Home or away?
Where is the best place to do a TEFL course - Thailand or your own country?
A good question that occasionally pops up on social media is “should I take a TEFL course in Thailand or in my home country (USA, England, etc)? I’ve noticed that the question never really gets a decent answer, so I turned to a dozen or so of Thailand’s TEFL course providers and asked them for their input.
When in Rome
Definitely don't do as the Romans do
With the school year just beginning, at least the public schools here in South Korea, this is as good an opportunity as ever to discuss the teacher-training workshop that is offered twice a year to native English speakers by the various Offices of Education. I've had the misfortune of attending two of them in my three years with the program, both presented in the exact same fashion.
CLT again
Establishing a ‘communicative English language teaching environment’
I would say that the practice that most improved any of my classes, by far and away was the practice of walking around the class (particularly in writing classes) and making sure that students were doing the activities, and furthermore knew what they were going to get from them
The South African viewpoint
Postbox letter from Marguerite Huson
Four major issues that one particular ajarn reader is concerned about
Copland - becoming a tourist police volunteer
Tazza joins the Thai Tourist Police as a volunteer
What happened during the two-day training seminar organised by the Thai Tourist police. What exactly do we foreign civilians have to go through before we're given our uniform and badge and we're ready to patrol those mean streets.
Understanding culture
Or the culture of understanding?
If knowing more about a specific culture can make me a better teacher while I'm living there, then I'd be more than happy to sign up and pay for some culture course. But keep the "My Culture Is Better Than Your Culture" crap out of it
Trees or the lack thereof
Global warming - something horrible is probably going to happen
You don't need to be a genius to see that if we continue the way we are, then the global warming crisis is going to turn out into something we could never have contemplated. Allow me to stand and look around for a moment.
Ways to improve Thai education
This should be the first government priority
So how can Thailand improve its education? In a nutshell: train the trainers, put fewer students together, motivate them better, hire the right foreign educators to help this bring about, and involve parents more.
More MOE demands
Postbox letter from Morgan Rock
I have been informed that I must (and all the other teachers in my program) attend a training seminar that involves teaching in Thailand and whatever other blah blah blah that the MOE thinks teachers should know.
Finding the poetry
English teachers, Sonny's outcry, and finding the poetry
Governments and Immigration officials in various countries, including South Korea and Thailand, are finally starting to crack down on English teachers who have proven themselves to be less than desirable.
