Who does my job ad appeal to?

What can you do when filling your teacher vacancies becomes impossible?

If you've been around teacher recruitment in Thailand for as long as I have, then you'll know that by insisting on too many requirements, a school is narrowing its field down to almost non-existent

Getting serious

Switching from a rural vocational college to a Bangkok university

So. Finally. After three terms it was time to say goodbye to Udon Thani, the vocational college and the Isaan region and to say hello to Bangkok and a private university.

Keeping foreign teachers

Postbox letter from Paul

How will Thailand prevent their slide towards last place in the ASEAN economic community when they can't keep foreign teachers? The Government in Bangkok make the request, but many educators can't seem to accept the help that they are given.

The communists helped me learn English

Childhood memories of Thai village life

I must have been eight when the Communists came to our village, because that was the first year my grandmother told my father that I must stay in school. I had six older brothers, I was the first girl in the family, and there was a lot of cooking and dish-washing to be done in the morning. My father thought that girls who stayed too long in school would just get pregnant.

What to expect when you move to Thailand

Life in the sticks and other oddities

I packed my bags and moved to Thailand to eventually become an English teacher. I was offered jobs in different parts of Thailand, but I quickly decided to move to a village in the North East region of Thailand, as opposed to a city. Moving from a city in Canada to a village in Thailand is a radical change but it's the type of challenge I was looking for.

What you may not know about her

Tales from Thai society

The story begins with a new foreigner who came to our village two years ago. He was an Australia man, strong and handsome, not so old, but he spoke no Thai and never smiled. I would see him sometimes, with his wife, at the local noodle shop. She was from the tambon, the small town about fifteen minutes bicycle ride from my farm.

Thailand race Issues

Postbox letter from Mr B

I came to Thailand with my girlfriend and within two weeks we both had a job in the same school - quite fortunate, I know. Neither of us have degrees, but we have TESOL certs and various tertiary qualifications. The process of getting the job was a little strange or different to what I'm used to. We both applied for the same job posts that we found online and many of these applications required a picture. My girlfriend got quick replies and I hardly got any or was told that I would be 'kept in mind' for future positions.

Better the devil you know

Postbox letter from Mr. Russell Park

At this moment in time, I find myself teaching in a small town close to Nakhonsawan. I've been teaching here for four months and at first I thought I wouldn't last because the town is small and very rural.