon04]

They want to achieve this in a year?

I am constantly frustrated by this wait-till-the-last-minute mentality. At least a third of students who enroll into my school's English program have zero useful English skills. A few of them can't even count to twenty without saying "five-teen". Yet my director seems to think I can get them up to speed in two years so that they'll score at least 450 on the TOEIC.

Mission: Impossible

A trained chimp can get 450 in TOEIC

It has been taken off the approved list for visa qualification in my country, due to the ease of cheating the authorities have discovered.

[Thai at Heart]

They want to achieve this in a year?

I am constantly frustrated by this wait-till-the-last-minute mentality. At least a third of students who enroll into my school's English program have zero useful English skills. A few of them can't even count to twenty without saying "five-teen". Yet my director seems to think I can get them up to speed in two years so that they'll score at least 450 on the TOEIC.

Mission: Impossible

A trained chimp can get 450 in TOEIC

It has been taken off the approved list for visa qualification in my country, due to the ease of cheating the authorities have discovered.

What astonishes me is this idea that learning a language is in someway some type of mystical event of enlightenment.

Just get on andnslog through it for 5 years and you will have passable proficiency. There really is no short cut.