I'm a high-school maths teacher from a Western Country (not Thailand). I've taught maths in both the West and also Asia (again not Thailand) - classes were in English, aimed at students who wished to attend Western universities. There are huge differences in the students in the West and in Asia.
Teaching at the Asian high-school was essentially like being a university lecturer. I taught my lessons, presented the material, went over the difficult details, and gave the students exercises to work on. For the most part, the attitude of the students was that it was their responsibility to learn, and you were one of the tools to assist them in doing so. There were lots of office hours, in which I had the brighter students come and visit me with problems they found difficult, and even some asked me about maths that was beyond the scope of the course - e.g. some guy asking me about Laplace Transformation, which I had to do a bit of my own research to help him out with.
During lessons, the students were almost always silent I was talking. The most badly behaved students were the ones who didn't pay attention, but even they would simply stare into space, rather than disturb the lesson.
The punishment for the rare cases in which misbehaving meant disrupting the lesson, was basically alerting the parents, and then removal from the school if things didn't improve. But it was very rare that students were even rude to the teachers.
Finally, the level of maths in this Asian school was just completely different to the level of maths in the best high-schools in the West. I taught at a private school in the West, and the top mathematics students there would have been average at the Asian school.
After teaching in Asia, I returned to the West, and jumped through a million hoops to get a teaching license (Asian school didn't care since I had a masters in maths). I taught first in a public school, then in a private school, and in both cases I was hugely disappointed. Continued.
Lets see how it plays out when the west raises successive generations of idiots.
Kayden Reed
go on
Jaxon Jones
The students in the West, while, I guess we all know what they are like. Incredibly rude, disinterested in learning, absolutely zero respect for teachers, or any authority figure whatsoever. And why would they?
First thing I learned when I returned was that detentions had been phased out. Schools are now into what they call "restorative learning," where they basically call misbehaving students into the office, call the teacher who complained into the office, and ask them to have one-on-one chats, and reach a compromise. The teachers now compromise with students who misbehave. There is no discipline at all.
I've had students tell me to "fuck off," when I asked them (in a respectful manner) to continue with their work. I'm quite big and tall, so I've never had students threaten me, but I've seen it happen to other teachers.
I know why it is the way it is. During the one year course I had to take, where I was taught by English teachers (who had PhDs in "Education") how to teach math, the first lesson was that the teacher is just a "facilitator of learning." The students are the center of the lesson now, and it is up to teachers to engage them, to make material interesting enough for them to learn.
The attitude towards teaching is entirely different. These people believe that the teachers should spend the majority of their time trying to capture the interests of students, rather than teaching them the content.
I'll be returning to Asia at the end of the school year, because I had a much more enjoyable time while I was there, and I am deeply saddened by where our education system has ended up.
I do believe this is politics related, but feel free to move it to /bant/ if you disagree.
Cameron Phillips
I'd say this is about the same experience I had in the better classes in a US high school. Too bad they don't start doing that from elementary school though, we'd be far ahead for it.
Ian Johnson
Yeah that's how it is in lower level classes though, you need to be in a wealthier school district with a sizeable Asian population to get a good education.
Julian Walker
This is why I think charter schools and school choice will really help students in poor communities. I've become increasingly convinced there is very little that can be done lift up a student past what they are genetically pre-disposed of, but there is plenty that can be done to fuck it up.
Public schools have to cater to the lowest common denominator. Too much of the lowest common denominator concentrated in one school will drag down the rest of the students (class disruptions, threats to safety, ect). You'll hear about how much better charters schools are compared to public schools in the same area from the same student pool for a lot less money, and at may seem like they stumbled on some kind of free market secret sauce to turn bad students into great ones. Nope, most likely they don't follow the suspension and expulsion policy public schools do.
Teacher-anons, tell us more about your experiences. I'm an education major in Burgerland, and I've become completely disillusioned. Should I just teach English in Asia? How's Eastern Europe?
Xavier Morgan
fuck off
Charles Murphy
You're to blame for ruining the Western education system, commie.
Jason Martinez
>that flag No wonder you disagree. In your ideal world, everyone is equally stupid.
Ian Wilson
Do you try and teach nigs and spics? I've heard it's impossible and literal primate houses in the zoo are quieter and more respectful.
Leo Parker
Mostly white kids, actually, which made it all the more depressing.
Jayden Brooks
so you're in Thailand to fuck boys and then another asian country to teach boys
Dylan Gray
Were you molested by an English teacher in Japan or something?
Jaxson Brooks
Ach, I'm sorry to hear that.
Jason Jones
Exactly.
Because everyone can't be equally as smart the only way to make things fair is to.....
Aaron Ortiz
fuck off
Jacob Morales
Its true teachers of the west. The young minds of your homeland are a lost cause. The people of Asia are thristy to learn from you and are open to your ideas!
Josiah Diaz
Sounds like he is going to. Lost another maths teacher, but it's ok. not like they're in short supply or anything
Robert Wilson
Come on bro. Thailand has a rep for being pedo paradise. A Westerner in those parts can sometimes mean they are a sex tourist of he worst sort.
Dominic Green
I'm finishing my lab science undergrad soon and my choices are working in the American industry for my major or teaching English in Asia, probably Japan. You just helped me finalize my decision. Thank you.
