My work with the ASEAN English Program in Suphanburi, Thailand gave me a lot of opportunity to show who I was and what I could do as a teacher. Although it has been really hard to get these kids’ attention and to create an interesting teaching choreography for students learning a new language, I had a worthwhile experience knowing that they developed enthusiasm in English. This project of the local government in the said province lasted only for two months, two hours a day, which was very short to expect that the kids had learned something from me.
At first, it was really hard to make them listen to and understand me, considering that they had no English Program in their school, and Thais were not really comfortable in speaking English and had difficulties in listening especially if you talk fast. Another thing was that this class were composed of 31 students from different age groups ranging from Anuban 3 (Kindergarten Level 3) to Prathom 6 (Elementary Grade 6). Although they had no background in English and I also could neither speak nor understand Thai language, I found it easy to teach these kids because their teachers were very supportive (some of them could understand and speak a little English). They tried to translate some words for me so that students could easily understand. Sometimes I just used “body language” or drew pictures on the board and told them what those things were called in English.
In order for these kids to learn fast, I created some flash cards of different fruits and vegetables, things found in a house and school, toys and foods, some opposites like rough/smooth, soft/hard, near/far, up/down, hot/cold, clean/dirty, light/heavy, tall/short, wet/dry and so on. I also found it fun to teach them the different feelings and emotions and made them screw their face while saying the words like happy, sad, tired, sick, nervous, disgusted, irritated, crazy, in love, angry, thirsty, strong, hot, relaxed etc. Even the teachers looked satisfied with the way I taught their students. To develop their listening and speaking skills, I taught them action songs and some nursery rhymes. It was easy to teach these class because their teachers wanted them to learn English.
Being a Filipino, I was not receiving as much as a Native English Speaker and honestly the main reason why I accepted this offer was to raise my income. I didn’t even realize that I could be treated specially by these kids and somehow it gave me a feeling of importance. Their smiles and willingness to learn made me eager to exert more effort to teach them (including some crazy magic tricks – how I made a pen cry, juggling pens and balls, and as a punishment I wrote at their back with them not knowing that I had used an inkless pen!) Sometimes I mispronounced some Thai words which gave it a different meaning, maybe something bad, but honestly it wasn’t my intention. And they just couldn’t help but laugh, even the teachers. Well, learning is fun! When the classroom seemed unmanageable, I just screwed my face and talked like a chipmunk and it just simply pacified them.
Regardless of the difficulties in introducing English to these kids, as long as the school encouraged them to learn it, students became interested.
However, some of my friends had problems in dealing with their students. They encountered students that didn’t even want to attend the English class. There were schools in Thailand, especially government schools in provinces which offered English but didn’t care if their students learn or not. The truth was even though how good, experienced and a fair teacher they were, it would not matter if the students passed or failed the subject, because there was no such thing as “failed” here in Thailand. Thais always pass their students. Even though how hard they tried to explain to them that learning how to speak English have so many advantages especially if they had to leave Thailand and work abroad, it still does not inspire them. The problem was that the local teachers does not encourage them at all.
