English teaching needs a bottom-up approach: Thai editorial

[connda]

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot - What do you expect when you pay your NES staff 20 to 24K THB / month and hire young backpackers who's only plan is to continue moving along after a few months of 'teaching fun'. Also, how many of those 'English teachers' came from the Thai teaching community where English proficiency is somewhere between non-existent to abysmal. And then for the government's part, shorten the in-class time for students so they can march around saluting the flags and reciting cultural mores, and of course, let's banned homework, and what do you think your going to get?

How about hiring white collars professional who have left the workforce in their own countries to take early retirement, but are positioned to be able to teach Native English Speaking with a minimal of training, because this is our foreign language, and most individuals with a University degree and motivation can do a excellent job in training Thais to speak English.

This isn't rocket science, but it does require Thailand to drop its abject nationalism and to look outside its own borders, and ask itself: "What are the countries like the Philippines, Singapore, China, and Korea doing that Thailand isn't? How about also requiring you student to speak English within their schools during school hours. So maybe you need to hire more NES to accomplish this? Well, cut down the the corruption and earmark those additional funds to the future education of your youth. Invest in YOUR youth - not your own selfish enrichment.

The 'Blame Game' is un-productive, but it does set the precedence for the power-elite to come up with plans doomed for failure before their inception, but plans that none the less will enrich a privileged few within the upper echelon of the Thai government, ministries, and corresponding corporate contractors, something like substandard tablet computers for all students that Thai teachers had never received in-depth training to use, and no objective base curriculum has been establish for the use of these devices. Just throw them in the classroom and the hell with the outcome. Try for a change to make 2, 5, 10, 15, and 20 year plans. God forbid, you can't make money from corruption of you do that, 'eh.

Any finger pointing needs to be directed directly toward the Parliament for stupid, populace policies that were never well-thought out in advance, let alone commissioning the Ministry of Education to develop standardize curriculum for the use of such devices. It has nothing to do with education and everything to do with money and personal enrichment of a few.

Thailand! You want an effective English programs? Then collaborate with countries who have already establish such programs, and follow their example. Otherwise, relegate your country to the bottom of the dustbin when it comes to being a 'leading force' within the ASEAN community. You may start with assigning or electing a PM who can actually speak the English language which in the ASEAN charter is the international business language. Lead by example, and the PM is doing just that right now: Broken English is the norm in Thailand. Great job! As you lose market share to your ASEAN counterparts who are willing to excel, you have only your outdated, corrupt, nationalist government to blame. Don't assign blame to outside entities: Look in the mirror - there's your problem. When you can face and change your problem, then and only then will you start to the process of improvement. You have a long way to go. And I'm speaking as an ex-teacher who has dealt with the stupidity of your hubris and perceived Thai exceptionalism. In the English language department, your country is inferior.

Edited November 13, 2015 by connda

[connda]

I haven't read all the posts yet but I have seen a lot of blame put on the quality of the Thai teachers.

I would like to put just as much blame on the students themselves.

Some simply don't have the right attitude for learning . They turn up without books, play around with their mobiles, iPads or whatever.

They know they can't fail at university level.

The students that want to speak English well make an effort to learn. They are active in listening outside class. They read, they speak and can learn to speak English well even if the teachers aren't up to scratch.

The whole education system needs a shake up. You can employ the world's best English teachers but if the students' attitudes aren't changed it won't make any difference.

I think u might find that teachers set the atmosphere for the class. If they let students do that, then that is the teachers faul

I disagree with you.

A teacher can set the right atmosphere, but if she/he doesn't get the right backing from above then it is pointless.

I have quit 2 university jobs where the policy was " don't fail the students".

Students attended classes without books, took exams and got as low as 10%. Couldn't fail them as they were "paying customers".

This even happened at graduate level.

Well, I include the entire administration in the meaning of "teacher". If they don't set the right atmosphere the system doesn't work. So we agree actually.

The students shouldn't run the class room

Unlike my management who encouraged us to pass all students, I had no problem failing students who were simply unable to comprehend the level of English that we were speaking. Tell-tale signs? I had one student that had worked his way up to level 8 in our curriculum. How? At level 8 the student could not string a sentence together even in broken English; to say anything, even rudimentary phrases, students around the failing student had to whisper answers to the student; students next to the failing student showed the failing students their test answers; students in class did the failing student's homework. The student failed the class-end assessment test, and I failed him. I strongly suggested to management that the student be given the entry level pre-assessment test to find out exactly where the student really should be assigned. Loss of face, bummer, and the parents pulled the kid out of school. I also had a similar situation with a gal whose mommy worked for one of the Thai Ministries. The student had a massive chip on her shoulder and simply would not talk to me at all. Actually when I asked her a question, she would 'glare' at me without saying a word. She refused to participate in verbal exercises with peers (except in Thai which disrupted everyone else), failed to turn in homework, literally attempted to 'stare-me-down' in class while lecturing and soliciting participation, ideas, and answers, and then she failed the assessment test to move to the more advanced levels. I flunked her, but gave my manager the option to reassess her at an appointment that I had set the next day between her and the manager in writing after a one-on-one conference. She failed to show up for the appointment, and we failed her, essentially sending her back to take the initial assessment test so we could tell what level she needed to be reassigned to. Mommy from the Ministry came in the next day raging mad, and confronted my manager. She called ahead and I knew she was coming, and I told my manager I wanted to talk to Mommy from the Ministry so I could set her straight on the disrespectful attitude of her daughter, her non-participation in class, her failure to do the assigned work, and her failing assessment grade - all of which I had documented. My manager knew me well enough to know I'd be diplomatic, but I wasn't going to give an inch on the failure grade. Needless to say, Mommy Dearest pulled her 'Faultless Daughter' out of the school with the comment that I was a Bad, Bad, Bad English teacher. Lmao. Good riddance. The little self-center bi*ch I'm sure will make an excellent bureaucrat in the future, albeit, one who is unable to speak the English language. And too bad, I really wanted to talk to Mommy Dearest because I don't kowtow to authority figures. Interestingly enough, around that same time, I had the highest number of repeat students signing up to take courses at our school. Most of my students where very good and dedicated. But, "one bad apple...", I wasn't sorry to see her go. Allowing students who don't have the minimum understanding of the subject matter being covered in class should not be allowed to continue, nor should complete disrespect for teachers and the class be tolerated. If a school stresses "Loss of school revenue" as a reason not to fail, it is a cop-out and a complete disservice to the educational community at large. And I refused to participate in that charade. I've always have been available to help struggling student on my own time, including coming into school early or staying late, or holding mini-classes during non-class times to help individuals or small groups of students - something I did out of the love of teaching and the respect for my student who really wished to learn. So individuals like Mommy Dearest and her irreverent spawn should feel free to soak their heads.

Edited November 13, 2015 by connda

[retsdon]

The biggest problem is that the Thai education system is not designed or run to educate the nation's children. It'd signed to indoctrinate, and run to put money in people's pockets.

English is just one of a slew of subjects at which Thailand rates badly.

[connda]

I haven't read all the posts yet but I have seen a lot of blame put on the quality of the Thai teachers.

I would like to put just as much blame on the students themselves.

Some simply don't have the right attitude for learning . They turn up without books, play around with their mobiles, iPads or whatever.

They know they can't fail at university level.

The students that want to speak English well make an effort to learn. They are active in listening outside class. They read, they speak and can learn to speak English well even if the teachers aren't up to scratch.

The whole education system needs a shake up. You can employ the world's best English teachers but if the students' attitudes aren't changed it won't make any difference.

Regarding Phones...iPhones, Smartphone, and regular phones.

My initial class policy is very simply: All phones in my class are to be turned off. If you need to use your phone, walk outside and chat away, you don't have to ask permission and don't disrupt the classroom on your way out. If your phone goes off during my class, I will stop and in no uncertain terms escort your butt out of my class considering that you have now disrupted my class. Continue that behavior, and I won't let you into my class without first turning off your phone, and putting into my desk drawer. Pick it up when you leave. Got a problem, complain to management. If management has a problem, I don't need the job bad enough to have my class disrespect the classroom and the rest of the students.

If I worked for a Uni who has a policy that all students pass, they can feel free to let me go, but I'll fail students who can not pass the curriculum, I'll document it, and if need be, write articles regarding the 'No Fail' policies. Thai education speaks for itself: they don't graduate the sharpest tacks in the box, and compared to other countries where English is the second language, they rate low. Why? Thai's English language skills suck. But when the Sun, Moon, and Stars revolve around your country and nation, why bother to learn English? Thai should be the International language of Business, right? They should concentrate on Mandarin Chinese if English gives them that many problems, but from the standpoint of pronunciation, English is easier. Think they have problems with Ss and Zs in English. Have fun with Chinese. That's fine. They simply will not be able to compete with other nations in ASEAN, and the near and far East, or anywhere else in the world where English is the language of Business. "Global Dissonance". Have your Thai students attempt that mouthful with it's Ls that they pronounce as Ns, and multiple Ss sounds that they can't pronounce at all, and vowels that don't fit into the Thai language neatly. Uni students. They make good tour guides, unless they are into hard sciences.

Edited November 13, 2015 by connda

[connda]

Half of all English teachers in Thailand failed the national English-language test in 2007, scoring under 50 per cent. That appalling fact represents the main obstacle to the goal of improving the learning of English in more than 15,000 schools nationwide.

Is this a well know English language assessment test, or some clap-trap, pathetic excuse of a test tossed together by Thais who don't understand the language well enough to construct an objectives-based criterion referenced test that has been normalized, validated, and standardized. In other words, are your tests actually testing knowledge of the English language?

The problem with tests constructed in Thailand is that in many cases, there is no objective that is being tested or the objected is unclear, or completely obfuscated.

Q: When Somchai takes Aum out on a date, Somchai should:

1. Take Aum to the home before 8:00pm.

2. Never drive car fast.

3. Do not kiss Aum.

4. Go to movie.

Answer: #3 Do not kiss Aum.

That's the type of moralistic stupidity that shows up on 'standardized tests' which essentially makes them a joke. So to say that there is a 50% fail rate, my question is: "Who validated the standardization of the test, who is the test taking audience, and what are the test objectives.

Lies, da*m lies, and statistics. What is the test actually testing, and what is being reflected in the low test scores: Poorly educated students or a poorly written test?

Edited November 13, 2015 by connda

[petedk]

There was an interesting article in the Bangkok Post today stating that the Education Ministry wants to cut the number of foreign teachers.

The idea is that Thai teachers will be given a "six week" course at the British council and then go back and teach.

It also states that of 43,000 Thai English teachers only 6 (yes six!!) have the ability to achieve native-like fluency in English.

Edit: Oops I just logged on and replied to this thread. Now I see there is a thread on the cutback. Sorry.

Edited November 13, 2015 by petedk