Thread: When School Directors Lose The Plot

I'm thinking freelance corporate is going to be the way to go for me. I'm sick of lazy Thai kids that don't listen and don't do any work. And I'm sick of lying Thai bosses that promise you a lot and give you very little.

So now you want to go teach the lazy little shits now that they are grown up.

I have for sure on bad days felt just the same frustations Raph.

Originally Posted by raphaela28

Hey, but at least I won't be yelling "Sit down", "Stop Talking", "What are you DOING?????" for 20 minutes out of every 50 minutes I teach

I taught TOEFL, TOEIC and IELTS my first sixth month's here, plus a couple of corporate classes and I loved it. Teaching kids is rapidly becoming a pain in the rear. I do love my kids, they're funny and sweet, but I'm fooling myself if I think they're actually learning anything - they don't listen, they don't do homework, and no matter what I treat, the school doesn't back us up on disciplinary action and neither do the parents. Waste of my time.

Those are Thai schools for you: we're fooling ourselves if we think the students are actually learning anything.

Maybe Thai educators - you know, the perfeshonul educators - have a different understanding of what educamaytion is. Maybe it's all keeping face, entertainment, looking pretty, impossible tests that are meaningless.

A few people on this board actually work at real schools in Thailand that really teach actual students truly educating thingers. The rest of us merely instruct Clowning 101.

...we're fooling ourselves if we think the students are actually learning anything.

this seems a bit much, things aren't perfect but my kids always learn in my classes.

i think both raph and peace, you're being too hard on yourselves. shit, teaching ain't brain surgery. just set your expectations to a reasonable level, know what you're doing in there (as i'm sure you both do) and have fun! make the 'important' bits clear as day, distract them into actually wanting to communicate with you in english and b's yer u.

don't be so down on yourselves!

Raph you make it too easy to play

Yes, I think we've all shown commendable restraint so far.

for me it is just the moronic admin stuff.....the decision makers and the things they decide......
My mattayom two's this year
student level: I classify them as beginner 1

This is the book I was told to use.
Book: Matrix intermediate student by Jude

My diagnostic testing of the students provided me with these results:
read assess: P6 ...........P=Pratom
Listen assess: P5-P6
Speak assess:P6
Writing assess: P5-M1
Critical Think assess: P4

The M3 students were given the Upper-intermediate Matrix

and I'm the only native speaker..... EP here stands for Eng Problem

Cynical lot ain't they mate

If they're legal they're entitled to it by law as well as extra if they've been there a while......but everyone assumes they won't get it so don't bother fighting for their right and all that. Ends up self perpetuating

is there a thai word for promise???????\

i very much doubt it.

my school is pretty good. came on board to start the english program. at the interview, told the pay would go up 5k every year.just got paid. first time since school came back. same money. asked the question. told no. nobody said that.
approached my boss. (thai) who was there at the time. and she said she can't remember. the principal of the school, who doesn't speak a word of english, said that he did not understand, we, (THERE ARE 2 of US) get more money than the thai teachers. i lost it. first time i've ever used the f word at school.

i really thought i had found "the" school. guess i'll just have to start looking again. :chug:

Originally Posted by LDMA

For that matter what's wrong with clocking in, when the idea of signing in is to confirm you are present at the school and at what time. I guess the issue for the schools have is that despite wanting to know the actual time the teacher gets to school is that the teacher will invariably bullshit and write what it thinks the school wants to hear, however late they arrive. When an honour system is abused so much as it is in every Thai school I've ever worked at it would seem that ANY employer wanting a more accurate record would appear sensible to implement a system as described above.

Just why exactly are posters on here suggesting it's demeaning for employers to want to see how punctual it's employees are?

Because we are salaried employees, not hourly. Why should anyone have to sign in or punch in to a salaried job? If the issue is that you aren't doing your job. fire the individual, don't dick around with how many minutes he was early or late when you don't pay for those minutes.

"Sun Yuhh" is Thai for promise. "Chon sun yuhh gap khun" I promise you.

Sure there are a lot of things here that just kinda fall to the wayside after awhile. Thailand is amazing for awhile, but then only part of it is, then after some more time passes, even less. I never could wrap my mind around the lying thing. My "X" boss, who is still looking for teachers, looked me right in the eye and lied his fkk'en azz off. So, I inked my name. Then, when the truth became evident, I confronted him in front of a bunch of people. He still hasn't found his face. And when the school year ended, I left.

I think this behavior is a cultural tact, that works for the moment, but comes back to bite them in the azz. The problem is it hurts others in the process. It is so so Theravaddha Buddhist.
Makes me wonder if teaching at the uni level is ok. I am starting become disenchanted. At gov matayom level.

So, on this basis, that salaried employees should not have to be accountable in their timekeeping, even signing in is an affront to many?

Even the director signs in at ours, albeit on her own little posh table outside of her palacial office. I'm not sure if she'll have to use the fingerprint system when it gets properly implemented as seems the trend in gvt school these days.