What is required to open a small private language school?

[sup3r1or]

Hello everyone.

Me and my wife were thinking about opening a small language school for university students. I heard there a book one can buy somewhere with all requirements and regulations. Can anyone point me in the right direction for material, can be both in Thai and English. I will let my wife sort it as she is Thai and a lecturer of university.

Thank you

[Rhys]

just visit one of the cramp schools.

[lostinisaan]

Please have a look

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/339299-opening-your-own-language-school/

[Xrey24]

Good luck, you need it...

[Bakeman]

Very expensive to do correctly and more expensive tea money and other greasing's along the way and with inspectors.

Thai staff insurance/bonds etc.....

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Chok dee.

[jamden]

Language school for sale in Phuket, far easier than opening one yourself

[KhnomKhnom]

Me and my wife were thinking about opening a small language school for university students.

"Me and my wife ..."

What language do you plan to teach?

Prize, best answering comment of the week!

[smiles793]

Hi OP, the most important thing by far in any type of business endeavour for a foreigner in Thailand (or elsewhere for that matter) is the quality of your local business partner, and you seem to be particularly well positioned in that respect. A phone call or personal visit to the local Ministry of Education office by your wife will help you far more than any foreigner forum possibly could do. I wish you the best of luck.

As for the amateur grammarians here: "me", rather than "I", is perfectly acceptable in informal use in co-ordinated subjects as exemplified in the OP, at least according to Oxford and Cambridge (the original English versions that is).

[ubonjoe]

Fifteen grammar police post and replies to them have been removed.

[Mudcrab]

^^ that should be "posts" Joe.

[Scott]

A post critical of grammar has been removed.

Unless asked about grammar, please don't comment on it. It's off-topic.

[lostinisaan]

Me and my wife were thinking about opening a small language school for university students.

"Me and my wife ..."

What language do you plan to teach?

Prize, best answering comment of the week!

The donkey is called first. No grammar criticizing post. ( Guess I'm an old fashioned gentleman who likes to wish the OP best luck @!)

My wife and I discussed this many many moons ago to open up a language school. But too many problems and too many competitors. -

Edited January 12, 2015 by lostinisaan

[ozyjon]

I got as far as asking, then dismissed it, too much

money out of my pocket,,,

about grammar, i usually read back what i have

written then correct grammar and spelling,, it

seems you haven't, and you want to teach?

[F4UCorsair]

Ozyjon, please don't comment on grammar unless asked (see mod's post above), even if you are doing the OP a BIG favour (English spelling).

[F4UCorsair]

A post critical of grammar has been removed.

Unless asked about grammar, please don't comment on it. It's off-topic.

It may be seen to be off topic Scott, but if it's pointing out the English expression deficiencies of an aspiring English teacher, surely relevant?

[skippy]

Name a Pom who will speak Correct English ?

[louse1953]

Name a Pom who will speak Correct English ?

Betty Windsor.

[chiangrai]

I looked into it too,you need something like 4 Thai employees for every foreign one

I set my wife up teaching kids from home and she does well at it.

Classes with a maximum of ten students ,so you can teach well, at 50 Baht an hour per student

is 500 Baht an hour if the class is full.

[dodojero]

I'm running 2 language schools here in Thailand since 7 years (without having a Thai wife) and here is my advice: Don't listen to anyone. No one knows it exactly. First of all your wife needs a bachelor degree to get a license. Then go with her to the MoE department and ask what they require. Even the officers are very friendly and helpful but you will be lucky if both of you can do what they require. They are very strict, but fair. It's a real hard work to go through the process, because the paperwork is a lot. Don't try to offer tea money to make it easier or faster. It could destroy your plans. I know many people who tried to open a language school. They rented a building, bought all furniture and equipments, hired office staff and teachers, but they weren't able to bring all the documents they requested and to set up everything in the right way (e.g. the building, classrooms, etc). At the end they had to close down the school. Don't expect that anyone is waiting for a farang to open a school. The expectations are very high, the investment is high as well but the course fees are low and if you want to offer quality teaching with well trained teachers (this is what we do) then it's not easy to charge more because of the competitors. Some schools offer individual teaching (1:1) for only 250 Baht per hour. I really don't know how they can survive. To open a bar is much easier. Anyway GOOD LUCK!

[sup3r1or]

Thank you everyone for replies. My wife has a masters degree in Law. She studied in the UK. Currently working as a law lecture. Hope that helps.

[Scott]

A post critical of grammar has been removed.

Unless asked about grammar, please don't comment on it. It's off-topic.

It may be seen to be off topic Scott, but if it's pointing out the English expression deficiencies of an aspiring English teacher, surely relevant?

This post and a few others should have been removed, but I will let them stand because this does come up occasionally. Not every foreign teacher is going to be an English language teacher. Some will be teaching science, social studies, mathematics, music, physical education and some will be teaching an entirely different language, such as Chinese or Japanese. Yes, some of the posters we have on the site don't even use English in their teaching, or they use it minimally.

Some posters are not internet savvy or regular posters on a forum. Some don't type well. Some are using mobile devices that make reading and correcting difficult. Some places have very poor internet connections.

Commenting on grammar and spelling is completely off-topic and it derails the thread. If a member is asking a grammar question, then commenting on grammar is acceptable.

I've even heard (although I don't believe it is true) that we have members who have posted after having consumed alcohol! That can be almost as dangerous as drinking and driving.

[crickets]

Some of the language schools are owned by people who work at immigration in another city to avoid blatant corruption.

[Loaded]

Some of the language schools are owned by people who work at immigration in another city to avoid blatant corruption.

and are members of the Illuminati

[AhanFan]

It seems to me that there might be a better approach to be considered, if the purpose is just to teach proper English to Thai students, and to avoid all the red tape.

Why has no one here discussed the possibility of using internet technology, and advanced internet conferencing software to accomplish the goal without so much investment and tax and infrastructure?

The idea, I think, is to provide education with the least amount of overhead, which will enable teaching students more cheaply, but just as well.

Someone needs to start a thread about this, since this is the way the world is heading, it seems.

Take a look at initiatives such as Coursera, for example.

https://www.coursera.org/

If you think that English cannot be taught very effectively online, then think again, because it is possible.

I have studied two foreign languages online, and in my experience the online teaching was superior.

Why is it superior?

For one, when one learns on line, one to one, there is much more focus. The mind is glued to the computer screen and it becomes a race to avoid "dead air", just as in any telephone conversation.

In class, alternatively, it is easy not to pay attention. But online, you must.

I would recommend that people here who wish to set up a language school to teach English to Thai students consider how to implement their school online.

And, I would be interested in hearing thoughts from anyone who might have tried doing so.

My view is that it would be best to use a sort of bifurcated approach, as follows:

One could have a few students sitting in the classroom.

At the same time, online, another few students would participate using advanced internet conferencing technology which would allow sharing of text, video and audio.

This way, all students could be queried by the teacher, and all students would receive the same "in class" experience.

The only thing that might not happen is that the school need not be located in Thailand.

If it is anyone's sole goal to teach English to Thai students effectively, with minimum fuss, then probably this approach is worth a consideration.

I would like to receive thoughts from anyone about this.

Tks.

[Oil Baron]

Why worry? Just do What the rest of the fly by night operations do, open it up, and worry about the paperwork/bureaucracy later. I doubt that any of them have all their paperwork in order.

If you've got enough money to pay off the BIB, you'll be sweet.

It's that simple.

[Loaded]

Why worry? Just do What the rest of the fly by night operations do, open it up, and worry about the paperwork/bureaucracy later. I doubt that any of them have all their paperwork in order.

If you've got enough money to pay off the BIB, you'll be sweet.

It's that simple.

you're that simple?

[Oil Baron]

Why worry? Just do What the rest of the fly by night operations do, open it up, and worry about the paperwork/bureaucracy later. I doubt that any of them have all their paperwork in order.

If you've got enough money to pay off the BIB, you'll be sweet.

It's that simple.

you're that simple?

Is that conjecture or supposition? Was that a question or statement?? Would you care to furnish the laymen with an explanation as to that inference? If you'd be so kind.

Or perhaps I hit a raw nerve? Are you operating a "fly by night" language school?

[Singharh]

Skippy,that's right and some of their accents are so bad even English speaking people find it hard to understand them. And some of them even teach in Thailand...poor Thai students !

[Oil Baron]

Name a Pom who will speak Correct English ?

And all Aussies speak with such clear and neutral intonation themselves. They're a veritable bastion of the English language!

Have a word with yourself. What a ridiculous comment.

[SlyAnimal]

Please keep this thread on topic

Hint: The topic has nothing to do with accents.