Foreign Teachers in Thailand Have Such a Bad Reputation
I no longer teach in Thailand but did so for almost seven years. One of the things that become clear to those who do decide to enter the profession here is that foreign teachers have a bit of a bad reputation; or at least those who come from western countries do. The harshest critics tend to be other westerners. Some of these criticisms can seem extremely severe, while other just sound silly – at least to me.
The attitude to westerners who teach in Thailand always puts me in mind of Jim Royle, from the UK sitcom ‘The Royle Family’, who would sneer at everything that irritated him by adding the words. ‘my arse’. I can easily imagine him responding to the news that a westerner is teaching in Thailand with the words ‘teacher, my arse!’.
Criticisms of Foreign Teachers in Thailand
The most frequent criticism that I hear about the western teacher is that they are only doing it to stay in Thailand – opportunists. This is probably true for most, but so what? I think the criticism here is that our motivations for doing a job should be somehow nobler; we should have a calling to do it. Maybe we should have dreamed about it as a child and devoted our youth to obtaining the proper qualifications. Surely it’s not right that we should decide to become teachers because it suits our lifestyle in our thirties, forties,fifties, or older. Is it?
I fell into nursing. I would not have even considered it a few months prior to applying to begin my training. This did not stop me becoming a good nurse who did his job efficiently. No one ever questioned my motives for joining the profession, and no one accused me of becoming a nurse for the wrong reasons. Nobody cared. So long as I could do the job well, what did it matter?
I think that there is a major misunderstanding here; the belief that people usually enter professions because of some noble calling. I am sure that some do, but many don’t. The reasons given by people for beginning their careers are often far from noble and are usually quite mundane and sometimes even strange. I know doctors who became doctors because their parents were doctors, I know nurses who became nurses so they could meet a rich doctor and I know people who decided to become teachers because they quite fancied the long holidays. Most people seem to just fall into professions, and their motives are seldom given much scrutiny from their peers. Why you want to be such and such, is usually a question reserved for job interviews.
I fell into teaching in Thailand. I had left a job in Saudi Arabia and had nowhere really to go. Somebody I met on holiday here suggested I should give it a go. I did, and I soon found that I liked it. It was a challenge. Life takes us to places that we never planned to go; that is what is so great about it.
Any White Face Can Teach in Thailand
Another favourite criticism is that any white face can get a job teaching in Thailand; they don’t even need to be able to speak English! Is that really true? If you visit some of the Thailand related web forums you will see posts from people who are desperate to get a teaching job in Thailand. There are many who have tried to teach here but failed. I would actually say that most people who try to land a teaching job in Thailand don’t last very long. Ok, they might get a job, but teaching is not an easy thing to do. If you do not have what it takes then the job will be unbearable and most people will quickly give up.
It is now more difficult to get a job in Thailand without at least a university degree. Moves are underway to make an education qualification mandatory as well. People do still get jobs without degrees, but I think that most would agree that if you want a future teaching in Thailand then a degree is the bare minimum. The parents expect it, and it seems to me to be a reasonable expectation. I don’t think that a degree necessarily makes somebody a good teacher, but it does at least demonstrate an interest in learning.
Teaching in Thailand Has its Rewards
I enjoyed teaching in Thailand for a long time – I viewed it as a profession. Later I found something that better suited me, but I don’t regret those years teaching. There are some great foreign teachers in Thailand who just need to live with the negative stereotypes – the view of the western teacher is unlikely to change anytime soon. The greatest reward for a teacher comes from seeing students make progress; you get days when you really believe you are the best teacher in the world. Best teacher, my arse!
I used to attend an English language class taught by an English speaking person who could also communicate well in Thai. But the teaching method did not impress me whatsoever. Still, I did not blame him for that owing to the fact that – in my view – he had to follow a set school procedure. What’s more, the guy came clean about having no teaching qualifications. I thus voted with my feet and simply stopped going.
Hi Oneditorial, I think good teachers are able to adapt their teaching methods to the needs of the student. Some teachers seem to have a knack for this while others just can’t manage it. I agree that some schools have strict procedures that probably do make it harder to be a good teacher. The first time I faced students in Thailand I was way out of my depth; I feel a bit sorry for those students who were stuck with me. I did get better but it took time but I was never a great teacher.
Paul I have to agree with you that having a university degree doesn’t make someone a good teacher. That’s especially true in the UK because nowadays it seems like every youngster is leaving school and heading for a campus somewhere or other in the country.
Teaching in Thailand is probably abused by certain foreign individuals and regulations do need tightening up. Do they check the teachers for past offences in their country of origin? Probably not.
I’m sure there are some very good teachers in Thailand who don’t have degrees but there must be a big call for one on one private tutoring. Perhaps that could be an option for them when the stricter regulations come in.
Hi Martyn, I do feel sorry for those teachers who don’t have a degree and who have a passion to teach in Thailand. I think though that to improve the reputation of foreign teachers there has to be academic standards. A degree doesn’t make someone a good teacher but it does show that they value education. I was expelled from school when I was 15 with practically no qualifications due to alcohol related problems. When I was living in England in my twenties I went back and did my A levels and was able to get into university. When I decided to teach in Thailand I completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Education. I know what it is like to try and get by with no qualifications but life is a bit easier with the pieces of paper. I think your idea of private tuition is a good one or perhaps native speakers without degrees could teach just conversational English.
Paul I think that you are right when you say the majority of teachers aren’t “called” to the profession. Like you I sort of fell into my three career paths, all of which I enjoyed for different reasons.
I joined the military at 15 because I flunked school and it seemed an easy option, got bored with that eventually and became a cop because they wanted ex-military types then finally settled on teaching when, retired from the police, I wanted to fill my time.
I actually came here with the idea of teaching English, had a job offer that fell through so I fell into retirement!
I know teachers do have a bad reputation here, and in some cases this is justified. However little is discussed on the web boards about employers out here, many of whom, like the one I experienced are just out for an easy buck and really don’t vet teachers properly in the first place. So perhaps they are more to blame for employing the wrong people in the first place.
A bit like when I joined the army, if you have two of everything you were in:-)
Hi Mike, I agree that there are some bad teachers out there but it is a real shame that all foriegners seem to get tarred with the same brush. I do feel though that the truly bad teachers don’t tend to last very long; teaching is a torturous job to do if you don’t know what you are doing.
I think you make an interesting point about the employers being at least partially to blame in many instances. I think the problem is that a lot of those in charge of English departments in Thailand don’t speak good enough English to be able to assess the standards of others. In one of my previous schools there was a foreign teacher (non native English speaker) who had an appallingly low level of English proficiency for someone responsible for teaching the subject. The Thais in charge didn’t seem to appreciate that he wasn’t up to the job; it wasn’t even a case of ‘any white face’ because this guy was Asian.
I thought you brought up a good point – lifestyle. I know folks back in the States that work for the school system because they like the long(ish) summer vacation. Some people don’t have a passion or a calling so they look for what supports what they do want to do – and in this case, it is living in Thailand.
I find it interesting that a colleague of mine and I were discussing this very issue in the teacher’s room today. In any profession, great professionals are challenging to come by and teaching is no different.
Hi Lani, I agree that the truly great teachers are a rare species; I think though that there are many competent teachers who get good results at least a lot of the time.
Hmm…I have mixed feelings about this. The kind of teaching I did in Japan didn’t require a “calling” or even much of skill besides being able to read English. Usually. I have a feeling that a lot of teaching jobs in Thailand are like that, as well. I’ve also seen that some jobs want somebody to start tomorrow, literally; how can you get quality people like that?
However…as a former (and possibly future, who knows?) public school teacher in the U.S., I do feel that *teaching* teaching is a kind of calling. I’ve known teachers (and I’ve been this teacher) who work 12 hours a day to get amazing lesson plans, stay after to tutor the kids who don’t understand, bring clothes and food to kids who don’t have any, and counsel the kids whose personal problems don’t allow them to learn. Yeah, you can be a good teacher without doing any of that; teaching is just a job, after all, but for some people it means much more than that.
Of course people who just fall into can be great teachers, too. I never thought in a million years I would be a teacher, but now it’s part of my identity.
Anyway!
You do sound really dedicated Megan. When I was teaching I would often be competing with the students to get out the gate at four o’clock; I’d win most days 🙂 I do think that people fall into things but later find out that they have a knack for it.
Hi Paul,
I think a lot of the negativity and back biting over in Thailand stems from people basically being bored, insecure and trying to make themselves feel better. “I’m the best teacher, no, I’m the best teacher scenario”
Some of these so called Thailand teaching forums are like prathom classrooms.All the flaming. Why? What’s the point?
Teaching English in Thailand isn’t rocket science. Yes, I do agree that some teachers can’t hack it. That is also the case in most other professions too.
Even if one is not a great teacher, you can always learn as you go along like I did. The key factor is your interest. If you are not interested and only want to pick up a monthly pay cheque, then it’s going to be a rough ride.
My motivation for teaching in Thailand was that I wanted to stay there. I didn’t have the option of quitting, and it was tough especially at first. I wondered what I was doing there sometimes. However, I kept going learning and creating better lessons until it became natural to teach.
Teaching English in Thailand was mostly a rewarding and pleasant experience for me. I had 5 solid years of it and still miss it everyday.
Hi Mark, I agree that people can reach a high standard if they have the motivation. I remember reading somewhere about the 80/20 rule. It can be very hard to develop skills in a job to 100% but most people can make it to 80%; the other 20% is only achievable by a tiny minority of talented people. This idea makes sense to me and 80% isn’t too shabby.
Paul, your post is timely. We only landed here a just over a week ago. We’ve only holidayed here a couple of times, but Stray’s (my other half) has been talking about learning to Teach English in Asia, for years now.
He really has his heart set on it and can’t wait to be actually in the classroom. His entheusiasm is one of the qualities that I think makes a good teacher. Right now he’s at the beginning of his course. It is sad that westerners wanting to teach are seen as opportunists.
The same might be said for my course, Thai Language, because I get visa support. I’ve had people ask ‘why?’…why not? I’m going to be living here for a year, why wouldn’t I want to communicate, understand and interact?
Thanks Snap, I hope your year in Thailand works out well for you – I think you are making a good chioce by learning the language.
I think enthusiasm is important for anybody who wants to teach; the job wears you down if you don’t have the motivation for it.
Paul, I am speaking from student’s point of view because I don’t have teaching experience but I do have a lot of experience as a student of foreign languages, that is why I couldn’t resist putting my comment here.
I believe all teachers whether they are good or bad should be forgiven because the students really screwed up everything, I would like to put the blame more on the students. In many cases the students are not really interested in studying and when they do badly we are likely to point the finger at the teacher or the school or the adminstration.
If you want an honest answer from the students you need to get someone they know and about their age (so they will give an honest answer without worry) to ask the question, ‘Do you really like to study english, do you find it boring and a burden, and are you doing it to please your parents?’ Or are they just doing it because they need to pass this exam for other purpose not because they are interested in studying english. If the answer is affirmative to any of these questions then it will make them difficult students to teach to say the least. No matter how good you are a teacher in such circumstances you will not achieve much.
A good student study a lot by themselves at home and he writes down his problems and when he goes to class he will ask the teacher on those problems. Now, how many students do that?
For beginners and intermediate english students any bad english teachers should be able to answer questions that their students ask them. If the students don’t study they have no questions to ask the teacher and it appears the teacher fail to teach them well. Even a bad teacher can still teacher you something if your desire to study is there.
Students should be made to understand that teacher is not an entertainer and he or she is not expected to make class interesting for the students.
Studying a foreign language without a strong motivation will likely be self-defeating for many students.
I believe I understand what students want and how they are willing to pay attention to you and study but it is too long to discuss them here now. If anyone wish to discuss I will do so in the next comment.
Hi Pascal, I agree that there are a lot of reluctant students, but there are definitely plenty of bad teachers as well. A really skilled teacher may be able to motivate even those students who aren’t interested in the subject, or at least stop unruly students from preventing others from learning.
I sense that the many selfless, adventurous and hardworking foreigners who in their quest to experience a different culture may find Thailand as one of the harsher place to teach in. First and foremost, students should have an interest in learning English from teachers who come from a more superior White Western countries. If students have a bad attitude or lack interest, even the best teaher would be wasting his or her time in the classroom.
Enthusiasm is important for learners as well as teachers who wish to find the best ways to teach.
Asian culture is harsh and I guess.they see any foreign poor teacher who have to earn a pittance
Iiving in their socalled paradise as just another potential victim for them to exploit excessively. All this would eventually lead to low morale even for a teacher with the best intention.