Schools in the Buriram area?

[daleph]

Well this was a good introduction tom the forum for me

Only one person has actually bothered to answer my question!

Why do people need to hijack other peoples posts, just to start an argument?

Now, BACK ON TOPIC, does ANYONE else have any SENSIBLE advice?

Regards

Dale

[davu]

? My signature? Well, I didn't know you understood Swiss Bernese dialect, maybe you would like to explain what it means to everyone? Sorry Daleph, I feel I was provoked into going off topic. I responded to Starman's remark about children having problems with learning languages and was accused of ignorance.
At least this is a thread that is not about football as most of them seem to be. Ok so the thread stone is dead as far as I'm concerned, at least I tried to help a little.

[Vombatus]

Well this was a good introduction tom the forum for me

Only one person has actually bothered to answer my question!

Why do people need to hijack other peoples posts, just to start an argument?

Now, BACK ON TOPIC, does ANYONE else have any SENSIBLE advice?

Regards

Dale

Daleph, you will find sensible advice on this forum - but you may need to wade through the occasional bits of crap to get there.

I am not qualified to comment but I do know that Starman is. I am not saying that because he is a teacher but I do believe that his teaching experience, together with his parental experience, qualify him to deal with your initial questions.

I would suggest that you PM him and start a dialogue. This thread is, of course, there for those who want to offer additional advice.

[Geordie Boy]

I have only lived in Buriram for a short while, since we came back to my wife's village, some 7 years ago, however I do have some knowledge of the local education system.
There are no international schools in Buriram, the closest you got was a bi-lingual school (Northeastern College) which has now become Westin University.

There is the Thai/Chinese school in the city, which from all reports is excellent.

Irrespective of that I have chosen to send my boy elsewhere, Anuban Buriram.

I wish you luck in finding a suitable environment for you child.

If you want/need an International School, sorry to say you are in the wrong Changwat, as my boy who is now 8 years old can only 4 languages, read 2 languages, but still thinks Thai Soap Opera is real, what can you do?

Bye the way Starman, loved your post.

[F1ART]

Hi
I am returning to Buriram with my 11 yrs old stepson, he has been educated in the Channel Islands (UK curriculum) for the past 5 yrs and can read and write perfectly fluent English.
He can also speak fluent Thai and has a basic knowledge of the Thai alphabet.
I am looking for a good secondary school or college for him to attend, before  possibly on to university to study architecture and design which are his natural talents.
He may not even get there but I want to give him the opportunity to try and reach his dreams.

Any good advice much appreciated

[toffo]

I think star man and candy are both Teachers, so maybe they will know the best schools in the area.

[nookiebear]

I think star man and candy are both Teachers, so maybe they will know the best schools in the area.

Not forgetting 'Thrush' aka 'Millionaire' in Nong Ki!

[F1ART]

I think star man and candy are both Teachers, so maybe they will know the best schools in the area.

Not forgetting 'Thrush' aka 'Millionaire' in Nong Ki!

What are you then Nookie, the bloody riddler?

[Murtle_71]

Has anyone any up to date advice on what schools in the Buriram area , close enough to Lahan Sai to be viable , that would be suitable for a 9Yr english girl, for the short term.

In the long term, as and when money arrives , then other options would be available with regards to international / private schools

Thanks in advance

Dale

So how did you go with an english school?

[dutchdog3000]

Hi im new to Thailand but have twin girls 8 years old (thai), looking at schooling in buriram, does anyone have information/help on comparison between govt school and private school. my twins have been in private schools and I really am not that impressed with what they are teaching them. im not saying the twins are dumb just average students and I have read a lot about govt schools being just as good if not better, any help or suggestions would be great thanks

[davureborn]

I will doubtless be accused of being ignorant by a certain person on this forum, but as nobody else has answered up to now, I'll give it a go. Some government schools are not TOO bad, but we are in the provinces here. A typical village school is almost worse than useless, for instance I don't understand the English teacher here and he doesn't understand me. It will be a little better in the town of Buriram I suppose.
I take our 8 year old into Buriram every day, that makes about 100 Km a day, to go to a private school. You get used to a lot of their ways of doing things, like for instance not bothering to tell you when holidays start or finish, but on the whole we are happy enough with the the Hiaou Kiaou school where our brat learns English, Thai and Chinese as well as the usual time wasting rubbish that they sit through. No sport, no music, a lot of staying inside the box. We compensate at home by insisting that English be spoken (and I have to speak Pidgin Thai) and a certain amount of home schooling. The best school is supposed to be the Maree Anusorn school, I don't know anything about that.
If I had my way (I have to live with the family here) I would:
1. Go for home schooling.
2. Go for the Mechai Pattana school in Lamplaimat which is run on anthroposophic principals,
3. go for one of these private schools.
The teachers in these schools may offer extra instruction after/before hours or during the holidays, I am a bit worried about this as parents that don't pay for extra tuition may find their children disadvantaged by disgruntled teachers. All right up to now, our brat loves school and is happy and well adjusted. However we are thinking about taking a year out and getting her into a school in Europe, which would mean that she would have to retake the missing year here and probably be bored witless with the English lessons.
You really do have to take an active interest in what is being taught and what is not being taught, and accordingly react.
Eclipse of the sun 4 April for all starmen. (Cryptic remark),

[KhunG]

Not a direct answer to the OP, but I thought I would share our experience.  We put our 5 year old with a tutor a couple hours a day in the Prakhon Chai area for a few weeks before the fall Anaban 2 term started.  She was then enrolled in the local private school which caters to business people, civil servants, teachers, hospital staff, and other foreign residents.  It has a decent English instruction component, including native English speaking teachers and teachers from the Philippines.

By the time she entered class, her Thai, through tutoring and playing with other children in the neighborhood, was pretty good.  There were still some tears for the first couple of weeks, but it was the same for her when she started Pre-K in the US. By the end of the term she is quite fluent in Thai and I consciously speak English with her to supplement that part of her education. 

So, you may not have an international school near  you, but you might look for this type of school.  It's a 20 minute drive for us twice a day, but we're happy with it.

[dutchdog3000]

Thanks Guys im starting to get the idea now, I do have my twins in a private school in Khon Kaen at the moment until I move to buriram, and yes they offer before/after school teaching but im at a mind as to why should I pay private school fees and then pay for extra teaching, I would be better off at govt schools and if they need extra then do it, they are currently in a classroom of about 40 kids so I really don't believe they are getting the best and the school is always pushing the extra teachings. Ive been back in Thailand only 3 months now and have been speaking English to twins who now have quite a good grasp on English and also teaching maths and wife is teaching thai etc (well shes trying but her patience is getting the better of her), so after searching did find a lot of people think govt schools are quite good, I thank you for you input it all helps me , tc

[davureborn]

As wrote, I don't know about the Maru Ansorn school, but at age of 7 the brat transferred from a class of thirty to a class of 15, the teachers change classes depending on the subject including an English teacher that hasn't said good morning to me yet. ฿10 000 /semester + clothes and stuff, maybe ฿25 - 30 000.- a year. Huao Kiaou school. Most of the kids are Cambodian or Chinese.

[Starman]

I haven't answered previously as I have been trying to whittle down my answer. I could write and epic on this subject but I am sure that you wouldn't appreciate a 7000+ word response.

My thoughts here are as someone who has 17 years experience of teaching in Thailand and also as a parent with a 13 year old daughter who is going through the Thai education system.

So......firstly, if you are going to gauge the standard of a school solely by the standard of English teaching then I think you are going to be disappointed.

The comparison between private and government school is probably too general. There are good schools in both categories, although in my experience many private schools seem to want to put as many students in front of the teacher as possible.

The idea that being " in the provinces" is also a bit general. I once spent 18 months teaching in a school in Bangkok that is ranked 5th in Thailand. Out side of the top 2 classes in each grade the standards were pretty much similar to what I have experienced in other places.

Village schools are to be avoided. One should, however, differentiate between village schools and schools out side of the town. A village school will usually carry the name of the major village that it serves. These schools are usually small, about 250 kids, and the teaching is certainly lacking.

Most districts in most provinces will have a school that's name is preceded with the word Anuban. These schools are much better that village schools and most offer a good standard of schooling. My daughter studied nursery upto grade 6 at Anuban Buriram school and I was satisfied with the standards. What is particularly good about Anuban Buriram is that the Thai teachers who teach Englsih speak English quite well. The class sizes are under 40, in the regular teaching program. The English program has smaller classes. Marie Anusorn, a school where I have taught, has regular class sizes of 50. The English program started off small but as the money making machine rolls on the class sizes are increasing. I would expect this to happen at Hua Kieow too. The EP at this school has just started and hence the class size of 15. By the way the students are Thai. They may have some Chinese or Cambdodian ancestry but they are Thai.

In a nutshell.......so long as one does not fall into the Thai trap of thinking that just because your child has good grades then they must be clever things should be OK. The problem is that schools are thinking about their ranking. If they give kids good grades then the ranking,a nd funding, increase. I keep checks on my daughter and how clever she is. Not so much home schooling but offering that "thinking out side the box" way that has been mentioned.

Conclusion.....If you are in Buriram then I would highly recommend Anuban Buriram. If you are outside of the town I would suggest to find the nearest school that carries the word "Anuban". I'm not sure that it is really necessary to travel 100kms to find a good school. Do you know about Lamplaimat Pattana, Davu?