Asked to describe the nature of ESL teaching in Thailand in one word, many would probably say: “business.” How is this so?
This observation may not be necessarily true to all schools and universities in Thailand but as far as the author is concerned, there are three possible factors affecting the general nature of ESL teaching in Thailand. And these factors are unconsciously hindering the holistic goal of providing quality language teaching and learning instruction at the basic level of education and even in higher education.
The Reign of Commercialized Textbooks
ESL textbooks are selling like hotcakes in Thailand. And during this time of economic crisis, the parents are getting the burden of tightening their belts while the publishers are enjoying the profits cashing in; and worst, school administrators are also taking the opportunity to gain extra income from selling the textbooks. There are certain issues that have been brought out on the misguided use of textbooks in the ESL industry. First, ESL textbooks are used as the curriculum itself in many schools and universities. Second, ESL teachers and learners are enslaved by the textbooks. Third, as an effect, language learning assessment has almost always an achievement test.
ESL textbooks are designed by some renowned linguists and language education specialists. In their quest for a guided learning instruction for all learners of different cultural backgrounds, they have most probably covered all the general principles of second language teaching considering that the textbook has been designed according to the learner’s English proficiency level. The content and language structure found in the textbook as claimed by the publishers meet the ‘standards’ of English-native speaking countries; thus, preparing the learners to engage communication to these English native speaking counterparts or at least in a general sense that these learners shall soon use an ‘acceptable’ communication skills when using the target language in the international arena. But these presuppositions are not the threats in the “improving” English communication skills of many Thai students and workers. The threat comes when school administrators approve the duplication of the content of each textbook as the schools’ curriculum. There is an obvious problem of curriculum design: the grading and selection of micro language skills are based on textbooks instead of actual students’ language needs and their actual language proficiency.
Using textbooks as the only acceptable “standard” learning material eliminates the problem of the “standard” of doing things: WHAT TO TEACH, HOW TO TEACH IT and the SCOPE and COVERAGE of the TEST. While ESL textbooks are helpful, it is not right to make them as main benchmark of ESL teaching in Thailand. Imagine how difficult for both teachers and students to cope with the number of lessons found in every unit of the textbook that need to be covered for the sake of passing an achievement test which encompasses almost 50% of the grading system. Now, that doesn’t seem right. Instead of focusing to students’ performance: providing them more opportunities to use the target language actively so that they could improve their communication skills, the curriculum says otherwise: students’ competence or knowledge of the language is what is being assessed. A student who has improved his speaking skills, for instance, might fail in his class just because he failed in an English test designed to test students’ memory skills. So, what’s the solution of the problem?
Suggesting the administrators to abandon the use of textbook has a very slim of approval. If this is so, then the solution lies on the hands of the ESL teacher. The ESL teacher should stay focus on his task: to see that all, if not, majority of the students improve their language skills. And improving the students’ language skills does not rely on a well-written and designed textbook. There is always something lacking in these textbooks though they appear that they were perfectly designed for the language learners…and that’s appropriateness and flexibility.
The ESL teacher’s creativity is also at stake. Creating language materials suitable to the students’ needs and proficiency is best handled by the ESL teacher himself. However, there may be some issues on choosing the right teacher for the job in Thailand but the fact remains: dedicated ESL teachers are needed more than well-designed textbooks.
(to be continued)
