Increased Cost of Education - A Shortsighted Move

[long klong]

An International school in Phuket has just increased its fees by a whopping 8.3 %, raising the annual fees per Secondary School student to over 650,000 baht. Parents who moved here a few years ago have seen these fees doubled. They were attracted initially by the relatively lower fees and had thought they could use the savings by regularly travelling back home or elsewhere to compensate for the lack of cultural and cosmopolitan environment. Now this proposition is no longer valid for long-term residents. It seems the school is content to attract more children who will attend for only a year or so, primarily to improve their English. This appears to be a very shortsighted decision and is hardly conducive to developing the school's reputation comparable with other well-known educational institutions who command similar fees. In the long run the rapid turn-over of the student population will make it look like more like an airport or a railway station rather than a serious place of learning where greed does not rank as a top human quality.

[falkan]

There is no reason to send your kids to International schools here in Phuket if they not 100% Falang!

Middle and higher class Thai rarely send their kids in to these schools because of fair they lose their - Thai identity -.

[phuketrichard]

There is no reason to send your kids to International schools here in Phuket if they not 100% Falang!

Middle and higher class Thai rarely send their kids in to these schools because of fair they lose their - Thai identity -.

there certainly is IF you wish your child to move on after their school stay in Thailand to your home country. or for a higher edcuation in a foreign country

(Plus its obvious u do not have kids, More than 50% of the students at the international schools are full Thais)

Mine did ( half thai/Half American) and is doing very well in Ca. university

International schools cost>>

but than BIS is the MOST expensive, Check out QSI

[fiddlehead]

Greed is a vice that we all are guilty of.

Starts from the top down usually.
I doubt the teachers are getting 8% more.

[falkan]

There is no reason to send your kids to International schools here in Phuket if they not 100% Falang!

Middle and higher class Thai rarely send their kids in to these schools because of fair they lose their - Thai identity -.

there certainly is IF you wish your child to move on after their school stay in Thailand to your home country. or for a higher edcuation in a foreign country

(Plus its obvious u do not have kids, More than 50% of the students at the international schools are full Thais)

Mine did ( half thai/Half American) and is doing very well in Ca. university

International schools cost>>

but than BIS is the MOST expensive, Check out QSI

Actually they wait to send them until they ready for university, Singapore, Hong Kong preferably due to its close to back home but England and America is where most people want to go for study.

50% of BIS students are not Thai more like 20%! Don't count luk krungs..

[Peterocket]

Don't count luk krungs..

Being born in Thailand and having a Thai parent means you are Thai. (Despite whether other Thais consider you to be Thai or not.)

[recycler]

There is no reason to send your kids to International schools here in Phuket if they not 100% Falang!

Middle and higher class Thai rarely send their kids in to these schools because of fair they lose their - Thai identity -.

There are many reasons to send your also 100% Thai kids to an international school and many Thais that can afford it do it.

Thai education is amound the worst in the world and all other schools, also English program schools etc., are bound to compulsary Thai curriculum that is highly politicized and militarized, uses rote learning and fills half the time with nonsense that won't help your kids in their future.

But with fees over half a million Baht per year not many people Thai or farang can afford it.

[quandow]

Greed is a vice that we all are guilty of.

Starts from the top down usually.

I doubt the teachers are getting 8% more.

I worked at a couple of international schools and the foreign teachers actually make very good money already.

That doesn't mean to say I still can't understand where the hell the money goes. Secondary students almost completely come from families whose employer pays the tuition as part of the compensation package. It was sad to see, there were small groups of Thai students who received grants to waive tuition, and they sat at their own tables during lunch. Though they went to school in their own country, they were still outsiders.

Let me say here further - these schools WOULD fail students, I saw it happen. Though I saw politics going on that I didn't want to be part of at these international schools, the quality of their education was head and shoulders above ANY Thai school I worked at.

[attrayant]

This is bound to happen as long as schools continue to be run like profit centers. Earnings and the bottom line seem to be all that matters. And if the kids happen to learn something along the way, well that's a nice bonus.

[razer]

These international schools are targeting the market of the rich Thai and the expat here on expat status ... expat status means the company pays for the school, the rent and a cost of living allowance.

[OOLEEBER]

Private schools are a business. I think that about sums it up.
On a lighter note however. Education is important but beer is importanter.

An oldie but a goodie.

[phuketrichard]

Don't count luk krungs..

Being born in Thailand and having a Thai parent means you are Thai. (Despite whether other Thais consider you to be Thai or not.)

5555

tell that to my daughter who is American yet holds a thai passport cause she was born here

[Peterocket]

Don't count luk krungs..

Being born in Thailand and having a Thai parent means you are Thai. (Despite whether other Thais consider you to be Thai or not.)

5555

tell that to my daughter who is American yet holds a thai passport cause she was born here

So you're saying she was born here, she's got a Thai mum or dad and a Thai passport but she's not Thai?

Edited May 15, 2015 by Peterocket

[mango66]

There is no reason to send your kids to International schools here in Phuket if they not 100% Falang!

Middle and higher class Thai rarely send their kids in to these schools because of fair they lose their - Thai identity -.

There are many reasons to send your also 100% Thai kids to an international school and many Thais that can afford it do it.

Thai education is amound the worst in the world and all other schools, also English program schools etc., are bound to compulsary Thai curriculum that is highly politicized and militarized, uses rote learning and fills half the time with nonsense that won't help your kids in their future.

But with fees over half a million Baht per year not many people Thai or farang can afford it.

which normal citizen in Thai can afford 600.000,- for a school term ??

and maybee you have 3 kids !!

[long klong]

I'm from a country where public education is granted for all. While we are not the best in the world, we are still the best in the western world.

The cost of education has never been an issue. It has always been zero.

All of these schools, which offer higher standards of learning for the kids, are offering something what should not have been offered to the kids in the first place.

Education should be bringing the brightest up, not the ones with most of the money.

I agree with your sentiment. In an ideal situation these private schools should not exist. But parents who want their children to have good education will continue sending them to these schools till such time that the general standard of education in government schools has improved. Meanwhile, it's a sobering thought that, at a conservative estimate, parents (both Thais and expats) who are obliged to send their children to private schools are forking out about US $10 billion a year. The practical solution might be for some entrepreneurs to start more schools and provide greater competition than exists today, at least in Phuket.

Edited May 15, 2015 by long klong

[long klong]

Sorry, the figure should be US$1 billion, not 10 billion!!

[Cake Monster]

Every Thai School has the same ethos.

Profit and kudos first, and education for the children last.

As long as Thai schools are run on the lines of business,s this will continue to be the norm unfortunetly.

[steelepulse]

I have a friend that is an admin at an international school in Bangkok. The reason schools raise their fee is because.........they can. That "one time payment" that is made when you enroll a child in an international school is to prevent parents from changing schools, the logic being if you paid all that money for the one time fee, you won't be taking your child out of that school to pay another one time fee in another. Education here is a business enterprise first, and an institution of learning second.

[recycler]

There is no reason to send your kids to International schools here in Phuket if they not 100% Falang!

Middle and higher class Thai rarely send their kids in to these schools because of fair they lose their - Thai identity -.

There are many reasons to send your also 100% Thai kids to an international school and many Thais that can afford it do it.

Thai education is amound the worst in the world and all other schools, also English program schools etc., are bound to compulsary Thai curriculum that is highly politicized and militarized, uses rote learning and fills half the time with nonsense that won't help your kids in their future.

But with fees over half a million Baht per year not many people Thai or farang can afford it.

which normal citizen in Thai can afford 600.000,- for a school term ??

and maybee you have 3 kids !!

It depends on what you consider "normal", but quite a few manage to pay it. I have a son on an international school and over 20% of the students are Thai. Meeting some of the parents it's understandable that they can afford it as they have substantial businesses. For some others it's more surprising, some parents are high military and out of their "official" income it wouldn't be possible to have 2 kids in an international school....

[phuketrichard]

Don't count luk krungs..

Being born in Thailand and having a Thai parent means you are Thai. (Despite whether other Thais consider you to be Thai or not.)

5555

tell that to my daughter who is American yet holds a thai passport cause she was born here

So you're saying she was born here, she's got a Thai mum or dad and a Thai passport but she's not Thai?

correct ( thai mom)

according to her LOL

Its not just that they will get a better (perhaps, as a driven student will succeed anywhere)) education at a private school, BUT the networking they will do in class with their fellow students who will become the next generations leaders, business men/women, etc.

Its not just about what they will learn

Edited May 16, 2015 by phuketrichard

[KarenBravo]

Why put it down to greed?

Inflation in Thailand runs at approximately 6% per year.

If they haven't put prices up for two, or more years, then there is nothing to complain about.

[NamKangMan]

@ phuketrichard

"their fellow students who will become the next generations leaders, business men/women, etc." - given that many of the Thai parents of these students should not be able to afford the school fees, as per their "official" salary, I gather many of these students will go on to be the "next generation" of corrupt officials and criminals as well.

[long klong]

I have a friend that is an admin at an international school in Bangkok. The reason schools raise their fee is because.........they can. That "one time payment" that is made when you enroll a child in an international school is to prevent parents from changing schools, the logic being if you paid all that money for the one time fee, you won't be taking your child out of that school to pay another one time fee in another. Education here is a business enterprise first, and an institution of learning second.

Another similar trick they use is Credit Points for each year the child is at school. So if a child spends all his/her young life from Nursery to year Ten, the accumulated points (say worth 150,00 baht ) can be offset against the fee for Year Eleven. It cannot be used any earlier than that!! Ostensibly they call it helping the parents who have been paying these hefty fees for years, but the real intent is to bind the students to the school till Year Eleven!

[cgphuket]

I see students at an international school who have attended several years and barely speak English. The average student actually "speaks" English 10 minutes a day, when they have to reply to their teacher. The rest of the time they are speaking their native language with their friends. If money is an issue, its better for them to go to a Thai school, and go to private tutoring 2 hours a day. Will save money and they will get more English speaking practice.

[KarenBravo]

Ten minutes talking.

The whole curriculum is in the English language.

How many hours listening?

Edited May 16, 2015 by KarenBravo

[NamKangMan]

I see students at an international school who have attended several years and barely speak English. The average student actually "speaks" English 10 minutes a day, when they have to reply to their teacher. The rest of the time they are speaking their native language with their friends. If money is an issue, its better for them to go to a Thai school, and go to private tutoring 2 hours a day. Will save money and they will get more English speaking practice.

"its better for them to go to a Thai school, and go to private tutoring 2 hours a day. Will save money and they will get more English speaking practice." - but will they be able to add 2 + 2????

[stevenl]

I see students at an international school who have attended several years and barely speak English. The average student actually "speaks" English 10 minutes a day, when they have to reply to their teacher. The rest of the time they are speaking their native language with their friends. If money is an issue, its better for them to go to a Thai school, and go to private tutoring 2 hours a day. Will save money and they will get more English speaking practice.

That is not what I see here on a daily basis. The kids speak English all day long, also the Thai kids amongst themselves.

[long klong]

I have a friend that is an admin at an international school in Bangkok. The reason schools raise their fee is because.........they can. That "one time payment" that is made when you enroll a child in an international school is to prevent parents from changing schools, the logic being if you paid all that money for the one time fee, you won't be taking your child out of that school to pay another one time fee in another. Education here is a business enterprise first, and an institution of learning second.

Another similar trick they use is Credit Points for each year the child is at school. So if a child spends all his/her young life from Nursery to year Ten, the accumulated points (say worth 150,00 baht ) can be offset against the fee for Year Eleven. It cannot be used any earlier than that!! Ostensibly they call it helping the parents who have been paying these hefty fees for years, but the real intent is to bind the students to the school till Year Eleven!

Error: 150,000 baht (not 150,00 baht)

[long klong]

Consequences of greed:

1.Teachers are complaining that though the school has arbitrarily increased fees by 8.3%, their salaries have not gone up!

2. Another cause for dissatisfaction among the staff is the demand that they split the money they make from private lessons with the school. Some teachers have been augmenting their salaries by coaxing or even coercing kids into taking lessons. Instead of stopping this practice the school thought of the "innovative" idea - share in the gain!

3. As an increasing number of new teachers are only accept the job offer at present salaries if their kids (1-3) are given free education, this will further deteriorate an already existing bad situation. There are far too many children of teachers at school and this leads to some very awkward and ugly situations., especially as Thai teachers are not allowed this privilege even though their salaries are far less than half of expatriate salaries.

[KarenBravo]

Anyone care to refute that this rise is due to inflation?