Living and Teaching in Thailand

Critical Teaching

2006-05-01T20:14:00.000+07:00

Here is an excellent post by Tachizuno in Michigan, USA, offering some valuable advice on developing critical thinking skills in a standards-based classroom.

"Critical teaching, in my own perception, is educating students to prepare them for real life. Another key aspect of critical teaching is presenting tasks to students, and asking them to become activists in some form." (complete post ...)

Getting Ripped Off at California Wow Fitness Center on Silom

2006-04-14T21:01:00.000+07:00

If you’re looking for industrial-scale fitness, there are two major franchises operating in Bangkok that you can choose from: California Wow Experience (formerly California Fitness) and Fitness First. If you choose California (as I unwittingly did) be prepared to be subjected to a barrage of BS sales lines and, in some instances, outright lies, all to fill a monthly quota that these clubs seemed to have imposed upon themselves. Perhaps I’m being a bit harsh – as “this IS Thailand.” ...(...more)

-- From IgoUgo member KauaiBoy journal entry at www.IgoUgo.com

A reasonable teacher's salary in Bangkok?

2006-04-11T14:43:00.000+07:00

Now that I’ve aired my opinion on the concept of “fairness” in regards to teacher salaries, I suppose it would be appropriate to discuss what I feel is “reasonable”. Once again, we are dealing with an inherently subjective concept and I can only offer you my take based on what my lifestyle is and how I expect my salary to support it. (...more)

-- From IGoUGo member KauaiBoy at www.IGoUGo.com

A fair teacher's salary in Bangkok?

2006-04-10T14:04:00.000+07:00

There have been numerous discussions in some of the popular Thai teacher forums regarding so-called "fair" teacher wages. With hiring season upon us, it certainly is a topic that needs to be thoroughly researched, particularly for newbies, if one does not want to get stuck in a perceived "over-worked, under-paid" situation. I do agree with the argument that a teacher's salary (or anyone's salary for that matter) depends largely on the laws of supply and demand, but this really has little to do with what I define as "fairness". (...more)

-- From IgoUgo member KauaiBoy at www.IgoUgo.com

Pros And Cons Of Getting VOIP Right Now

2006-02-28T20:54:00.000+07:00

You have a telephone, right? You have a computer, right? You want to save money, right? BAM, you are a VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) candidate. It is inevitable that VOIP will replace traditional telephone service at some point. The only question is when should you jump in?

VOIP is quickly becoming more reliable and receiving wider acceptance. In fact, phone companies are already taking advantage of the technology to provide cheaper long distance rates. Like any emerging technology, however, there are kinks in the system that are still being worked out.

Advantages

VOIP has many advantages over regular phone service. One primary advantage is its low cost. If you have a fast Internet connection (DSL or cable), you can make PC-to-PC phone calls anywhere in the world FREE. PC-to-phone connections usually have a charge, but probably still cheaper than regular phone service. You can sign up with a VOIP service provider for a monthly fee and get unlimited calls within a specified geographic area. For example, some VOIP services in the United States allow connections anywhere in North America for no extra charge. International calls are charged at a modest rate.

Another advantage is its portability. You can make and receive phone calls wherever there is a broadband connection by simply signing in to your VOIP account. This makes VOIP as convenient as e-mail. When you're traveling, you simply pack a headset or Internet phone; then you can talk to family or colleagues for next to nothing.

Phone-to-phone VOIP is also portable. Internet phones are small and light enough to take anywhere. When you sign up with a VOIP service provider, the Internet phone or adaptor used by that service is assigned a unique number. This 'phone number' remains valid, even if your VOIP service is in Los Angeles and you're connected to the Internet in London. When plugged into a broadband connection, anywhere in the world, you can make and receive calls as though you were at home .

Features like call forwarding, call waiting, voicemail, caller ID and 3way-calling, are included with Internet telephone at no extra charge. While you're talking on the phone, you can send pictures and documents at the same time.

Disadvantages

There are a few glitches that still interfere with the technology's broad acceptance by the public. Lack of continuous service during power outages and emergency calling are the 2 biggest hurdles.

Conventional phone service continues by the current supplied through the phone lineduring a blackout. This isn't possible with Internet phones. When the power goes, there goes VOIP service. Battery backups and power generators that provide electricity are the current solutions to this problem.

A major concern involves emergency 911 calls. For the most part, VOIP services aren't useful in emergencies. Traditional phone equipment can trace the locations of calls. Emergency calls are diverted to the nearest call center where the operator can identify your location, in the event you can't talk. With VOIP, there is no way currently to determine where Internet calls are originating. There is an emerging standard called e911 however, which is attempting to solve this limitation.

VOIP also has sound quality and reliability problems. Data sent across the Internet usually arrives at its destination scrambled. E-mail and documents can be reassembled in the correct order when it arrives. Voice data also arrives scrambled, but it's more complicated because of the real-time nature of VOIP. Some data packets may have to be dropped when they don't arrive in time, in order to make voice connections with the least delay. This can cause brief silences in the audio stream.

Distance and speed of the connection determine the amount of data lost. Some networks receive more traffic and thus are more likely to cause audio dropouts. One way to provide high quality audio connections is to create dedicated data paths.

With the incredible amount of work dedicated to VOIP, these disadvantages will no doubt be resolved withinin the next 2 years. It is expected that by then VOIP will have widespread consumer acceptance.

Why You Need a College Degree

2006-02-12T15:43:00.000+07:00

A college degree can benefit an individual in many different ways. Some of these include higher income, greater knowledge, more potential and better job opportunities. Not all of these benefits resulting from a college degree may be immediately obvious.

Obviously, one of the main reasons that people want to have a college degree is because of the increased earnings opportunities that it brings. It is not guaranteed but, in general, a person with a college education will earn more money than a colleague without a college education. A college education tends to give a person greater knowledge and this will increase their levels of understanding of new developments in their chosen field.

Another benefit of a college education is that it develops a person's ability to think abstractly and critically as well as improves their ability to express their thoughts clearly both orally and in writing. It is also widely believed that a college education helps people become a responsible citizen by giving them a greater understanding of their community, country and global issues. If not achieving anything quite as grand as this, a college education certainly does help people become more self-sufficient.

The fact is that the processes involved in obtaining a college education are very different from those a person may have experienced in high school. Even if a person genuinely hated high school life and felt that they were unable to learn properly under those conditions they should still consider attending a college.

It is a good idea to visit colleges when the students are there or at an open day so you can chat to current students and ask about the differences between high school and college life. There are so many ways to obtain a college education these days that there really are very few excuses for people to not give themselves the opportunity.

Going away to a different area to receive a college education has a lot of benefits on its own, including teaching a person who may be away from home for the first time how to be, as mentioned before, self-sufficient. This not only gives the person the bonuses associated with having a college education, but also prepares them for the eventual move away from home.

Of course, if you are adverse to the idea of moving away from home, for whatever reason, then you can still obtain a college education by attending a college in your home town or area. If you are already working then you can attend colleges on a part-time basis. If you have problems fitting in scheduled college classes around your work or family commitments then there are a growing number of distance learning courses that can help you receive a college education by fitting it into your own routine. These can be either correspondence courses or via the internet.

Strengthened security for teachers?

2006-02-09T19:26:00.000+07:00

"Security for teachers in far south to be strengthened, says education minister"

CLICK HERE for the complete article.

This is in response to the recent fatal attacks on teachers in the deep south. For more info, see the article in the previous post. As with any brilliant plan proposed by the ministry -- I'll believe it when I see it.

Yet another teacher victimized in southern unrest ...

2006-02-09T19:19:00.000+07:00

Some scary things going on down south -- and I was actually once considering looking for a teaching job down there!

From The Bangkok Post, 8-Feb-2006

Another teacher was killed in Yala yesterday, the fifth attack on a teacher in the province in less than a week, as the prime minister announced he would visit the area in the next few days. Rangsarit Dokmai, 42, of Thammawitthaya Foundation School, was travelling home from school on a motorbike when he was shot dead near a fresh market in the province's urban centre about 9.30am by two teenagers on another motorcycle.Rangsarit, who converted to Islam from Buddhism, was the fifth teacher to be killed at the school which was founded by Sapae-ing Baso, who tops a most-wanted list of separatist insurgents.Mr Sapae-ing has a 10-million-baht bounty on his head, the largest the government has offered for any alleged insurgent leader.''Rangsarit was Buddhist, then converted to Islam after he was recruited from Bangkok by Sapae-ing to teach here in 1988,'' a colleague said.Several teachers and students at Thammawitthaya, a high school of 6,000 students which teaches both Islam and general subjects, have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in the insurgency, police said.Mr Sapae-ing has been named by security agencies as a leader of the BRN Coordinate, one of the groups behind the violence in the region, and they say he is believed to be hiding in Malaysia.Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said yesterday he plans to visit the restive South this week to offer moral support to the teachers.''I will go there to give the teachers moral support and inspect the situation,'' he said in Chiang Mai. It will be the prime minister's first visit to the violence-wracked southern provinces since October.Rangsarit was killed after he and other teachers took students to an anti-violence rally on Monday in Yala, where more than 130 schools suspended classes this week.On Friday, three teachers were shot and seriously injured when a pick-up they were riding in was attacked by gunmen. On Monday, a school director in Narathiwat was wounded in an ambush.There was also a rumour that militants planned to kill 40 other teachers.Sanya Suwannapho, chairman of the Yala Teachers Federation, said the federation met yesterday to discuss the murder of Rangsarit. Schools would be allowed to extend their suspension of classes until the situation returns to normal.Pol Lt-Gen Adul Saengsingkaew, commissioner of Police Region 9, said security agencies met yesterday to adjust safety plans for teachers following the first school closures in Yala.Meanwhile, a mobile phone-triggered bomb targeting a police patrol unit went off in Narathiwat's Sungai Kolok district yesterday. No injuries were reported.The bomb, hidden in a bush opposite a coffee shop, exploded shortly after three police officers left the shop.

Employer Provided Health Insurance in Thailand?

2006-01-29T23:31:00.000+07:00

To most westerners, provisions for medical insurance are considered as much a part of employment as a salary. And, to the most part, schools here in Thailand that are recruiting native-English speakers do offer some basic type of medical coverage – or so they say in their job advertisements. However, discussions with my colleagues (who have many more years of experience teaching in Thailand) seem to indicate that problems of employers providing inadequate insurance options are a lot more common than not.

Admittedly, costs of healthcare here are much, much lower than what I’m used (in the US). However, this is Thailand -- the bird flu threat, dengue fever, and, of course, the dreaded maniac motorcycle taxis. Also, more and more teachers (especially in the rural government schools) are nearing their “golden years” and would likely feel a lot more comfortable having a bit more assurance about their insurance.

One “tactic” that some schools like to use is the “offering” of the Thai-worker insurance card. Administered by the Thailand Ministry of Labor, medical benefits include medical examination and treatment, hospitalization, medicines, ambulance fees, rehabilitation, and other necessary expenses under the capitation system. However, the insured must register with a contracted hospital, and benefits are delivered by the hospital with which the insured is registered. Medical care outside this hospital can be sought in case of emergency and accident only, and costs are reimbursed according to fixed rates in this case. Cost for this program is 1.5% of your salary and it should be deducted from your paycheck.

A couple of downsides to this program:

You have to register a hospital with your employer – and, depending where you live, it may not be the best one for any particular ailment that you might suffer. I lucked out – my building is right next door to a respectable hospital at the end of Silom.
Coverage does not include medications, although drugs here aren’t ridiculously expensive as they are in the US.
You’re not covered overseas – a real problem if, like me, you travel home pretty frequently.

So, what should you do if you find yourself in this “under-insured” situation? There are a several large, international insurance companies with Thai affiliates that offer packages specifically with the expat in mind. AIA (an affiliate of AIG) and BUPA Thailand are the ones that come to mind. If you’re already working here, you can stop by their local offices to pick up their expat info packet. Premiums are pretty low compared to elsewhere. However, one major problem with the local purchase of expat medical insurance is the inordinate number of coverage exclusions. One conspicuous omission in a BUPA policy: any accident resulting from you being a passenger or driver of a motorcycle taxi will only be covered for 50% of your expenses. Read the fine print to make sure you know what you’re getting into.

Of course, you could always purchase coverage before you get here. Most US and European insurance companies that offer basic coverage will also sell you travelers insurance or long-term, overseas insurance. Goodhealth is a British company that caters directly to expats (any nationality, not just British), but its nearest Southeast Asian offices are in Hong Kong and Jakarta, though you can purchase coverage online for virtually any country. For Americans, an excellent option would be Travel Guard, with travel insurance plans starting at US$30, that offer coverage for trip cancellation, travel interruptions and delays, emergency medical expenses, lost baggage and more.

You could also use one of these multi-company comparison quote services: Netquote.com and HealthInsuranceSavings.com both offer free, no obligation, online quotes.

Working LEGALLY in Thailand -- Visas and Work Permits

2006-01-28T23:12:00.000+07:00

Getting a work permit needed to work in Thailand legally can turn out to be an adventure on its own. If you find a job with a reputable school, it should be absolutely no problem, as long as you provide the necessary legitimate documents. You will undoubtedly hear of the so-called “visa run”, in which teachers (or any foreign employee, for that matter) need to actually leave the country every 90 days in order to re-enter the country with a fresh tourist visa. This is technically illegal, although many schools (or should I say MOST), in their desperation to fill positions with “native speaking” teachers, do resort to this tactic.

Anyway, if you’re a genuinely certified teacher, from a genuinely English-speaking nation, there’s really nothing to worry about. This holds especially true if you end up at an international school (or at least a reputable one) as they typically hire a law firm or a visa/work permit specialist to deal with this.

Documents YOU will need to provide when YOUR EMPLOYER makes arranges for you to obtain your work permit:

Copies of EVERY page of your passport, INCLUDING ANY BLANK VISA PAGES, with your signature on each page.
Non-Immigrant Visa. This should be obtained before you enter the country.
Departure Card TM.6 – when you most recently entered the country, this should have been stapled to one of the pages in your passport.
A signed copy of your university degree.
A signed copy of a your valid teaching certificate.
CV or Resume detailing your past positions, duties, length and place of employment.
Three (3) full-face pictures, 5x6 cm, wearing business attire. This is NOT a passport photo AND (believe it or not) you CANNOT be smiling (!) in the photo.
If married to a Thai National, you will need the original and a signed photocopy of your Marriage Certificate. Include wife’s (or husband’s) Thai ID card, birth certificates of your children and your household registration.

Later, I’ll have a short write-up on the often confusing world of visa extensions, re-entry permits, 90-day reporting, etc.

"So you want to be a teacher?"

2006-01-27T17:51:00.000+07:00

There is an article in the most recent Learning Post section of the Bangkok Post (one of Thailand's English newspapers) that provides excellent examples of why the teaching profession in this country is in the dire situation it finds itself in. As many current undergraduate students of education feel, teaching is considered "a tough, financially inferior profession and (the students) enter into training without any clear goal of actually becoming teacher."

On top of that "it remains unclear as to what direction teacher training is taking, as the country still lacks a central organization to monitor the overall production of teachers."

The article also points out the obvious shortage of math & science teachers, which is actually a worldwide problem and not just a Thai one. In addition, Thailand lacks qualified (English) language teachers, especially in rural areas.

If you are even thinking about making the move here, take a look at this:

"So you want to be a teacher?" -- Bankok Post, 24-Jan-2006

It will give you an idea of what kind of system you are heading into.

Mid-Range to High-End Accommodations - Silom Area

2006-01-23T20:44:00.000+07:00

My newest IGoUGo.com journal has just been published!

On my tour of the various accommodations available in the Silom area, I divided the group into two. Last week, I had published Bangkok Budget Hotels - Silom Area. This evening, I just finished my journalBangkok Mid-Range to High-End Hotels -- Silom Area. Properties covered include the Dusit Thani, Sofitel Si lom Bangkok, Narai Hotel, along with a couple of serviced apartments: Saladaeng Colonnade and Saladang Place. I know I've missed a few properties and perhaps I'll go back to take care of them, time permitting.

Mr. Ray's 8th Grade Class

2006-01-23T16:50:00.000+07:00

I was very lucky this year to have a reasonably small class -- just 13 in my 8th grade class and 15 in my 7th grade class.

Finding a decent place to live -- on a teacher's salary?

2006-01-22T17:02:00.000+07:00

Before I moved to Bangkok, I was always under the impression that the cost of living here was, simply put, dirt cheap. With the average Thai salary substantially below 10,000 Baht/month, how could one expect the locals to survive if living costs weren't drastically lower than in the states? Why, then, does it seem that my fellow teachers are always "short on cash"? Well, like anywhere else in the world, how much it actually costs to live doesn't necessarily fall in line with the region's average cost of living. It obviously depends more on the spending habits and lifestyle of the individual, ie. what they're used to, what they're willing to sacrifice in terms of "western luxuries", etc. I suppose an English teacher at a government school making 30k to 40k B/mo could live pretty comfortably in Bangkok, depending on what you consider comfortable. But I could only guess. Though I certainly could survive on that salary, I'm too irresponsible, and perhaps a bit too spoiled, to actually consider that as an acceptable way of life.

So, what are the expenses that need to be considered? Well, let's take a look at the biggest one -- rent. I don't drive and I do not like long commutes, so I'm severely constrained in terms of location. Basicly, I need a place in town, in reasonably close proximity to the city's mass transit system (either the BTS or MRT). I'm single, but I still need space, so one of those 20 to 25 sq. meter studios just won't do. I need at least 40 sq. meters, preferably more, and preferably a one-bedroom rather than a studio. Finally, in terms of comforts, I need air conditioning and western plumbing (as in TOILET). Now for things that would be nice to have, but are NOT considered necessities. An in-house gym -- I'll settle for a decent gym within walking distance (no more than 5 minutes). Cable TV and internet (DSL) capabilities -- I don't really watch that much TV and, if I had to, I could always head to a nearby internet cafe. I also have internet access at school. Maid service -- ok, I know I should be able to clean up after myself. But if it's truly affordable (or if it comes with package), why not take advantage of it?

All these things considered, I actually found an okay place for the first half of the school year -- House by the Pond, on Soi Sainumthip 2, off Sukhumvit Soi 22. Positives? It was reasonably close to work, though I still had to take a taxi or motorcycle at least part of the way. It was a one-bedroom apartment, modestly furnished, with a kitchen area (no stove -- just a microwave and hot plate). And maid service daily. The setting was very nice, considering it's in the middle of the city -- a Thai water garden, with lots of greenery. Negatives? Mosquitos. I hate mosquitos. And, no matter how much I tried to explain to the maids, they simply would not CLOSE THE DOOR while they were servicing my apartment! Also, despite being one-bedroom, it was still quite small -- just 32 sq. meters. And the price. After doing some research, apartments of comparable size with comparable service in a comparable area were going for quite a bit less. Of course, when I had mentioned I was moving at the end of the year, management tried to coax me into staying by offering to lower my rent. But, there were a few other "minor" things that I just did not want to live with anymore: 1) The advertised "fitness room" was simply a cheap, rusted, broken-down Weider machine and a stationary bike; 2) No internet and the nearest cafe was more than a 5-minute walk away; and 3) The daily walk to/from Sukhumvit took me past an unbearably smelly area -- trash bins on both sides of the street, so it was unavoidable.

So, where am I now? Well, I was lucky enough to run across a condo at the State Tower at the end of Silom Road, owned by one of our school's office staff. Still considered a bit pricey compared to other places, I've accepted it as necessary in order to maintain my "modest" lifestyle. It's large enough for a single male -- 65 sq. meters -- and, though technically a studio, it has a divider that clearly seperates the living room from the bedroom, and a breakfast bar to seperate the living room from the fully-equipped kitchen. Walking out onto the balcony, I have an excellent view of the Bangkok skyline as well as the Chao Phraya River -- 350+ feet below! Currently, I'm actually staying on the 39th floor in a serviced apartment until the end of February. I then move into the condo described above, on the 32nd floor with the same floorplan and on the same side of the building as the one I'm in now. Needless to say, I LOVE THIS PLACE! So, can I afford this on a teacher's salary? Well ... let's put it this way -- after all the basic expenses (rent, food, transport, utilities, gym membership), I'll have about 30 to 35k Baht/mo. considered as "disposable income". It might not be a lot, but hey -- I really don't spend much on entertainment (ie. bars, side trips, fancy dinners, etc.). Besides -- I'm a teacher. Am I suppose to have a life outside of school?

State Tower -- photo taken from across the Chao Phraya River.

"No, I am NOT Thai ..."

2006-01-21T22:10:00.000+07:00

As you can see from the picture, I'm not the your typical "farang" teacher -- I get mistaken for a local all the time! In fact, if I want to get away with all the lower prices that local Thais get, all I have to do is keep my mouth shut, or perhaps mumble what little Thai I do actually know.

Proud Contributor -- IGoUgo.com

2006-01-21T20:31:00.000+07:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have this thing for touring and evaluating various points of interest, particularly hotel accommodations, etc. I eventually publish my experiences on the web in the form of "travel journals" via IGoUgo.com .

My most recent journal, Bangkok Budget Hotels - Silom Area, has just been published, so please check it out! I spent last weekend walking down Silom Road and was able to evaluate several budget hotels: Silom Plaza Hotel, Silom Village Inn, the Regent Silom, Suriwongse Hotel, and the Wall Street Inn. The last two are actually on Suriwong Road, a block north of Silom, but they're still considered within the Silom District. I also stopped by several mid-range to high-end properties: Holiday Inn Silom, Sofitel Silom Bangkok, the Narai Hotel, Dusit Thani, Pan Pacific Hotel, Saladaeng Colonnade, and Saladaeng Place. I'll let you all know when I'm done with these reviews.

The Big Move

2006-01-21T19:45:00.000+07:00

Okay -- This is my first post so I'll make it short and sweet. Last July, I made my move to Bangkok after my 12-year stint as a physics teacher at Kapa'a High School. No need to explain the circumstances responsible for the move, but let's just say it was a "good" thing for all parties involved.

I was able to secure a decent-paying position at a relatively new international school her in Bangkok -- Wells International School -- teaching science to middle school students (grades 7 and 8) with the intention of moving on to higher levels as the school expands each year.

Well, one semester has gone by, so I'm a bit late on starting this blog -- but that's okay. The first few months weren't too eventful. Mostly getting adjusted to a new city, new culture, new school, new friends, new everything. Homesick? You betcha! But that's life, and I've committed to making this work.

What do I plan to post here? That's easy -- READ THE BLOG'S TITLE! It's pretty much as simple as that, with my take on a variety of things that I've become involved in: the teaching environment here in Bangkok; my (limited) social life outside of school; my eventual travels outside of Bangkok; and my rather unusual hobby of touring, photographing, evaluating, and ultimately writing reviews of anything that may be of interest to travellers visiting Bangkok (most notably any form of tourist accommodations -- hotels large & small, serviced apartments, etc.).

Anyway, if you've made it this far through my first post -- thanks for the visit, and by all means stop by again in the future. I promise try my best to keep this blog updated regularly. So, until next time, sawatdee krup!