Best bilingual school in Thailand

[SiriusHugo]

Which are the best Bilingual schools in Thailand? I am looking for the best bilingual schools mostly in Bangkok and nearby areas. I would also like to know regarding the best bilingual schools in other parts of the country as well.

[claffey]

English Programs in Sacred Heart Convent, St Joseph's convent, Assumption st louis/ Bangrak or Bangkok Christiam College. These schools are not cheap and the standard of education is not great. Foreign teachers may or may not be fully trained with QTS from their home countries. Some of them may well be TEFL teachers who have worked their way up.

 

An international school in Bangkok would be much better depending on your plans and budget and almost the same price. All teachers will be fully qualified in their subjects and vastly experienced. The kids will be much more multi cultural and will not be indoctrinated with Thainess.

[ben2talk]

Sarasas Suwannaphumi has both bilingual and now 'international' program. The inter is new, 54k per term and 80% English.

 

 I would be interested to hear from anybody teaching in their international  program,  but from what I have seen, the prices for just about anything else is ridiculous. 

 

 One school that I looked at was boasting an IEP, for substantial extra fee, which would include to conversation classes per week in English, to conversation classes per week in tonight, and something else on Friday that I forgotten about it because I was already asleep.

[Scott]

I do know a few of the teachers at the school, including some in the IEP.   The IEP only goes to grade 6 (I think).   Each class has a native, or near native English speaker for a homeroom teacher, so the day-to-day activities are in English.   A number of the homeroom teachers are South African, but they seem to be native in that they are never seen conversing in anything other than English.  

 

The KG level have both a Farang homeroom teacher and a Thai homeroom teacher.   All the classes also have a Filipino assistant who helps with activities etc.  

 

The school does move the best teachers from the Bilingual program into the IEP, so it does get a fair amount of positive attention.   I once went to a Christmas program there and saw the IEP students perform.   There were several young students sitting behind me and speaking in English and asked a teacher where they were from -- turns out they were all Thai, but just used to conversing in English!

 

Whether it is good value for money, I don't know, and how it ranks with regard to the curriculum, I am not sure, but they are immersed in English, they do use it and they do it in a functional manner.  

[ben2talk]

I do know a few of the teachers at the school, including some in the IEP.   The IEP only goes to grade 6 (I think).   Each class has a native, or near native English speaker for a homeroom teacher, so the day-to-day activities are in English.   A number of the homeroom teachers are South African, but they seem to be native in that they are never seen conversing in anything other than English.  
 
The KG level have both a Farang homeroom teacher and a Thai homeroom teacher.   All the classes also have a Filipino assistant who helps with activities etc.  
 
The school does move the best teachers from the Bilingual program into the IEP, so it does get a fair amount of positive attention.   I once went to a Christmas program there and saw the IEP students perform.   There were several young students sitting behind me and speaking in English and asked a teacher where they were from -- turns out they were all Thai, but just used to conversing in English!
 
Whether it is good value for money, I don't know, and how it ranks with regard to the curriculum, I am not sure, but they are immersed in English, they do use it and they do it in a functional manner.  

Maybe confused about IEP. It's a Thai programme with 1/7 classes in English - just a bit of conversation etc.


Sent from my big slate

[Scott]

Most of the Sarasas schools are bilingual and a few have added an IEP (International Education Program).   What I wrote is for the Suvarnabhumi school -- and I believe there is another Sarasas in Samut Prakharn with a similar IEP.   They are very much English oriented and have Farang homeroom teachers.  

 

I know some schools tout IEP programs which have much less English.

 

It will be interesting in a few years to see if there is any difference in the grades on the national exams for those with a program that is heavily oriented toward English.  

 

In bilingual education there is no loss in the first language ability.   I don't know if the same will happen with IEP programs that teach a great deal of the curriculum in English.  

[ben2talk]

Most of the Sarasas schools are bilingual and a few have added an IEP (International Education Program).   What I wrote is for the Suvarnabhumi school -- and I believe there is another Sarasas in Samut Prakharn with a similar IEP.   They are very much English oriented and have Farang homeroom teachers.  
 
I know some schools tout IEP programs which have much less English.
 
It will be interesting in a few years to see if there is any difference in the grades on the national exams for those with a program that is heavily oriented toward English.  
 
In bilingual education there is no loss in the first language ability.   I don't know if the same will happen with IEP programs that teach a great deal of the curriculum in English.  

Okay, confusion from IEP "Intensive" also being used for "International".

It definitely sounds like the 'lesser evil' at 52k per term - about the only option I found palatable so far! After seeing the material used for Anubahn 1-2-3 I'm really not bothered by the loss...

The target is fluent Thai with English as first language for further/higher Ed later here or abroad. Media at home is 99% BBC - all stored on a Plex server.

He lost a few big jobs this year because his Thai was weak (we are talking 100-200k for media jobs taking 1-2 days) so I'm thinking Prathom 1 bilingual and go inter a year later.

The biggest change I see at Sarasas are the sealed air-conditioned rooms - a new trend and something I saw making huge differences in my bilingual teaching history.


Sent from my big slate

[Scott]

The A/C rooms is a definite plus and I am not just referring to the cooling.   The open structure of many Thai schools is a major distraction to learning.   Noise emanating from the hallways and classrooms nearby inhibits learning.  

 

There have been a fair number of studies about the affects of extraneous noise on learning.

 

I have taught in those open-air rooms and it was hard for me to hear students even though I could easily go next to them.   

 

[ben2talk]

On 8/29/2017 at 1:13 AM, Scott said:

The A/C rooms is a definite plus and I am not just referring to the cooling.   The open structure of many Thai schools is a major distraction to learning.   Noise emanating from the hallways and classrooms nearby inhibits learning.  

 

There have been a fair number of studies about the affects of extraneous noise on learning.

 

I have taught in those open-air rooms and it was hard for me to hear students even though I could easily go next to them.   

 

When there was a bird-flu scare some years back, I was 5 months into my KG3  year - with 3 separate classes in separate rooms. The order to cancel aircon before lunch negated my normal plan. English was special time, move tables, close curtains and set up the room for fun and games. Worksheet time (20 minutes at the end) was also fun, and a good opportunity for me to mess around with different styles/methods of completing worksheets and different shading techniques...

 

After the order, we have open windows and kids wondering about the smell of cut grass, listening to strimmers etc. 

 

 

In spite of this, when looking for schools and having explained it clearly to my wife, she still ended up suggesting 'this is a good school, my friends said...'. Most of them look more like prisons!

 

[DavisH]

On 8/29/2017 at 1:13 AM, Scott said:

The A/C rooms is a definite plus and I am not just referring to the cooling.   The open structure of many Thai schools is a major distraction to learning.   Noise emanating from the hallways and classrooms nearby inhibits learning.  

 

There have been a fair number of studies about the affects of extraneous noise on learning.

 

I have taught in those open-air rooms and it was hard for me to hear students even though I could easily go next to them.   

 

One thing I've noticed is that Thai kids really don't notice their own noise. Mine get quite noisy when they are discussing how to solve problems (it's a maths class). I could never fathom how they can concentrate with that level of noise. I think it bothers me more than them:) Give them a choice of either working individually or as a group, and no% would rather sit with other students. 

[Scott]

Noise always bothered me more than the students, but the problem is that extraneous noise affects concentration.   Noise also has a negative affect on the various other aspects of the learning process.  

 

If a teacher is trying to help a student with pronunciation of words, it's important that the student be able to listen, and hear clearly.   In other subjects, the momentary distraction from extraneous noise can cause a loss of focus and it is hard enough to keep a group of students focused.  

 

Noise is distracting.   

[BobbyL]

Amnuay Silpa near Phaya Thai. UK curriculum taught alongside a Thai one. Nearly all teachers there now are hired from the UK and qualified. Not cheap though.