There's probably not one school that's best for everyone, it all depends on your learning style.

Just to add to the current list, the intensive Thai course at Payap University in Chiang Mai has a good reputation. So does the Chiang Mai branch of AUA.

Best Thai Teaching School I would have to reccommend in Sattorn Area is - Jentana & Associates, she has about 20 Thai teachers available to teach one on one or group lessons from beginners to advanced and reading and writing thai aswell, check out her website

http://www.thai-lessons.com

Have to add a recommendation for Piammitr Language School. I took 3 months of classes with them and loved it. Would have loved to have continued on to Book 4 to start reading and writing but couldn't because of work commitments.

I've attempted to learn several foreign languages in the past, but this was by far the best experience. I can now hold pretty decent conversations in Thai, all because of the teaching at Piammitr. They're a very professional school, great staff, good materials and very inexpensive (currently 5,500 for 60 hours of instruction in 1 month PLUS 200 baht for the book).

Highly recommended - morning or afternoon classes, 3 hours each day Monday thru Friday. Also, small classes (only usually 3 or 4 students) so you get a lot of personal attention.

After several years of coming for a month at a time, I will be here for 4 months this fall.  As I am taking over a bigger role in the factory, I can no longer afford to just speak English. Also, i just want to learn the language for my own sake.

My factory is in Omyai. I work out in Pin Klao. My condo is on New Sathorn in THonburi.  Are there any good schools on that side of the river?  Since I have to work, I don't want to drive into BKK each day if I don't have to.

THanks!

can anyone recommend the best school in pattaya ?

There are many schools in Pattaya. Most offer only private courses. I've followed a private course a PLC school (Pattaya klaang, a bit up-hill, about 150 meters from carrefour). The teacher didn't put any structure into the courses, because she didn't have any experience teaching somebody that is not at an absolute beginners level. They had a coursebook for beginners but not for the next level. The teacher worked very hard and she tried to help me as much as possible, but she was unprepared for systematic teaching at a bit higher level.

Some people go to AUA in Pattaya. AUA has a good reputation but I've heard that the level in Pattaya is lower than at other places. In Pattaya you've a mix of people. There are foreigners with a doctoral degree that teach at universities, but there are also farangs that ran away from their own country because they were not "talented" enough to get a decent life in their own country. This mix might block the more talented people.

I would also like to know a good place to study in Pattaya.
I didn't find any good place until now and next time I think I'll go to BKK. Probably there are more expats and english teachers in the courses and less tourists. So, it should be easier to find a course that goes a bit further than an absolute beginners level.

.
If you are a beginner, avoid AUA Thai language program in Rajadamri (Bangkok).
But, keep in mind, when you reach intermediate level, AUA can be valuable.
I will explain.

I attended a one-hour sample class at AUA when I first arrived in Bangkok.
Couldn't wait for the hour to end, the teaching was so awful.
Instead, I took classes at several language schools, including TLA school which I described in a post above.

In the previous two years, I've been studying with a private tutor, 5 days a week.
Expensive, yes.
But I can read and write with ease at the P-2 level.
My tested vocabulary -- as of today -- is 976 words, with 94% comprehension.
My speaking ability is such that I can tell a taxi where I want to go -- just once -- and that's enough.
I'm far from comfortable with the language, but it's starting to get better.
I'm not trying to brag here, just offering the facts to demonstrate that I am at intermediate level now.
And that's where AUA comes in.

AUA has value for intermediate students
I started attending there last month, level one, the lowest level beginner class.
For someone who already knows some vocabulary, it's a great way to sit back, relax, and listen to Thai language spoken in a clear, ordinary way.
The teachers -- two of them in every class -- use drawings and impromptu acting to illustrate their topics.
And, if you know Thai teaching methods, you already know that can be very funny, in a slap-stick sort of way.

At this stage, AUA is a useful source of listening and comprehension practice.
But what about for a beginner?
For a beginner AUA is awful.
I look around the classroom there and observe the other students.
They haven't a clue.
If it weren't for the teachers' drawings and acting, all the beginning students would be totally lost.

I listen when the other students try to say a few words of Thai.
The AUA technique is based on NOT speaking for the first 800 hours of classroom instruction.
But many of the beginner students try to speak anyway, and the teachers neither stop them, nor correct them.
Their pronunciation is universally awful.
Maybe it improves by some as-yet-unobserved, magical process, at some higher level, but I doubt it.
Those unfortunate students at AUA are developing terrible speech patterns.

For an intermediate student who wants review of listening comprehension, AUA is a good source.
For a beginner, it's an awful place to begin.

If specific questions, you are welcome to send me email or PM.
.

I don't disagree with your perspective on AUA. I had some minimal background in Thai language from self-study, but have been full time at AUA for several months now (400 hours of seat time). Like many of the students I have sat for long hours with absolutely no comprehension of what was being discussed in class. Most of the teachers have minimal English, so can't help even if you ask them. I have a fear of logging 1000-1500 hours in that program, and still not being able to form a simple sentence in the language (i.e. could I have two pieces of grilled chicken, some somtam, and sauce?).

The program does not even introduce reading and writing until about 800-1000 hours of listening. That is too long to wait, so I have been working with a tutor 1:1 (not at AUA) on reading-writing and it has been extremely productive. Also, there is no effort to teach simple grammar and sentence structure. Sure kids learn this way, but it takes them 4-6 years of daily exposure. I haven't got that much time ... I plan to start at the beginning with a speech, grammar, tone course soon (Piammitr?), and spend a few hours a day listening at AUA.

Although a few students may really stick with the AUA methodology, I think most end up learning the fundamentals somewhere else, then using AUA as an excellent suplement to build vocabulary and learn the rythms and tones of the language in normal speech.

At this moment I am thinking about 2 schools because i read about 2 foreigners on this webboard that managed to pass the pratom 6 tests. These schools are:

AAA Thai language center
PiamMitr

I can already read an write and I would hate to go back to the "transliteration only" way of teaching. Do the teachers in these schools always use Thai script or are the courses based on phonetic script? Can you ask the teacher to (also) write everything in Thai script?

At PiamMitr Language School they use a phonetic system in the beginner level courses (first 3 months) after which they teach the reading and writing (months 4 and 5). So basically all transliteration is history starting in month 4. From this point onwards, Thai script only.

Since you can read and write already, I assume you will be in one of the intermediate or advanced courses where you will find all materials and instruction is in Thai script.

I passed the Pratom 6 test after studying at Piammitr. Now I am studying their more advanced course offerings. See you there.

This post has been edited by expat_4_life: 2007-04-11 08:36:41

I've been studying at Unity Thai Language in Sukhumvit and I can tell you for a fact that 100% of their students that have taken the p6 exam in the last 2 years have passed it. From reading on webboards I had previously decided that passing the test was a distant unachievable goal but from having studied there I have come to realise that this is not the case.

When I asked my teacher about it she said that a lot of people who take the test are unprepared and have signed up to do it by themselves because they thought that they might be able to pass it. If you study with them they have a 3 month prep course which unfortunately I won't be able to take this year. If I did this course I am confident that I would pass. As it is I have decided to continue my studies privately as I must go back to work. I will be studying privately with a teacher from Unity so hopefully I will still be ready in December, but we'll see.

Most people start learning a language by talking. I started by learning to read (via self-study and help of wife). So I can read much better than I can understand spoken conversations. I read at normal speed but I am slow in talking. So, probably I'll need to start at a level that's not too high. So, I would like to know if in the handbooks of the beginners level courses also show the Thai script (besides the phonetic script). The teacher that I have now (in Europe, only 6 hours per week), writes some things in phonetic script only. This is very annoying, especially because she doesn't put any tone marks on the phonetic script. So it's up to me to guess what she really wrote (I've to use the dictionary a lot).

I'll be moving to Thailand in August (house is sold, still have to work 3 months). Probably you'll be finished by then.

People that reach pratom 6 must be in my opinion pretty smart. I am surprised that so many people of Unity managed to pass this test. I can honestly tell that some people in my classroom never in their life will be able to pass this test. They wouldn't even pass a pratom 1 test. The difference in level is huge.... so the teaching method of unity should be really good...

I studied at both Unity and Piammitr, but these days I'm sticking with Piammitr for a variety of reasons; class size, cost, and 3 hour morning sessions. Both schools use a basically identical curriculum and methodology which was originally developed by another school (Union Language School). There is at least one more school using the same curriculum, but can't remember the name. Thai script is only introduced at the 4th month.

Unity in particular requires that you pass a qualifying test to enter their Pratom 6 preparation course, selecting only the top students to prep for the exam (ie. the people they expect to pass), hence their ability to boast a 100% success rate. When I was at Unity they had a Pratom 6 preparation course that had around 30 students. I finally got around to taking the course myself in the following year at Piammitr and luckily there were only 7 students. I suspect the ability to get more personal attention in the classroom helped me to sucessfully pass the exam.

At any rate, at any of these schools you have a good chance of passing the Pratom 6 test assuming you keep up with the instruction - it does require a certain amount of determination and plenty of hard work.

Personally, I'm planning to study through the end of this year, I get constant review of things and plenty of conversation time too. This is my solution to overcoming the semi-fluent hump.

Thanks Expat_4_life

You've convinced me. I'll go to have a look in August. If I need to start at the beginners level, I'll just have to use my dictionary again (for knowing the Thai word behind the transliterations). Maybe I could do a beginners level course before noon (just to reverse) and an intermediate course in the afternoon. Nice to have someone on this webboard that can actually compare 2 schools.

By the way, looked around on the internet and the school I couldn't think of was in fact AAA Thai Language Center, the school that was on your list. They are also using some variation of the Union developed curriculum.

The main focus in the curriculum during the first several months is to develop spoken and comprehension skills; you also get a huge vocabulary. In retrospect, having to focus on the written language at the same time as developing these other skills would have been too much. So, my advice would be start at whatever level you are comfortable and focus on your comprehension, verbal skills as well as vocabulary building. You'll be using Thai script soon enough in your studies. Pesonally, morning and afternoon sessions I would find to be entirely too much. After my 3 hours a day, I'm ready for a break.

Feel free to send me a message via the forum here when you arrive or if you wish additional information.

This post has been edited by expat_4_life: 2007-04-13 15:11:55

You guys dont mention how many students are in a classroom... I would like to be 1:1 at about 20 hours/week for a month. What do you recommend? What price should I expect to pay?

This post has been edited by sunshine13: 2007-04-14 22:07:16

question: is there a test at the end of the month/class period? what are the pass fail rates? if there are so many schools, why do so few farang speak thai?

The reason why there are so many schools yet so few farang speak Thai is because there are so few farang at the schools. Most of the students at Unity are Korean or Japanese.

Classroom size is somewhat dependent on which level you are studying, with the earlier course levels more heavily attended.
Personal experience at Unity was about 8 students in a class through the reading and writing courses. After that attendance dropped to 4-6 students.
Currently at Piammitr class size is running around 5 students in the earlier courses, then dropping to 2-3 students.

Both schools offer 20 day, Monday to Friday, 4 week courses with basically the same curriculum. Unity has 80 hour (7,000 Baht) morning courses and 60 hour (6,000 Baht) afternoon courses, while Piammitr offers only 60 hour (5,500 Baht) morning and afternoon courses. Piammitr also offers weekend courses with morning, afternoon or evening sessions. If you really want 1:1 instruction, both schools offer private lessons. I think the prices are about 500 Baht per hour.



For the most part, no tests. The teacher simply recommends if they think you should progress to the next level. I've known plenty of students that elected to repeat courses at various levels. The exception to this being after the reading and writing courses, we all sat an exam. I never saw anyone fail one of these tests.



Personal story, the reason I searched out and studied at one of these schools was based on meeting some missionarys here years ago. I was amazed at their competency with the language and asked where they had studied. I'm still impressed when I see new students progress through the courses, the curriculum and methodology really work.

Recommendations, depends on your goals. Definitely learn to read and write, practice, practice, practice. There are many posters here on the forum that have used a variety of learning techniques or a combination thereof; classroom, books, tapes, tutors, TV/Radio, and self-study. Choose what works best for you. I don't see any real need for a private tutor, you can practice elementary/basic conversational skills everywhere. Personally, I like the structured classroom environment and don't see any real substitute to one of the schools we've discussed if your goal is to pass the Pratom 6 exam.

This post has been edited by expat_4_life: 2007-04-17 09:43:35

thank you, that is most helpful.

I am thinking of running off to chiangmai away from family members to study the thai language intensively for a few months.

Looks like I finally found the right place to reassure my father that I will be fine in Changmai then Phuket.

Some info on AAA for you.. Before I took speaking 1 (Their most basic course) I did some self learning as I was staying at a Muay Thai gym for 3months and none of them could speak English very well at all, at the time I learned the letters of the alphabet myself and the vowel sounds, so in a sense i could read, but didn’t have a clue about the tones or the meanings. I found a Thai language school at Asoke called Pro Language and took their R&W course as a private lesson, which I found pretty awful. After visiting nearly all the Language schools in the Bkk area I decided to study at AAA (5mins walk from BTS Chidlom). After a quick conversation test, the head teacher placed me in Speaking 1 although she said it will be very easy for the first week for me but will increase in intensity half way through the course, which it did! The good thing here was I could read and write slightly so they gave me the course work all in Thai script while the other students used phonetics.

The classes are split into morning session 9-12 or afternoon 1-4, so for the first two months I took both a speaking course in the morning and a R&W course in the afternoon (They don’t recommend this, but made a special case for me). R&W 1 and 2 cover all there is to reading and writing, after completion I knew ALL the rules inside out. R&W 3 focused on the written language and R&W 3/2 focused more on the spoken language. Starting from R&W 2 you are given homework, ranging from making sentences from new vocab, using new patterns and story writing. Also every class you are given dictation in the form of a story covering the new vocab and patterns learned the previous day.

I only had time to take one advanced course, Thai culture before the 3 month intensive ป.๖ course started (Every Sept). In my class there were a few students from other language schools and two self taught students, more than most their tone recognition was very bad, their spelling was below the level of the other students that studied at AAA. Mostly I observed they tried to read too fast ignoring the tones. so in the end one of the self taught students dropped out stating it was impossible, she then got placed into the speaking 3 class. The other got intensive one on one classes and worked very hard for the 3 months and scrapped a pass.

After passing the ป.๖ I got the course work for more of the advanced courses and went through them myself, now I’m taking ภาษาไทยเพื่อการสื่อสาร at Assumption university. I’m the only foreigner in the class of about 30 Thais, It’s really tough especially the รัชศัพท์ but it's what I need to push me up to the next level.

Thanks TonyBKK. This is really useful information. I'll also pass by AAA to compare them with PiamMitr (if that's possible).

Agree with kris, thank you TonyBkk for that excellent course summary which will be useful to many readers. Gold star.

I have some experience with this periodically over the last five years on extended stays having attended for a while at the Somchat, Jentana's and Smile languages school - in terms of materials and teaching standards there is little difference. In fact the two ladies behind Jentana and Smile schools both taught at Nisa school ( I think if that is the one at Sathorn) before setting up on their own.
The teachers are lowly paid and have to work long hours so staff turnover is high and their hearts are not always in it. As a beginner as well it is frustrating to get a new teacher with poor English who will just smile when you ask valid questions - If I was to recommend one of these schools it would be Jentana's purely for Jentana herself - she is a well-organised lady and a very good laugh as well.
I had previously attended group classes at London university and did go and look at Unity and AUA - I am sorry but I didn't feel I could possibly learn in a group situation again with the continuous mis-pronunciations ( when it got round to me I was probably the worse culprit) so attended the schools offering one-one tuition. What I have found is needed is a real teacher who will correct you everytime you make a mistake not a shy young lady who sits smiling as you utter gobbledygook.
Now that I live in Thailand I have decided it is an absolute must to finally learn the language. I considered going back to one of the schools but recall how hit and miss it was with teachers. I was pleased to find that one of the teachers I had previously encountered was still teaching but on a freelance basis - i learn about 4 times a week at home and in a short time have made considerable progress. I would have no hesitation to recommend this lady as she has been teaching for over 10 years and has helped many nationalities to fluency - for the first time i feel i will be able to achieve that. Anyway I know one is not supposed to advertise but I would happily pass on contact details to anyone seriously wishing to learn.

Cheers BB

I found Smile Languages in the Silom area to be very good, from speaking broken Thai they soon got me to a level 1 standard. Highly recommend them.
Website at http://www.smilelanguage.com