MisterStretch

I have a no sleeping policy in all of my classes, as soon as I hit the door you can see students waking the sleeping ones up. No exceptions!

__________________
I'm waiting for my real life to begin...Colin Hay

Nick

I tried. Losing battle. I wasn't allowed to give marks or exams, so I gave up and tried to teach the ones that were awake. Damn some of those poor kids looked shattered most of the time.

robitusson

Up to 9 hours of school a day, 9+ lessons in the daily timetable, every day, extra lessons in the evening and on Saturdays and Sundays?

You'd be tired too.

__________________
http://greylodge.org/gpc/?m=200807

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJyJIxiktPs&eurl=

Nick

Everything suffers. Counter-productive.

MisterStretch

I know they're shattered, most of my kids are at school at 0800 and finish their days at 2200. Breaks for lunch and supper...but if you're asleep you can't learn.

I've not given any exams, either, one of my co-t's thinks if I tell them they have to learn for exams they'll do better.

Bet they don't. They don't have fundamentals, much the same way Thai students who have been studying English for eight years still can't write a declarative sentence.

__________________
I'm waiting for my real life to begin...Colin Hay

stfranalum

this towns full of money grabbers!

Nick

Nicely swung back, Stretch. Should have seen this exam that I invigilated earlier. Bleedin 'ell. More than one answer could be correct. Piss poor sentence construction. Missing articles. Missing fucking form of the friggin verb to be.

A sample:

11) The ______ country is no war. There is fighting only in some parts.

a) entire b) beautiful c) poor d) rich

14) Aspirin is one of _______ for headache.

a) cubs b) pairs c) ways d) remedies

16) What kind of this passage?

a) A poem b) A photo story c) An article d) A brochure


A few more random chunks:

Which statement is true about the disease?

a) The disease transmitted by rats

What was the reason of the disease?

What was believed to protect any bad events for people?

From the passage which is not belong to the group?

We should get ______ if the god blessed us


Previously, the Thai teachers have run stuff by us before it was printed out. Not this time though. And man, there were so many attempts at cheating! The bint who wrote the exam (been teaching for 20 odd years...) was so oblivious it was comical. I tried my best, prowled inbetween the desks, confiscated phones, urged silence and eventually scrawled, 'THIS WAS COPIED FROM THE BOY SAT NEXT TO HER,' on one girl's test.

Just another day in a Thai school. And this one is reet nice too!

i1der

got to be kidding me, did you tell him to stop whining like a baby?

__________________
ลาน้องก่อน พี่จนถึงต้องจำจาก, ถึงแม้พี่จะหลงรัก ฐานะพาพราก ต้องจากจอมใจ
ถ้าหากมั่งมี แล้วพี่จะคืนมาใหม่, ไม่ว่าจะอยู่แห่งไหน จะนานเท่าไร ยังไม่ลืมบาง...
http://www.esnips.com/doc/037dfef8-5...????---???????

aging one

oh bro, ask your bro about the new generation of moaners. Not all by any mean. But too high a number.

__________________
Too long in Exile, too long not singing my song.
Too long like a rolling stone, Too long in exile
Too long in Exile, baby you just arent my friend.
Too long in Exile my friend, Baby you can never go home again.

i1der

Man, that was a mistake.

These people got it too easy, I guess. They had everything else handed down to them and expect everything there after to be nice and easy, all the time.

__________________
ลาน้องก่อน พี่จนถึงต้องจำจาก, ถึงแม้พี่จะหลงรัก ฐานะพาพราก ต้องจากจอมใจ
ถ้าหากมั่งมี แล้วพี่จะคืนมาใหม่, ไม่ว่าจะอยู่แห่งไหน จะนานเท่าไร ยังไม่ลืมบาง...
http://www.esnips.com/doc/037dfef8-5...????---???????

stfranalum

this thread is depressing

thats to you tarasbalba!!

ok i met the guy and he was cool. smart bloke.

but i know where you live motha trucka!!!

no more negative shit. from me. and i dont mean to divert from the real question of needs analysis here. but i know that these are problems that we cant even begin to have an impact in. For example, if we were so passionate about education back home- we could get a job that got us influence or- do something about it. you have rights and opportunities to interact with decision makers. in thailand, we're peripheral. thats part of the deal. thinking we can do more is entirely a construction and obstruction to the many pleasant things i experience here at work.

im first in line for a whompin' for being too negative. and i agree with just about everyone here- including my own rants above. but as i check this thread- its just a therapy.

the educational problems are obvious. whether or not they fix their education system is irrelevant. question is, are you gonna be around when it does change?

i dunno. my students have to deal with it too.

WHO BETTER TO HELP THE STUDENTS NAVIGATE THEIR PATH THAN ME??

ive got good kids that are dealing as they know how. how can i best shine my flashlight to show them they way?

irregardless of what i need to adapt to, in doing my job in this system- the question comes back- who better than you, to show the way?



the needs assessment is a key issue. one side affect of it though is the helpless feeling we get when we see limits and parameters on their education system. damn frustrating, because they can do one simple thing and just fail kids who dont perform- a worldwide common thing. so its no wonder people get frustrated. but again, the way to find the cheese in the maze is to come back to, at every frustrated moment, where i too have gone, "holy shit can i make it any fuckin easier?"- come back to that mantra so to speak- what can i do to show them the way?

phuketbound

I realize that they are often pushed too hard, and there is a reason why the suicide rate is so high in Korea. Although, I do think that Thailand can learn a bit from Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. Education is a huge deal in these countries. Students are motivated to do well because they know that if they don't they will not get into a good school, and their chances for good jobs will be next to nil. The competition in the big cities for jobs is huge. Teacher's are paid fairly well, and often airfare, and accomodations are paid.

I don't think that some of the higher ups, care about education and improving it to the point of paying teachers higher salaries, and benefits to want to go there.

What do the students want to do well for in school in Thailand? Are there many opportunities for them both in Thailand, and how many students get to go abroad?

Matthew

Not all that many Thai students go abroad. I don't know the numbers but I'm positive it's less than all the East Asian countries.

Opportunities? Sure, but in Thailand a lot of jobs are reserved for the connected. That's the system. It is not a meritocracy across the board. Sure, certain jobs in certain sectors MUST go to the best qualified, no matter who they might be. But there are lots and lots and lots of jobs going to...those who "deserve" them. *winkwink* That's my overwhelming impression anyway.

The point is many Thais have a worldview that makes vigorous, competitive, Western-style education unnecessary/unattractive. It's as simple as that. If they didn't, they'd look a lot more like what we all kinda wish they'd look like...what we think we want of them anyway.

It's different. And it's not all bad.