The Thai ESL agent hustle
Thai ESL agents are largely unhindered in their business practices by morality.
When personal and working relationships between school staff and agents come under pressure and scrutiny because of good old-fashioned kickback schemes.
The 'unwanted' senior teacher role
Postbox letter from Liam
This agency I worked for thought that not only could they employ anyone without doing their due diligence, but that the good teachers already at the school would do their job for them also.
Discipline in Thai Schools
How to deal with unruly students, cultural differences to watch out for and more.....
Sooner or later you will come up against students who would prefer to play up than knuckle down. Even in the best of classes, discipline is always something a teacher needs to be aware of.
More on lesson planning
looking at three lesson components; warmer, lesson stages and plenary.
With a little bit of practice, lesson planning will become second-nature and, once you have everything in place, the actual teaching side of things will also become a whole lot easier - and more rewarding.
A rare combination of education and fun
The story of how I got my full-time teaching break
After three months as a part-timer, my chance arrived when two of my fellow full-time teaching colleagues, Big Barry, a former scaffolder, and Londoner Jeremy, an ex-soldier and former plumber, both failed to turn-up.
The good, the bad and the downright unlucky
The different kinds of foreign teachers who end up teaching in Thailand
Wherever you end up teaching, the chances are that you are going to be alongside people you'd never normally work with, which can make the whole experience more memorable, one way or another.
Teaching English in Thai schools vs teaching English online
The pros and cons of both teaching lifestyles
I am frequently asked by aspiring teachers, which is better: teaching English in a Thai school or teaching English online? The answer to that question is complicated.
Memories - good and bad
Casting my mind back to a government school I taught at years ago
Part of our family holiday was to be spent in Kalasin so I decided to reach out to my ex-colleagues and see how they were. Truth be told, I was also curious to learn about the school and if my replacements had been successful or not.
An amazing TEFL journey
From Saudi to Thailand to China (and a bit of America in-between)
China is definitely on the upswing as far as English teaching goes. Thailand is a place I love but professionally dead to me. Saudi was challenging, interesting and of course lucrative.
