TEFL Course update

We (and millions of Thais) are hoping that there aren’t any more outbreaks of political unrest…ever!

Stray and I have had to continue on with our plans regardless, however we (I) did come up with a wishy washy backup plan B, which would have entailed possibly doing the same in Vietnam or even China. All very doable, but not what we had our hearts set on.

Stray is doing his TEFL course via TAT – http://www.teachabroadthailand.com/ After paying half of the total payment as a deposit, he can (and does) access the website to study, answer questionnaires and complete his assessments. I think there are a total of twelve in all. I presume this process is to give the language teachers in Thailand an idea of his understanding of the subject and to prepare him for what lies ahead. He’s also finding some great videos on teaching and learning on Youtube. There also seems to be a great amount of free resources on various websites for teachers and students alike.

So far all is going smoothly and he is gaining good results. Although he has not received any back for the last few tests…perhaps that’s due to the start of the university year beginning in June????

I think the idea of doing the online course BEFORE you arrive, is a good one. Some people intending on teaching English abroad have not studied themselves, for quite some time and this gets them back into the swing of it.

Me, I too have enrolled in my course as mentioned earlier, but don’t get to do any pre-learning via the Chiang Mai Uni. I hate to say it, but I have a feeling that some of the students who enroll in this course are only doing it to secure their year long visa (that might be a bit presumptuous of me). Though it certainly does do away with a lot of worry, hassle and border runs. I am genuinely looking forward to it and have started studying already.

Even though my visa is secured and will be paid for in full, I will be required to report to immigration every 90 days. I have read (somewhere) that the officials interview you informally. I am guessing that if one turns up after 90 days and cannot get through a basic conversation in Thai...one might be in a bit of trouble?

Khun sabaai dii mai :)

From scouring the internet, I have put together lessons for myself using three or four websites. They did all the work, I just had to find them. I just hope I don’t teach myself too many bad habits.