The Learning Network reviews and complaints
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Steer Clear of this fake school
Whatever you do stay well clear of the scam running from The Learning Network or The Language whatever they wish to call themselves to hide their dark past. Basically this school operates in a manner to rip off their employees. Does not see you as anything more than a few quid and takes you for a ride in the process. Their staff are a bunch of uneducated...
Read full review of The Learning NetworkPoor Management/Poor Company Structure/Hypocrisy
I recently joined up with The Learning Network to teach kids in Suratthani Thailand as a starry eyed youngster. They advertise a free teaching certificate so I thought it was really grand. Well, it turns out that free certificate ISN'T FREE. It will actually cost you A MONTH'S SALARY and you're expected to teach for free. That was just the first of a long list of disappointments.
So The Learning Network partners with one school, Joy School, where most of its teachers teach. And it also has an after school program named The Language. Both schools have a ridiculous curriculum. For instance, I taught Science at Joy. The kids were reading words and phrases like 'porous' and 'chemical resistance' when most of them didn't know how to respond to "How are you?".
The certificate that supposedly gives you all you need to know is from Global TESOL College (a dodgy company that a lot of other schools don't even recognize) and it only includes 5 days of morning instruction with their one TEFL instructor. After that one week, the semester starts and the contract says you have to work for free for one month. You're on probation they say, and then they actually extended our probation by another two weeks, so that we could get 'more training' though we weren't trained at all.
There's no real discipline in the schools. The Thai teachers hit the kids but the kids know that the English teachers won't. If you have students who don't care, you'll be at a loss trying to motivate them. As a first year teacher, I felt unable to reach a lot of kids or to give real tangible consequences. Other teachers suggest putting 'points on the board' and dividing kids up in teams, but ultimately none of the kids cared about that. And then you realize there's 13 year old kids who can't read and who have never done a thing just getting pushed on through so it seems like everyone the company has hired has struggled. The kids run riot as a result. Particularly at the after school program called The Language, where the 'classrooms' are just places for the kids to run around like nuts while you try and teach a really random curriculum.
There's also absolutely no support. There's one over worked lady running around from class to class sometimes, but she rarely gives feedback and rarely suggests anything very constructive. So if you find yourself struggling, then you're out of luck. No one will care. No one will be able to help. I was observed six times. I got feedback three times. Each time I tried to implement what was told to me with little to no success.
Even though there's no support, The Learning Network still breathes down the neck of each of its teachers daily. The Thai staff you work with will video tape your classes with their phones and take daily take photos of you teaching and give it to the head of the school. If you don't play enough games with the kids, the kids will complain and the parents will complain about you. The teacher's room has a video camera to make sure you're working. Most of the classrooms have security cameras and microphones to listen in on you and grade your efforts. You won't get any help but you will get a warning if you're not up to snuff.
Management is terrible. The two most senior members will literally sneer at you all day, sigh whenever you ask a question, and do nothing to help you. If you call out the company for their poor handling of a situation, you're labelled a troublemaker and they'll scrutinize your classes even more. They'll dock your pay randomly, lie about how much you'll get for overtime, and if you're sick their policy actually ends up penalizing you and the other teachers.
The worst part is that these businessmen will constantly talk about 'helping the children'. If you ever say anything to management about personal leave or discipline or support, they'll accuse you of putting yourself ahead of the children, even if it's a complete non sequitur.
The reality is no one is really learning, the teachers are just trying to get by and not attract too much attention, and it's just a cushy business arrangement for the owners. They're making 40, 000 baht/student every semester. There's 800 kids at Joy, another 300 going to The Language. They're making around 1.3 million USD a semester. And their expenses? 20 teachers making less than a grand a month. About 20-30 Thai staff making even less. They've been around for more than a decade so they probably own their two buildings, I can't imagine them paying a mortgage or being in debt for those. It's literally just a racket. There's no problem of student learning being solved here, no students being helped. Rich Thai parents are just paying for the status of Joy School and having their kids surrounded by white people. No one wants to change the abysmal status quo.
It's just a really poor environment where everyone feels stressed because they're being spied on and because they've had little to no training or help. Management won't do a thing to help you and won't communicate with you or listen to your suggestions. I would suggest you stay away from Suratthani in general.
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i loved working at Joy School in the kindergarten bilingual program - The Language afterschool programs and the elementary ages at Joy School were a bit of a different story... the level of the students was challenging with the curriculum presented. But Kru Nok was awesome and I had so much fun with kindies and nursery classes, and LOVED living in Surat! Easy to travel on the weekends - we got out of work every friday at noon and would head to the islands! Miss the laid back lifestyle and culture - Surat was great because it wasn't touristy so cheap prices on everyday items and food then you could splurge on the weekends! Would love to go back, and would recommend Joy School to others!
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My experience with The Learning Network has been a positive one. It takes some time to adjust to different ways of working in a non-Western country but from my experience The Learning Network has been as good as any other school I know of in Thailand. The salary is the same as most schools outside of Bangkok, and as other schools in the area. I already had a TESOL so I didn't have to do the course that other people have written about. I was thrown in to the deep end a bit as I was hired only a couple of days before the semester started, but I was given plenty of training and a lot of advice and encouragement during my first semester when I had a class that I really struggled with. I feel that this company have really helped me to grow as a teacher and now I've been teaching for 2 years and plan on doing so for a lot longer. As long as I stay in Surat I will continue to work for this company. I have been given opportunities to take on extra responsibilities and progress as a teacher. My students are great and I see their English comprehension grow constantly. I teach kindergarten and the students are so responsive and keen to participate. There is a bit of a variety in ability between the students in my class, e.g. some are great at reading already, but even the lower ability students are able to recognise different phonics sounds and with a bit of help put the sounds together to spell out words.
I have never had any problems with receiving my salary, although once a couple of hours of overtime had been missed from my paycheck but I was emailed and told it would be in my account by the end of the week before I even realised I had been underpaid. The company have always been great with sorting my visa and work permit out on time too.
I also want to point out that there are no microphones listening in on our lessons. Joy School has a CCTV camera in each room but it's not to spy on English teachers, there are cameras across the school for security.
These last five comments are obviously written by the same person here all within a few days of one and other and are a complete lie. I worked at the Joy School, The Language, The Learning Network. Whatever they wish to be known as to try and rip off the next unknown traveller who is seeking an awesome experience teaching overseas. Steer well clear of this school and their methods of getting you abroad. The pay is crap, the management is disgraceful and the owner of the company both a thai-australian and an english man are people who just want to make money. The kids are effected in a negative way and the teaching... well if you want to call it that is not a fun experience. The school steal money from your pack checks, you have your working hours 22 per week then your actual hours more like 40+. Expectations are ridiculous and the management are incapable of doing their own jobs. I don't wish this experience upon anyone! Your holidays are not really holidays when your expected to work holiday school and your 4 weeks annual leave is forced leave for 2 weeks and almost like a severance payment of 2 weeks once you complete your year at the school. However you are threatened that if your books are not marked for the entire year that you will not be paid! Steer clear of this company and their ways and I have heard they are looking to open up a branch in Melbourne, Australia. I hope the Australians see right through these money hungry people.
Living and working in Thailand, and in particular working at Joy school was overwhelmingly positive. I really enjoyed being part of a community and felt like what I was doing was important. Even things that I didn't want to do initially such as the christmas show eventually turned into memorable experiences.
I had a great working for them and living in Thailand in general. Trips to Khanom, Jam Bay nights, phosphorescence in the ocean under the moonlight!
Even recommended it to my friends who I believe are still there.
Worked here for almost three years, stayed on the famous 'soi farang' loved the school and loved Thailand
Cannot agree with this either.I lived at the pink house with two other girls on Patumporn. There are always problems settling in to a new country but overall it was an amazing time in my life. I made lifelong friends, saw amazing places, traveled SE Asia during my vacation and the teaching was very rewarding to me - there is a big cultural gap between Thai teachers and English teachers, but I learned to smile (a smile goes a long way in Thailand), use sign language and happily communicate. I was always supported and I count my former colleagues among my closest friends. Everybody has different reactions to being away from home, especially for the first time, but my experience was great.
This just wasn't my experience at all. Went for six months and stayed for two years. Loved it
Terrible job. Very unintelligent and untrustworthy managers. Extremely unprofessional attitudes. Don't listen to suggestions. Stole one month of our pay too. None of the kids can speak English. Most of the other teachers just party. Thailand was great. This job? Big mistake.