Thai government schools

So you've decided that a holiday in Thailand was not enough. You like it so much you want to stay long term. You know people who work out here as English teachers, and they've told you it's easy. You've got your paperwork, you've got a lover waiting for you and you're all set to start work. What should you expect?

The first thing to remember is that many who say English teaching is easy are wrong. What they mean is, it's easy to get way with a lot. There are many "teachers" out here that I would not let near my son. Bear in mind that there's a difference between getting by and doing a job properly.

But of course a big part of your happiness and success will lie with your choice of employer and how they treat you. That in turn will depend on the type of institution that employs you. I've written before about the types of schools so I'll just re-cap here. Private schools are the educational equivalent of fast food chains. They have a high staff turn over, provide immediate - but often un-nutritious and unhelpful - gratification to the student and are easy to find.

International schools are different. I've never worked in one but I've given private tuition to many international students. The schools seem to be high on facilities, high on teacher discipline and meticulous on testing. However, they still contain some of the negative Thai educational traits which I will touch on later.

Government schools are a challenge. I worked in one for three years, three of the best years of my life yet the same three years that allowed me to witness shocking events. When I first entered the school, I had delusions. I believed that teachers would conduct themselves with the decorum their position afforded. I believed that teachers had students' needs at heart. I believed most teachers liked their job.

What I discovered was different.

Now, I about to say some very harsh comments about Thai government schools. I want to stress this is my own humble opinion based on experience. My harshness is based on dissapointment that students are not given the education that the wonderful young people of Thailand deserve. Of course, not all teachers are like those I am about to describe. I've meet some teachers in government schools whom I greatly admire and aspire to copy , what's more there are many who enjoy foreign teachers with new methods and ideas and welcome us. Sadly, these are the exceptions that prove the rule.

Most government English teachers cannot speak English. That is a fact. They are victims of a vicious cycle. They have been bought up to learn grammar over communication, and with an average age of about fifty they cannot change. So, fourteen year old students who cannot say "Hello, how are you?" will be passed a broadsheet newspaper and told to underline noun phrases (a group of words acting as a noun, e.g. The Bank of England) and transitive verbs (verbs that must take an object). Thus, students become proficient at grammar points and useless a holding a basic conversation.

Discipline is also rigorously enforced. In my old blog I told the story of teachers on "gate duty". 'Gate duty' is when teachers stand at the front of the school gates, ostensibly to welcome students. In reality, teachers will check each student to make sure his or her hair is not one centimetre over limit or their socks too dirty. I once saw a student get caned for having dirty socks. The girl was from a poor family - remember Thailand is still a developing country - and conducted herself politely as she apologised to the teacher. The teacher ignored the apology and hit her three times. After the student left the room, the teacher told her colleagues in Thai "I don't like her". She had used the dirty socks as an excuse to use violence on the student.

If that sounds shocking or at least very unprofessional to you, it was an everyday occurrence to me. The same teacher who hit this girl hated work, she would regularly arrive in class at least half way through her lessons and could not speak English. She would teach the entire lesson in Thai.

Once again, if that surprises you , you have never worked in a government school in Thailand.

The Thai smile is conspicuous by its absence in government schools. That's not to say you won't get smiles. Students will often flash a genuine smile at a teacher and that can be a great little lift. However, teachers often use a smile as camouflage. I've seen a teacher smile as she fails a student she doesn't like, or hits a pupil that arrived two minutes late. Many older teachers dislike their foreign counterparts. Old fashioned values rule in these institutions, including the idea that age begets rank. As most farang teachers are younger than their Thai colleagues, they are considered lower. A cynic like me would dare to suggest that older teachers sometimes feel threatened by our presence.

Administration in most of these places is non existent. I would often find out about meetings, holidays and cancellations from students.

Students don't like the system any more than we do, but they are powerless. Government schools are hellbent on enforcing rank and authority. Critical thinking or even questioning is unwelcome. Students have been punished heavily for asking the teacher a question the teacher couldn't answer.

So are these places a hell for foreign teachers? No.

One thing that makes these places worthwhile are the students. Government schools tend to offer very large classes with a great mix of personalities and types. Often the foreign teacher is a novelty for these students and they can make you feel like a celebrity, at least at first! Such large classes can be very challenging to bring under control, especially for inexperienced teachers. The belief that the foreign teacher is an hour of fun is - how can I put this? - not discouraged by some local teachers and this can make life difficult. Often a stern line of control is necessary at first. This can lead to some decent leaning and subsequently good rapport.

Anyone who knows me knows that I grew very close to my main class during my three years at government school. I'm still in touch with many of them now. Although it was difficult working with an antiquated and unwelcoming institution, the magic of seeing fifty smiling young faces each day, and the satisfaction of watching them grow in knowledge and confidence made it all worthwhile. Such experiences can be rarer at the other types of school, and I'm blessed to have received it.

It's no mistake that I missed bilingual schools out in this report. Watch this space.

Thanks to Sriwittayapaknam School for letting me use some of the pictures in this blog. They seem to be a big cut above many other government schools.