Teacher License Changes Ghost Stories

[Preacher]

I hear a lot of hopeful ghost stories about the teaching license and that the Teachers Council is planning to give the licenses away like candy with plans to change the system and make it easier to get the license. I tried to put some facts together:

 

 

The teaching profession (and the Teachers Council) is regulated by the law, the teacher act of 2003.  The law states the requirements  for a teaching license in section 44:

Applicants for Licenses to practice a licensed Profession shall possess the qualifications and have no prohibited characteristics as follows:
(a) Qualifications
(1) Having an age of fully twenty years or older;
(2) Having an education degree or equivalent or other educational qualification accredited by the Teachers Council of Thailand;
(3) Having completed a practical training in an Educational Institution in accordance with an educational curriculum of not less than one year and having passed the practical training requirements in accordance with the criteria, procedures and conditions as set out by the Teachers Council of Thailand Board;
(b) Prohibited characteristics

(1) Having improper behavior or immorality;
(2) Being incompetent or quasi-incompetent;
(3) Having previously been sentenced to imprisonment in any case, which, in the opinion of the Teachers Council of Thailand, may bring dishonor upon the Profession.

 

There is not much that the Teachers Council can do about this, it is the law. For a teachers license you need a degree in education or its equivalent. And I don't see the law changing very soon.

 

However there is still hope in the form of Section 43:

The Profession of Teachers, Educational Institution Administrators and Education Administrators shall be a licensed Profession under this Act. Other licensed Professions shall be as stipulated in ministerial regulations.
No one shall practice a licensed Profession without a License under this Act, except in any of the following cases:

(1) Those occasionally providing knowledge to learners in any Educational Institution as guest educational lecturers;
(2) Those whose primary Profession does not relate to the teaching and learning process, but has the occasional duty to teach;
(3) Students, trainees or those with a practical training license apprenticing or training under the supervision of Professional Educators, subject to the criteria, procedures and conditions set forth by the Teachers Council of Thailand Board;
(4) Those arbitrarily offering educational courses;
(5) Those teaching in any learning center under the law governing national education or learning establishments arbitrarily operated by nonformal educational agencies, individuals, families, communities, community organizations, local administrative organizations, private organizations, Professional organizations, religious institutions, business establishments, hospitals, medical institutions, charitable shelters and other social institutions;
(6) Public and private instructors, Educational Institution Administrators and Education Administrators at the higher education level;
(7) Education Administrators of a level higher than educational districts;
(8) Other persons as designated by the Teachers Council of Thailand Board.

 

(3) forms the base for the waiver over which the Teachers Council has more discretion and of course (8) allows the Teachers Council to designate other persons to be exempt from the requirement for a teaching license.

 

It seems that legally the Teacher Council has the authority to waive the teaching license requirement for foreign language instructors/teachers. If they will do that is something entirely different and a political decisions. The ministry has a big say in matters of the Teachers Council.

I see no signs the teachers council will change the requirements for the waiver. A couple of years ago I spoke to a high official of the TCT and the plans were to improve the cultural course with more required hours of study, not to abolish it.

 

Any hard facts are welcome.

 

[chowny77]

I am looking into doing a BA degree. To be honest apart from my wife's family being here I see no reason to stay here working in Thailand when I get the degree. The wages that are offered now are pitiful. I might look to Japan/Korea or even China.

[Scott]

The law applies to Thai Teachers as well as non-Thai teachers, so I don't know if there will be much in the way of changes.   For the Thais it's a little easier to get that education degree with more options available.  

 

Where I work, there are a lot of Thai teachers who are obtaining either an education degree or a Masters (usually in education).   They can attend on weekends and there are numerous programs conveniently located nearby.   They are not expensive.   For the foreign teachers, there are none that are conveniently located and those that attend classes must spend a lot of money.  

 

Most gov'ts aren't particularly responsive to the needs of a relatively small group, but Thailand is less so.   

[aidenai]

10 hours ago, Preacher said:

I hear a lot of hopeful ghost stories about the teaching license and that the Teachers Council is planning to give the licenses away like candy with plans to change the system and make it easier to get the license.

 

10 hours ago, Preacher said:

There is not much that the Teachers Council can do about this, it is the law. For a teachers license you need a degree in education or its equivalent. And I don't see the law changing very soon.

Several foreign teachers in our provincial capital have obtained a third provisional teaching permit without any problems. That is, they have not been enrolled in any graduate diploma course or haven't done any other development to meet the teacher license requirements. It seems that The Teachers' Council of Thailand just grants provisional teaching permits to anybody who asks for it provided that applicants holds a university degree of any kind. 

Edited February 2, 2017 by aidenai