Answered6 years ago
What teaching credentials are required to teach English in Thailand?
Am I correct in assuming that teaching English here requires the appropriate teaching credentials in your home country?
Answer summary
The conversation addresses the teaching credentials needed to teach English in Thailand. Overall, a bachelor's degree is required, but TEFL certification enhances employability, especially for higher-paying positions. Some participants argue that while a degree is necessary, actual teaching qualifications may vary widely. It is indicated that parents pay close attention to the qualifications of teachers, and there can be serious consequences for teachers who do not meet expected standards. Moreover, there are discussions around the relevance of speaking Thai and the varied experiences of foreign teachers in Thailand.
108 repliesnewest first
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Adam *******
No but you must have a painter and decorators licence 🤣🤣
Nick *******
Yes, u need to speak English 😜😜
Suq ********
@Nick ******
pm sent 
David *********
The best teachers rarely have degrees. I feel sorry for the kids though being taught by Scousers and South Africans. Such a werid painful accent to hear 😜
David ********
Pietje Potgiesse
Marlene ******
@David ********
nonsense...A lot of compliments from Americans who think the accent is CHARMING. Agree with David...some British accents are awful...lolDavid *********
@Marlene *****
what is nonsense? David *********
Dutch and Germans living in africa
Hettie *******
David...What are you talking about? South Africans have charming accents...
Oliver *************
@David ********
Not vs Helpfull But informative of your Opinion Carlo **********
Its Scousers.
Jack ***************************
Thai government, schools, only require a degree, but you will only be teaching, for 4 years, on a temporary, teaching, licence. After that you will need, a postgraduate diploma, in teacher? (l forgot it's exact name, l didn't do it) education. Only valid in Thailand & taken, usually at weekends/evenings at a Thai University. & will cost.
Suq ********
Jack ***************************
@Joseph *******
why pm me? Carlo **********
I think you have to be English.
Benjamin ******
@Carlo *********
No, you have to be a native English speaker. This includes French Canadians, but *NOT* South Africans. If you are not a Native English Speaker, you will need to score at least 600 points on the TOEIC exam. Carlo **********
@Benjamin *****
You teach online?Carlo **********
@Benjamin *****
How odd,ok never mind eh.Benjamin ******
@Carlo *********
I'm sorry, but I don't feel comfortable answering that question. Thank you though. Carlo **********
@Benjamin *****
Was just wondering.Benjamin ******
@Carlo *********
Why do you ask?Carlo **********
David Broadfoot True do.
Carlo **********
I've heard you have to be born and bred English,Colonies not accepted.
Jack ***************************
@Carlo *********
no, but from a recognised, Native English Speaker, country. Countries such as S.Africa, prospective, teachers, must pass a test with the British Council?
Henry *********
@Jack ************************************
South Africans and teachers from places perceived to be NNES places have to take a TOEIC test.
Harvey *****
Degree and tefl course i think
Benjamin ******
@Harvey ****
No TEFL neededSuq ********
@Benjamin *****
pm sent 
Sheen ************
Seems it’s ok for westerners to play at being teachers. Shows such contempt for the kids
Henry *********
@Sheen ********
Where have you seen that this happens?Billy *******
@Henry ********
You think at least half the women hired into police, fire and military jobs in the west are 'as' qualified as the men they could have hired but for Affirmative Action programs? Let's hope no more than half are 'playing'. Benjamin ******
@Henry ********
I have. At the first school I worked at. One of the teachers was wanted by his country's police force for molesting children :O Another teacher was an alcoholic who would drink alcohol in front of the children. Benjamin ******
@Henry ********
"Hire an agent that has all native English speakers". That's their hiring policy.Henry *********
@Benjamin *****
Disgusting and makes you wonder about the school's recruitment policies. Not really sure that it's exclusively a problem with "westerners" though!
Greg *********
OPWhat job do YOU play at doing,
@Sheen ********
? Pretty sure the same could be said of any profession. 🙄Billy *******
@Sheen ********
Westerners playing teacher? You think we don't measure up comparatively to Thais? I mean some of us have Masters and experience outside of acedemia where results kept us employed without the benefits of unions. Benjamin ******
@Sheen ********
Here's something for all would-be people who want to play "teacher" should remember:At some schools, you got parents like me. I have no problem marching into the school director's office and say "fire this so-called teacher for reasons x,y,z, otherwise I'll pull my son out of the school". And the teacher gets fired.
Why is this bad for the person pretending to be a teacher? In normal times, the moment you separate from a job, you have until 11:59 PM THE SAME DAY to leave Thailand, or you'd be on overstay. You can apply for another extension of stay, which would be denied, and you'd have 7 days to leave.
Why would a school director fire the teacher? Because in almost all schools, public, private, and international, the parents pay for the students fee. If the student isn't enrolled, then the school doesn't make money.
Brahim ******
I got friends with mental age 12 teaching English here so yea you get my point
Steve **********
@Brahim *****
many many.
Terary **********
Nope. Don't really need any credentials. Its helpful and a little more legitimate to do the TEFL thing, or some variation.
If you want to be a serious teacher (working at the better schools, better pay) then you will need advanced degrees (masters etc).
If you want to be a serious teacher (working at the better schools, better pay) then you will need advanced degrees (masters etc).
Billy *******
No it requires a BS degree and should require fluency in Thai just as fluency in English is required in English speaking countries to teach subjects there.
Steve **********
@Billy ******
operative word is "should " but doesn't Billy *******
@Steve *********
What were we discussing?Jack ***************************
David Broadfoot F. U. Big Foot 😘
Billy *******
David Broadfoot Why the heck would we need a base on the moon? Exactly. Why the heck would we try to put a man on the moon? To find out if it were possible that's why, and it's not. That's why there's no base there. Though they could pretend to put a base there but there's other easier ways to bilk money out of the idiot masses. So long as 99% of the dolts believe in the scam it's easy to make the 1% sound like fools. It's too inhospitable to step foot on the moon. And since they're so hell bent on getting rid of greenhouse gases we can say good bye to our green house and hello to the next deep freeze. Hopefully we can look forward to volcanos spewing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Stephen *********
David Broadfoot .....and an atmosphere to unfurl their glory in.
Stephen *********
David Broadfoot Awww... Australians are known to love a good story.
Billy *******
David Broadfoot Cesna pilots and 737s. Fiction.
Jesse *****
David Broadfoot apologies
Christophe **********
Visitor not guest graffiti boy
Jesse *****
David Broadfoot do you dare to encourage me to leave the country that I have been so kindly accepted as a guest into?!
Jesse *****
What a bunch of ultracrepidarians
Billy *******
David Broadfoot Cesna pilots
Barry *******
@Billy ******
Fluency in Thai? Bullshit!Billy *******
@Barry ******
Books, let the books do the heavy lifting.Billy *******
@Barry ******
Mount Everest and the moon? Apples Oranges. Billy *******
David Broadfoot You might want to troll someone on the topic of sports, less logic and rationale required.
Jack ***************************
@Billy ******
& David Broadfoot, comments, are going to make me late for work! 555. Billy *******
David Broadfoot Same way they keep all the doctors and nurses quiet today. Loyal brotherhood of Freemasons? Confidentiality agreements? Threat of job loss? Physical? You don't mess with the mob.
Billy *******
David Broadfoot I can't prove we didn't land on the moon anymore than you can prove it. I just consider the source... from the people who villainised marijuana, poisoned our water with fluoride, faked the Gulf of Tonkin, killed a few presidents, and came up with Affirmative Action. You'd have to be an absolute idiot to believe anything they say.
Billy *******
David Broadfoot So they say. How about Koh Vid? How ridiculous is that?
Billy *******
David Broadfoot Well you also need AstroNOTs to fly 237,000 miles up onto the moon and plant it onto the surface over the course of a few days with a few 12 volt batteries and no way of taking a dump. Con games are fun.
Billy *******
David Broadfoot For the same reasons there's no army base on the moon there's no flag there either.
Philip **********
David Broadfoot Sorry but it’s. “ that man could not have landed”. Not landing. Please fix it. Ty. 🤣
Billy *******
David Broadfoot Conspiracy theories wouldn't be known by the masses if they weren't true, flat Earth and Big Foot notwithstanding. Have you heard the one about fire ants? No? Because there is none.
Billy *******
David Broadfoot 555. Cessna school flunkies took out the World Trade Center. You realize now that's impossible right?
Billy *******
David Broadfoot True. That's why they haven't landed there yet. They pocketed the moon landing budget.
Billy *******
David Broadfoot If the US landed on the moon they would have set up any army base there by now. Where's your brain?
Henry *********
Being able to speak Thai is irrelevant in a multi-lingual class, which you'll get if you teach in an international school or a language institute. Even in a Thai school there should be a Thai assistant, so the foreign teacher being able to speak Thai (badly!) is more of a hindrance than a help.
Billy *******
@Henry ********
I'm not arguing for foreign teachers to learn Thai necessarily, that's just not going to happen. But it's easy to pick up bilingual books that either help explain grammar or translate English into Thai and whoever else you have in your class. Billy *******
@Henry ********
It's not impossible to have bilingual books in an international school in each class. I'd probably have bilingual exercises made up for each language. Henry *********
@Billy ******
That's not how TEFL works.Billy *******
David Broadfoot What's today's topic? The relative safety of standing in front of a leaky microwave oven?
Billy *******
David Broadfoot ...says the guy who loses every debate with me.
Benjamin ******
@Billy ******
Do *NOT* use Thai in the classroom. It's a great way to get fired quickly.Billy *******
@Benjamin *****
Yea. Why is that? Benjamin ******
@Billy ******
I'm sorry, but I do not want to talk to you about this further. I judge you to be an incompetent teacher (if that's your job), and someone who does not understand the child learning process. Please don't talk to me further. Thank you.
Billy *******
@Benjamin *****
That's ridiculous. As a parent i would expect my child's teacher be able to communicate with my child in the language my child understands, Thai. Or at least be able to incorporate bilingual books: Benjamin ******
@Billy ******
1. Thai is *EXTREMELY* hard to learn, and it's extremely hard to speak like a native. There's a certain guy I know who knows Thai really well (I mean, SUPER well), but is still always making mistakes. Expect to study Thai for years.2. In public schools, the school directors expect the Thai teachers to teach formal English grammar, and to use a mixture of Thai and English. The school directors expect the English teachers to force the students to use English in the classroom.
3. You may end up having parents like me, who have no problems running to a school director ordering them to fire teachers if the foreign teachers use Thai.
Henry *********
Yes, assuming you mean TEFL. However here more emphasis is placed on having a degree (for the WP). TEFL in Europe and most other Asian countries place the emphasis on having a decent TEFL/TESOL qualification like a CELTA or Trinity.
Steve **********
@Henry ********
and Police background check. Years ago had lot of problems with pedosBenjamin ******
@Henry ********
TEFL actually isn't a requirement for the Thai Teaching License Waiver :O Henry *********
@Benjamin *****
Indeed. I have a feeling they don't really understand what TEFL is!Benjamin ******
@Henry ********
I'm fine with them not knowing what TEFL is, since anyone can issue the TEFL certificates, and there's no "TEFL Accrediting agency". I've seen them as low as $5 USD being sold. 
Steven *****
Just requires you to show up.
David *********
its who you know NOT what you have re papers #fact
Greg *********
OP@Esteban *********
That CAN'T be right! 😅Steven *****
@Gregory ********
It pretty much is. Any degree, there you go. Enough money, form a business and teach all you want. Benjamin ******
@Gregory ********
No it isn't. I mean, in theory, you can get a teaching job with an agency using a fake degree, but you won't have a work permit, the pay will be low, and expect the agent to yank you around.Benjamin ******
No, it requires a bachelors degree in whatever subject
Anton ******
@Benjamin *****
I hope the situation changes soo as I'm sure there will be a big demand for teachers when everything opens up again. Appreciate the input but I won't let it stop me trying haha. Do you work in Thailand then? I'm also going to add a 20 hour teaching practicum to give me practice before I head out. If Thailand isn't any good then Cambodia or Vietnam it is😎. I've heard many cases of people teaching without a degree. Benjamin ******
Anton Adey Vietnam, I heard, requires a degree. Teaching in Cambodia, on the other hand, doesn’t ask on the Cambodia Visa and Work Permit Group for more information
If your heart is set on Thailand, I recommend to start knowing people in real life who may be able to get you a job.
Are you American by chance?
If your heart is set on Thailand, I recommend to start knowing people in real life who may be able to get you a job.
Are you American by chance?
Anton ******
I have 2 weeks approx left on my TEFL course and I was hoping to get a job without a degree, surely there are options for late developers like myself plus I'm English. Any input would be great 😎
Benjamin ******
@Anton *****
honestly, I absolutely do not know if it’s possible anymore. -working at international schools is completely out of the question.
- working at a private school is probably out of the question, unless it’s for some type of special subject that you’re a super expert in
- working at a government school *WILL BE* impossible. The government is not issuing Non-B visas inside Thailand anymore for teachers, and you will need a degree for the teaching license waiver
-teaching at a language center at a mall is possible - in theory. You’ll be working very long hours with very little pay. You won’t last long because you’ll be working 8+ hours a day and you’ll be glorified babysitter. And I don’t know if the Thai government will issue the Non-b inside Thailand for those jobs.
- Teaching at a university? Maybe, since you don’t need a degree 😮 ! But if you do become a teacher there, expect to be teaching something that is very specialized and that you have a lot of experience in.
Tom *******
Jade Opal Jasper sent you a DM.
Tom *******
Jade Opal Jasper and also Fiverr...Thailand.
Greg *********
OPJade Opal Jasper Craigslist is a thing here?
Greg *********
OPJade Opal Jasper Thanks!! 🙂
Greg *********
OPJade Opal Jasper Either/or
Benjamin ******
@Gregory ********
teaching is a lot different then editing. I highly recommend doing a year of teaching, and if you like it, go back to school and get a degree in teaching. Teaching is a skill like any other subject, and requires both formal and informal education to be successful Greg *********
OPI've been an editor and a writer but never a teacher. Was wondering if teaching credentials are also required.
Darren *******
@Benjamin *****
International schools require a proper teaching qualification too but I don't think the OP was planning on going down that route.Benjamin ******
@Darren ******
true! They will want the teachers certified in whatever system they are using (American system, British system, etc)
Gene **********
@Benjamin *****
really! And no experience??Darren *******
@Gene *********
not if you're teaching in a local school no, just come from an English speaking country and it appears you're already qualifiedDarren *******
@Paul ******
yep!
Paul *******
@Darren ******
Anyway, probably much more qualified thatn the Thai school teacher who is teacing English but is unable to hold a two minute converstion with you.Benjamin ******
@Gene *********
sadly, no experience is needed 😞. I highly recommend an in-class TEFL certificate with a hands-on classroom training session though. Activity
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