163 replies to this topic
#101
wandrinstar
Posted 2011-12-08 05:49:36
 leosmith, on 2011-12-07 18:57:40, said:
wandrinstar, on 2011-12-07 12:45:38, said:
Whats the School for. Learning Thai or getting round visa requirements. No one knows what i say in the N.E.. They don't speak Kings Thai up there . 
No offense, but it's probably your accent, or some other aspect of your Thai. Educated people from BKK are well understood in isaan, and I've never had a problem either. Understanding them can be more difficult though.
Quite so, clumsey post Leo .Tons are O.K. In some of the Lao Villages though , their Thai is awfull , and literally hundreds of old folk have not ventured over 25 Klics from their village. I was told by a Thai Copter Pilot years ago there are over 10 Lao dialects spoken up there. Im quite good at Standard Thai Lao , {CENTRAL} if there is such a beast.. .As for Mr Wallen , seems malcontents stalk him.. I could recommend 2 Anglo Saxon words of advice for them , Universally understood 
Posted 2011-12-09 20:19:03
MacWalen, on 2011-12-08 00:00:14, said: You can try to ask if leosmith would be so kind and give you a demo lesson because I certainly could. You can compare who teaches better and who just has big mouth. Not mention my teachers as many of them must be some of the best Thai teachers in the world.
Based on earlier posts, you seem to think your critics are owners of schools. I am not in any way affiliated with any school. But if I did teach Thai, I would definitely teach conversation, and adequately prepare students for any proficiency tests they would need to pass. As for who has the biggest mouth, I would base that on the number of posts.
If, on the other hand, you are generally interested in how the schools I've learned in normally teach conversation, I would be glad to share that with you, provided you would keep an open mind. This is actually what you should be using this forum for, rather than taking the offensive on every criticism of your school.
wandrinstar, on 2011-12-08 05:49:36, said: Quite so, clumsey post Leo .Tons are O.K. In some of the Lao Villages though , their Thai is awfull , and literally hundreds of old folk have not ventured over 25 Klics from their village. I was told by a Thai Copter Pilot years ago there are over 10 Lao dialects spoken up there. Im quite good at Standard Thai Lao , {CENTRAL} if there is such a beast.. .As for Mr Wallen , seems malcontents stalk him.. I could recommend 2 Anglo Saxon words of advice for them ,
A little cryptic, but I get your point. Thai isn't understood by everyone. Agreed. Regarding Walen, I leveled some criticism on his school based on my experience and the experience of others. He called me a liar, and wouldn't specify what exactly was a lie. Some people create their own malcontents.
Posted 2011-12-10 19:48:26
I'm not interested in the visa aspect of these institutions, I do however require flexibility with the course sessions. I work out the country on a rotational month on/off basis. Is it still possible to attend either one of these establishments?I am concerned that I may not be able to hold a conversation at the completion with Walen. I have always thought that learning to read/write first regardless if you can converse, gives you a far stronger language base to move forward with. Would the conversational aspect not become second nature afterwards?I also have to be honest and say I'd rather have a little hottie teach me than an old dragon, I think it would spur me on to produce the goods, sort of a male ego thing.  When do I start?
Posted 2011-12-15 19:16:37
MacWalen, on 2011-12-08 00:00:14, said:
Walen is not just for ED visa as some may want you to believe. We offer free lessons, come and see for yourself. It is actually serious language study and no transliteration. It would also be a good idea to observe classes at other schools and see what works for you. You can try to ask if leosmith would be so kind and give you a demo lesson because I certainly could. You can compare who teaches better and who just has big mouth. Not mention my teachers as many of them must be some of the best Thai teachers in the world.
Are you able to comment about the remarks on this website ?
http://www.scam.com/...ad.php?t=137827
Edited by khaan, 2011-12-15 19:18:45.
Posted 2011-12-15 20:34:23
I'll be honest and say I'm not a fan of the method used in Walen schools. Not enough actual 'teaching' and too much reliance on the book- I've switched to Language Express and I'm a lot happier with their method- you get taught to read and write, with good emphasis on recognising tones and the class of letters, there are regular tests, and the conversation side of the class relies a lot on role play, so you get to use the words you're learning in practical situations.
I think Walen has very good teachers, I just feel they're held back a little by the method- but, y'know, personal opinion and what doesn't work for one person might be great for another. Certainly there are people there who seem to get on with it very well.
Having said that, the school is definitely not a scam. I attended for two years and there were never any hidden charges, and the idea that you'd need to hire a lawyer to protect yourself from the school is ridiculous. They were always very thorough, helpful and up-front when it came to the visa side of things. There was definitely no extra charges levied along the way. And certainly I never heard any other pupils having problems of that kind there either and I got to know a lot of folk attending the school. That post you linked to sounds very removed from reality.
Edited by Rumblecat, 2011-12-15 20:36:37.
Posted 2011-12-16 08:44:19
Rumblecat, on 2011-12-15 20:34:23, said:
I'll be honest and say I'm not a fan of the method used in Walen schools. Not enough actual 'teaching' and too much reliance on the book- I've switched to Language Express and I'm a lot happier with their method- you get taught to read and write, with good emphasis on recognising tones and the class of letters, there are regular tests, and the conversation side of the class relies a lot on role play, so you get to use the words you're learning in practical situations.
I think Walen has very good teachers, I just feel they're held back a little by the method- but, y'know, personal opinion and what doesn't work for one person might be great for another. Certainly there are people there who seem to get on with it very well.
Having said that, the school is definitely not a scam. I attended for two years and there were never any hidden charges, and the idea that you'd need to hire a lawyer to protect yourself from the school is ridiculous. They were always very thorough, helpful and up-front when it came to the visa side of things. There was definitely no extra charges levied along the way. And certainly I never heard any other pupils having problems of that kind there either and I got to know a lot of folk attending the school. That post you linked to sounds very removed from reality.
thanks for your feedback. The Language Express website looks interesting but it is not a solution for those living in places other than Bangkok.
Can i ask you when you chose Walen for 2 years, had you also considered Pro Language and what made you choose Walen in the end ?
Did you also try a free lesson in both places before you decided ?
Posted 2011-12-16 12:47:48
No, I was a bit stupid and didn't try any lessons before hand. I did Walen for two years because I liked my classmates and the teachers, even if I wasn't a fan of the teaching material. Plus I really wanted to learn to read and write properly, so it was time to move on. But I don't want it to sound like I didn't get anything of value out of Walen because I did- and even in the end if it wasn't for me, doesn't mean that it isn't for other people.
I did try a free lesson in Pro Language and was very impressed by them. Teaching method seemed good and thorough- if I hadn't gone with Language Express I would have chosen them. Course material looked good as well.
Posted 2011-12-16 22:15:52
Rumblecat, on 2011-12-16 12:47:48, said:
No, I was a bit stupid and didn't try any lessons before hand. I did Walen for two years because I liked my classmates and the teachers, even if I wasn't a fan of the teaching material. Plus I really wanted to learn to read and write properly, so it was time to move on. But I don't want it to sound like I didn't get anything of value out of Walen because I did- and even in the end if it wasn't for me, doesn't mean that it isn't for other people.
I did try a free lesson in Pro Language and was very impressed by them. Teaching method seemed good and thorough- if I hadn't gone with Language Express I would have chosen them. Course material looked good as well.
Thanks for your kind comments. Sure, there are many schools around and people can decide which one works best for them. Some love Walen, some do not like us so much. That is the way it should be.
Walen School - knowledge is power, share it
Posted 2012-01-13 10:00:31
I would like to recommend Pro Language School for your friend. I have been studying there for nearly 3 years on my ED visa and find it really good. They will process the Visa quickly and I have never had a problem with it. The most important thing for me is the standard and professionalism of the staff there.
The teachers are all very experiences and properly qualified to teach (which is a lot more than can be said for many other schools in Chiang Mai who would rather employ good looking, but somewhat brain-dead girls, to attract new students).
The Pro Language School has been going a number of years and has grown a lot, having many students now. The good thing about this is that there is great flexibility for new students in terms of class scheduling and getting into a class that is the right level for them.
Finally, I would recommend going along to one of their free trial lessons to see how good they are.
Good luck.
Posted 2012-01-30 13:30:17
MacWalen, on 2011-11-21 11:30:37, said:
Khun Jean, on 2011-11-21 09:16:19, said:
If you want to learn at Walen and don't need a ED visa you could start with 60 lessons.
http://www.thaiwalen.com/prices.php
I must say the picture of the teachers is making me reconsider taking lessons at Walen.
Young and pretty looking is not a guarantee for good lessons, more like eyecandy which can be distracting to say the least. 
They are very good at teaching Thai, just try for free first and talk to students.
They are lovely, but what other qualifications do they have besides their looks? Teaching degrees? Thai language degrees? Any degrees at all?
Posted 2012-01-30 19:22:23
NewlyMintedThai, on 2012-01-30 13:30:17, said:
MacWalen, on 2011-11-21 11:30:37, said:
Khun Jean, on 2011-11-21 09:16:19, said:
If you want to learn at Walen and don't need a ED visa you could start with 60 lessons.
http://www.thaiwalen.com/prices.php
I must say the picture of the teachers is making me reconsider taking lessons at Walen.
Young and pretty looking is not a guarantee for good lessons, more like eyecandy which can be distracting to say the least.
They are very good at teaching Thai, just try for free first and talk to students.
They are lovely, but what other qualifications do they have besides their looks? Teaching degrees? Thai language degrees? Any degrees at all?
I used to study with Walen. None of the teachers who taught me had any degrees. There is a previous post on here somewhere, i remember. Its written by Walen saying his staff all finished high school but they don't have degrees as they dont need them to teach this method. It was something like that. Try to find that statement from him.
Posted 2012-01-30 19:27:15
MacWalen, on 2011-11-21 22:38:01, said:
melvinmelvin, on 2011-11-21 16:59:50, said:
MacWalen, on 2011-11-21 11:30:37, said:
Khun Jean, on 2011-11-21 09:16:19, said:
If you want to learn at Walen and don't need a ED visa you could start with 60 lessons.
http://www.thaiwalen.com/prices.php
I must say the picture of the teachers is making me reconsider taking lessons at Walen.
Young and pretty looking is not a guarantee for good lessons, more like eyecandy which can be distracting to say the least. 
They are very good at teaching Thai, just try for free first and talk to students.
On your www site where you present the teachers/instructors I find only photos, names and nicknames,
no presentation of CV/academic qualifications.
Walen trains teachers in-house. We have our own way of teaching so we cannot find any teaching qualifications from other institutions that would be useful to us. We do it the Walen way.
Heres the statement i was looking for in the above post
Edited by Paangjang, 2012-01-30 19:28:47.
Posted 2012-01-30 20:07:54
Interesting. One usually needs a degree or at least an ESL certificate to teach English in Thailand, but it looks like the only qualification needed to teach Thai is a nice rack.
Posted 2012-01-30 20:45:05
That TEFL is a complete joke, 3 weeks of some form of training and you're suppose to be a teacher ?
worse yet they can't explain anything since they don't even know the language of their students in the first instance.
Unfortunatley almost none of the schools spend energy on explaining either
Posted 2012-01-30 22:33:11
NewlyMintedThai, on 2012-01-30 20:07:54, said:
Interesting. One usually needs a degree or at least an ESL certificate to teach English in Thailand, but it looks like the only qualification needed to teach Thai is a nice rack.
 TIT
Posted 2012-01-31 14:16:18
NewlyMintedThai, on 2012-01-30 20:07:54, said:
Interesting. One usually needs a degree or at least an ESL certificate to teach English in Thailand, but it looks like the only qualification needed to teach Thai is a nice rack.
Actually none of the Phuket staff even had that. Very disappointing. Especially for the kind of money we were paying.
Posted 2012-01-31 16:44:38
I can tell one thing for a fact:
in Pattaya, out of all students i know of, none has any complaints on Bpoo,
instead most that had her refuses to have any other teacher, myself included.
And we all had experiences with other schools & teachers. no-one named 
(Well some are using other schools too since she does not yet run ED visa classes , but hopefully she'll get that going soon)
Edited by poanoi, 2012-01-31 16:48:12.
Posted 2012-02-04 11:06:22
I live in a house with 4 other guys. 3 of us go to Pro Language and 1 goes to Walen.
1 went to Walen last year but didnt like it and switched to Pro Language and says its much better. You learn to read and write at Pro Language, whereas at Walen you just read out loud the same stuff from the same book and there is no homework given. Once you complete the book, you start over lol. The good thing about Walen tho is that all the teachers are good looking. Pro Language teachers are just normal teachers but seem pretty competent.
The guy who goes to Walen says he doesn't recommend it and will switch to a different school when his year is up. He hardly goes to class anymore cuz hes exceeded his class by studying himself.
just my 2cents.
Posted 2012-02-06 22:43:34
NewlyMintedThai, on 2012-01-30 13:30:17, said:
MacWalen, on 2011-11-21 11:30:37, said:
Khun Jean, on 2011-11-21 09:16:19, said:
If you want to learn at Walen and don't need a ED visa you could start with 60 lessons.
http://www.thaiwalen.com/prices.php
I must say the picture of the teachers is making me reconsider taking lessons at Walen.
Young and pretty looking is not a guarantee for good lessons, more like eyecandy which can be distracting to say the least.
They are very good at teaching Thai, just try for free first and talk to students.
They are lovely, but what other qualifications do they have besides their looks? Teaching degrees? Thai language degrees? Any degrees at all?
Yes, most have degrees and a very few do not have but still are well trained and competent at what they do. Perhaps you can come and sit in a demo lesson and see for yourself. They teach the Walen method for a long time, hundreds and some even thousands of lessons and are really good at what they do. If you are trying to belittle them then shame on you.
Posted 2012-02-06 22:46:30
jak2002003, on 2012-01-13 10:00:31, said:
I would like to recommend Pro Language School for your friend. I have been studying there for nearly 3 years on my ED visa and find it really good. They will process the Visa quickly and I have never had a problem with it. The most important thing for me is the standard and professionalism of the staff there.
The teachers are all very experiences and properly qualified to teach (which is a lot more than can be said for many other schools in Chiang Mai who would rather employ good looking, but somewhat brain-dead girls, to attract new students).
The Pro Language School has been going a number of years and has grown a lot, having many students now. The good thing about this is that there is great flexibility for new students in terms of class scheduling and getting into a class that is the right level for them.
Finally, I would recommend going along to one of their free trial lessons to see how good they are.
Good luck.
Jak this comment about brain dead teachers is one of the most stupid I have ever read on TV. Perhaps you should think more carefully about the rubbish you write? I give it to you straight seeing you have no manners man.
Posted 2012-02-06 22:51:26
MacWalen, on 2012-02-06 22:46:30, said:
Jak this comment about brain dead teachers is one of the most stupid I have ever read on TV. Perhaps you should think more carefully about the rubbish you write? I give it to you straight seeing you have no manners man.
It seems you're the one with no manners.
Posted 2012-02-06 22:59:23
Paangjang, on 2012-01-30 19:22:23, said:
NewlyMintedThai, on 2012-01-30 13:30:17, said:
MacWalen, on 2011-11-21 11:30:37, said:
Khun Jean, on 2011-11-21 09:16:19, said:
If you want to learn at Walen and don't need a ED visa you could start with 60 lessons.
http://www.thaiwalen.com/prices.php
I must say the picture of the teachers is making me reconsider taking lessons at Walen.
Young and pretty looking is not a guarantee for good lessons, more like eyecandy which can be distracting to say the least.
They are very good at teaching Thai, just try for free first and talk to students.
They are lovely, but what other qualifications do they have besides their looks? Teaching degrees? Thai language degrees? Any degrees at all?
I used to study with Walen. None of the teachers who taught me had any degrees. There is a previous post on here somewhere, i remember. Its written by Walen saying his staff all finished high school but they don't have degrees as they dont need them to teach this method. It was something like that. Try to find that statement from him.
Most Walen teachers do have degrees and I have never written anywhere that they all had just finished high schools. We had those unfriendly people saying bad things about Walen for years with little or no negative impact on our business.
We offer demo lessons and everyone can try for themselves before they pay money. What Walen does works. We have thousands of happy customers and no matter how much we try we will not be able to please everyone and so be it. Two new schools are being built in Ko Samui and Chiang Rai and others are coming soon after so perhaps there are other schools that work for some but what we do works for majority of our students and they are wiling to pay for it. These are just facts.
Posted 2012-02-06 23:01:09
edwardandtubs, on 2012-02-06 22:51:26, said:
MacWalen, on 2012-02-06 22:46:30, said:
Jak this comment about brain dead teachers is one of the most stupid I have ever read on TV. Perhaps you should think more carefully about the rubbish you write? I give it to you straight seeing you have no manners man.
It seems you're the one with no manners.
Ah.....so just should take all the beating given to my staff? I don't think so.
Posted 2012-02-06 23:07:54
alexpoker, on 2012-02-04 11:06:22, said:
I live in a house with 4 other guys. 3 of us go to Pro Language and 1 goes to Walen.
1 went to Walen last year but didnt like it and switched to Pro Language and says its much better. You learn to read and write at Pro Language, whereas at Walen you just read out loud the same stuff from the same book and there is no homework given. Once you complete the book, you start over lol. The good thing about Walen tho is that all the teachers are good looking. Pro Language teachers are just normal teachers but seem pretty competent.
The guy who goes to Walen says he doesn't recommend it and will switch to a different school when his year is up. He hardly goes to class anymore cuz hes exceeded his class by studying himself.
just my 2cents.
It is not so funny as the revision and repetition works. It is a proven way of learning. When we learn a language we learn it for the rest of our lives. Walen is not trying to be similar to other schools, we sell our school on being different and what we do works for majority of students. The story you told us cannot be true in general as we have cases everyday of many students leaving other schools and joining Walen. We have numbers to prove it.
Edited by MacWalen, 2012-02-06 23:10:03.
Posted 2012-02-06 23:35:14
MacWalen, on 2012-02-06 22:59:23, said:
Most Walen teachers do have degrees and I have never written anywhere that they all had just finished high schools.
Why aren't all your teachers degreed and certified?
MacWalen, on 2012-02-06 23:07:54, said:
When we learn a language we learn it for the rest of our lives.
This is true, unless you move back home and stop learning it or something like that. But it has nothing to do with the rest of your post. Just curious - what's your native language?
MacWalen, on 2012-02-06 23:07:54, said:
It is not so funny as the revision and repetition works.
Revision and repetition works, but boredom is one of the learners greatest enemies. How many times do students need to read the same text books? Can't you write some more? I've never heard of a school with only 2 text books, and I don't mean that in a good way.
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