Ajarn Forum - Living and Teaching In Thailand - View Single Post

Jack Straw · 19th February 2008, 16:33

"You have absolutely no idea whatsoever what type of activity ajarns engage in around here"

Over 10 years in Thailand, most as a teacher and I have no idea what Ajarns do?

Give me a list of 10 foreign teachers in Thailand that have published in peer-reviewed journals? Ok, how about 5? That is not to say that that every teacher in Thailand should be involved in academic endeavors, but nevertheless, few are. While I don’t claim to be an expert, the few academic or scholarly works on ESL/EFL I have read were written by individuals working in the US, UK, Japan or China for the most part. Haven’t seen much by “Ajarns.”

There does not seem to be a strong correlation between being in the Thai educational system and engaging in academic publication (Thais or foreigners). Exceptions for sure, but more of this type of activity will, in my opinion, raise the level of education and the reputation of education in the Kingdom.

Who doesn’t want to see improvements in the Thai educational system?

Good for you MikeS

19th February 2008, 16:33	#74 (permalink)
Jack Straw Jack Straw is..... Regular User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 879 vCash: 500 Rep Power: 0	Re: How Thai interfers with learning English "You have absolutely no idea whatsoever what type of activity ajarns engage in around here" Over 10 years in Thailand, most as a teacher and I have no idea what Ajarns do? Give me a list of 10 foreign teachers in Thailand that have published in peer-reviewed journals? Ok, how about 5? That is not to say that that every teacher in Thailand should be involved in academic endeavors, but nevertheless, few are. While I don’t claim to be an expert, the few academic or scholarly works on ESL/EFL I have read were written by individuals working in the US, UK, Japan or China for the most part. Haven’t seen much by “Ajarns.” There does not seem to be a strong correlation between being in the Thai educational system and engaging in academic publication (Thais or foreigners). Exceptions for sure, but more of this type of activity will, in my opinion, raise the level of education and the reputation of education in the Kingdom. Who doesn’t want to see improvements in the Thai educational system? Good for you MikeS