The First Day Teaching in Thailand

The first day teaching in a new school or new country can be full of anxiety and confusion. I recently moved down to Songkhla, Thailand to start my adventure of teaching English abroad. It is a small, southern city full of charm with lots of beautiful beaches and lovely people. Read on for what my experience was like my first day teaching in Thailand!

My Arrival in Songkhla

I arrived early in the morning on a Saturday after taking an overnight bus down the previous night from Hua Hin. I had spent a week there going through orientation with an organization called XploreAsia that places prospective teachers all over Thailand.

My agent met me at the bus station. He is the man who serves as the liaison between me and my school and helps me with work permits and other necessary paperwork. Songkhla greeted me with rainy skies… it was the rainy season after all, so I was not surprised. We went out to breakfast where I had my first bowl of ‘jok' – a type of rice porridge. It turned out to be delicious. Afterwards, my agent dropped me off at the building that would serve as my apartment and home for the foreseeable future.

The next day, I met with my agent and other foreign teachers he manages to receive my schedule. I saw I had four classes a day, Monday through Friday, and would teach grades 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6. In Thailand, elementary grades are called Prathom (grades 1-6, ages 6 to 11) and upper levels are called Mattayom (grades 7 – 12, ages 12 to 18). I only see each class one time a week. This means it is difficult to get to know each student on a personal level quickly.

That night, I went to bed with little to no plan on what I would teach the next day. Having no idea what my students already knew or what level of English proficiency they had made it difficult to plan in advance.

The First Day: Arrival

My alarm went off at 6:30 AM and I quickly hopped out of bed, anxious about getting to school on time. At Thai schools, there is an assembly each morning at 8:00 AM where they play the national anthem, raise the Thai flag, pray together, and share any news or daily announcements. It is taboo and considered extremely rude to arrive during this assembly, so I was anxious to get there on time. As fate would have it, that would not happen.

Getting around most of Thailand is easiest on a motorbike or scooter. Since I had only arrived a few days prior, I had not had the chance to purchase one yet. That meant I had to rely on my agent to get me to school. I arrived at his office at 7:30 and he was not there yet. Great. He arrived a few minutes later and immediately asked “Are you wearing that?” I looked down at my dress; it reached below my knees and covered my shoulders. “I was planning on it…” I replied. He sent me back to my apartment to grab a cardigan since apparently my sleeves were too short. This delayed us further. Finally, he took me and my boyfriend in his car to my boyfriend's school, which turned out to be just up the road.

My school however, was on the other side of town. He assured me that being late on the first day would be fine since I was new. Driving in a car during morning rush hour was out of the question, so I hopped on the back of his assistant's motorbike and we whizzed through traffic to my school.

When I arrived, I was brought up to the teacher's room where I met another Thai teacher who knew some English. She graciously showed me around and pointed out where each class was. Which I promptly forgot. The school has 4 buildings and not all the classes are in sequential order. The classes are all numbered, but this was not helpful since everything was in Thai. Oh boy.

The First Class

School officially starts at 8:00 AM, but the first class is not until 8:30 AM. My first class of third graders was not for another hour, so I had time to sit at my desk in the teacher's room and try to come up with some sort of plan. I decided on Greetings and Introductions. Simple enough. It would allow me to attempt to learn my students' names and play some engaging games.

The bell rang at 9:30 AM and I went to find my class. And of course went to the wrong one. Unlike in the USA, the teachers rotate through each class and the students stay in the same room for most of the day. Eventually I found the class and smiled at the adorable faces smiling back at me.

All of a sudden, all of the students stood up and greeted me: “Good Morning Teachaaaaa.” Ummmmmm… Hi? “I am fine. Thank you, and you?” I'm well, I guess…? “Thank you teachaaaaaa.” I would soon learn the correct responses to this greeting that I get at the beginning of EACH class; looking back I can't believe how badly I butchered it that first time.

‘OK Good Morning Class, my name is Teacher Stella. Today we will be learning about Greetings and practicing your names.' After miming for them to pull out their notebooks and some more miming for them to write, they took the notes they needed, practiced greeting each other and played a name game. The hour long class flew by and soon they were all standing up again and bowing, “Thank You Teachaaaaaa.”

My other three classes that day passed in the same way and, before I knew it, I had survived my first day teaching English in Thailand! Despite some confusion and picturing the absolute worst possible scenario, it all turned out ok in the end.

Advice for the first day

Thinking of Teaching English in Thailand? Here are a few tips for the first day!

• Get to school early: Unfortunately, this did not happen for me. Make sure you plan for everything to go wrong because at least one thing inevitably will. You might get lost, there might be traffic… you never know in Thailand. Thankfully, the Thai people are very forgiving to foreigners because they know half the time we have no idea what's going on.

• Wear the appropriate clothing: I was horrified when my agent asked me to change (or just to layer). For the ladies: Shoulders covered with short sleeves that go well past your shoulders; Dresses should reach your knees, and flats are the best shoe option. For the men: Collared shirt, pants and a belt. My boyfriend forgot his and was also sent back to get it by our agent.

• Have a plan that includes lots of games: The first day is a chance to get to know your students. Don't jump right in to teaching but spend some time sharing a little about yourself and learning about them. Sharing pictures of your family or hometown can be a great ice breaker. Games are also a great way to break the ice and the students absolutely love them. And really anything can be made into a game – include timers, races, or teams.

• Don't stress: It is hard not to be anxious your first day teaching in Thailand, but the education system here is much more relaxed than in the States. Whatever you do, the kids will love it. Just smile a lot!

• Prepare for the unexpected: You never know what is going to happen in Thailand. You may be asked to speak to the whole school to introduce yourself (this happened my second day since I was late the first); you may show up and have your whole schedule changed. Thai people change things up a lot at the last minute and foreign teachers are always the last to know. Go in with a plan, but go with the flow if it has to change.
• Breathe: The first day teaching in Thailand will come and you will survive it. Soon you will be a pro, and looking back you'll laugh about how nervous you were in the beginning.

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Do you teach English abroad? How was your first day? Share in the comments below!