Thread: Ban Phe TEFL course

Why are you typing like a bank statement?

Im sorry if my typing style annoys you, Cyrille. I edited my first post to make it easier to read..

I did some more investigating and it sounds like the course that the OP is doing is the same one that I saw advertised..

Lisa - How long have you been doing the course, and how long do you have left?

Were there any costs involved apart from the $500 USD non-refundable training fee and your airfares to Thailand?

This sounds like a great opportunity. I am seriously considering signing up for the next intake in 2007

Originally Posted by pubba

Im sorry if my typing style annoys you, Cyrille. I edited my first post to make it easier to read..

I did some more investigating and it sounds like the course that the OP is doing is the same one that I saw advertised..

Lisa - How long have you been doing the course, and how long do you have left?

Were there any costs involved apart from the $500 USD non-refundable training fee and your airfares to Thailand?

This sounds like a great opportunity. I am seriously considering signing up for the next intake in 2007

Hi, I was down in Ban Phe last October, and I talked to some of the trainees on the, then current course. It appears TEFL are running several different types of courses in Ban Phe at the same time. Including the one you are talking about. You will have to look into what type of commitment you have to make if you take the cheaper option.
I did the more expensive 4 week course and was able to chose the best job option to suit me. In other words although TEFL Int. put me onto a good job, My life is still my own, and I only have to answer to my school.
But whatever you decide TEFL Int. at Ban Phe is one of the best TEFL training schools in Thailand.

Merry Christmas

Originally Posted by StillGeordie

.... and just how many TEFL training schools have you been to then?

Joking aside, I actually did the TEFL Intl course a few years ago, 2001 I think. Not the best student they ever had but strong professional tuition was all I got.
Dave, from the elbow bender, you were the best.

Can't fault the course at all - how you work/study during it, is up to you, your results too.

Only the one.
I was going by what I hear from other people, and nobody I talked to had a bad word to say about TEFL Int. at Ban Phe. Except the people who expected it to be an easy course which didn't affect their parties and drinking.

Happy Boxing Day

Thanks for the advice guys.

I have been accepted into the 5 month course starting in April next year, and will try to get over there soon. I want to try and do some work in a private english school or something before it begins, so I will have some time to adjust to living in LOS

Have a 3 week appointment to finish here first, so that should give me time to weigh things up and get all the info I need about the realities of living over there..

Thanks Areut. The 5 month 'Thai Adventure' option sounds like a good way to get TEFL, earn a bit of cash and see some rural areas of Thailand before heading back to Bangkok or Chiang Mai and getting into a decent teaching job

Good luck to you too - dont forget to use your TROLL POWER!

Areut are you in Thailand now? If not, when do you plan to go there?
I may be there soon (in 3 or 4 weeks) and am keen to make some friends there to help me survive the first few weeks and inevitable culture shock

Send me a pm if you like Talk soon mate

Originally Posted by crew

grammar is but a grain of sand when it comes to teaching ESL.

I believe the training is for EFL. And I was referring to the "cross-eyed" comment.

Hi, I'm new here, but not new to ESL. Have been teaching in the states since 1998. Have been researching TEFL training and Thailand for a couple of months. This is the plan I have come up with but would like opinions from seasoned veterans in the field.

I left the classroom 1 1/2 years ago to care for sick family member. For the past year have been doing private tutoring only with local Vietnamese families. Because of this, even though I have degrees, experience, even a teaching license, I plan to take the course first when I arrive in Thailand, then look for a job. Seems from reading the veterans' posts that are available and that I have credentials to get one when I get there. But frankly, I'm rusty and I have an ESL cert but not EFL. Besides it's been a long time, but I do remember what a mistake it is to get up in front of classroom without a plan and some practice. Opinions on this plan?

Tillie

Originally Posted by TillieMiller

Besides it's been a long time, but I do remember what a mistake it is to get up in front of classroom without a plan and some practice. Opinions on this plan?

The main advantages I found from TEFL Intl Ban Phe were Daves intensity on English grammar, which kept everybody focussed. There are lots of things that English speakers take for granted and he brought those out. Jidapa (I assume she is still there) and the other Thai staff gave the valuable Thai perspective but the most important thing was getting to all the different schools...it set me up very well for what I wanted to do in Thailand...and how nice of them to organise all those bars on the way home...you were guaranteed to be well oiled when you finally got to sleep .