Encouraging Participation in Thai Classrooms

Student participation in the classroom can look very different depending on where in the world you are teaching. This is one area of teaching where cultural differences can really stand out and have an impact in the classroom. For example, switching from teaching Central and South American students to Thai students, was certainly a culture shock that I had to overcome.

I was fortunate enough to teach both student populations online and in person. So I was able to apply tips and tricks in both classroom settings. While I don’t mean to stereotype, in general, I found that my Thai students were a lot shyer and less willing to communicate at first. Not every teacher will have this same experience. However, after talking with many of the teachers in my Thailand program they were experiencing the same thing. I found many of them asking, “How can I get my students to participate more in the classroom?” With many of my colleagues being new teachers or new to teaching as a whole, I wanted to help them and others who are teaching in Thailand. 

Here are 7 methods I learned in my M.A. TESOL program, are backed by research, and I used to help get my Thai students to participate in the classroom, no matter their English level.

Creating a positive learning culture

The first thing that any teacher should do when they start teaching a new class is to start cultivating a positive learning classroom culture from day one. For me, this usually started with making my classroom a welcoming room to my students. However, in Thailand, I didn’t have my own room and therefore couldn’t do this. Instead, that positive learning culture had to come directly from me. This started on the first day when I gave them praise and encouragement for any sort of English they were brave enough to say out loud and in front of the classroom. Those first few classes with your new students should always be about praise, praise, and more praise; really, you should overdo it.

Also, show them it is ok to make mistakes. Try saying something to them in Thai and have them correct you. Take the correction seriously, but also laugh about your mistake. Show them (not just tell them) that mistakes aren’t an issue in your class because everyone is learning. You could even make a few silly mistakes in English and have your students point them out to you. 

Setting the expectation that everyone needs to participate

While a positive learning culture can go a long way, it also helps to have an expectation that everyone needs to participate. Make sure participation is a grade in your grade book! I taught vocabulary classes that focused primarily on speaking. Therefore, participation was a HUGE part of my students’ grades and I reminded them of that every class. 

Hold students accountable for their participation

Now, a few students didn’t believe me at first. However, when the midterm reports came out, their grades were lower than expected. They wanted to know how they could improve their grades. I showed them the grade book to prove to them that participating was the biggest way to improve their grade. When class was happening I took note of everyone who participated and sometimes, even how often they participated. (My ability to do this depended on the activity I was using that day.) This showed my students that I was serious about their participation grades. 

Start with a short (relatively easy) activity that gets students participating (An English Warm-Up)

When teaching language class, it is always important to have students complete a “warm-up” activity at the beginning of class to get them in the groove of speaking that language. I usually review what we have been learning and I make the warm-up easy. This not only helps students review and get into speaking English, but it also gives them a confidence boost at the beginning of class. This confidence boost can help students be more willing to communicate in English during the rest of the class.

Create activities and lessons that get students involved

This is one of the biggest aspects of having students participate. It seems like a no-brainer. However, it is important to critically think about the lessons you are planning. Always keep asking yourself, “Who is at the center of these lessons and activities: the students or the teacher?” Students won’t participate if they aren’t given many chances to in class. They also won’t participate if they zoned out either from too much English input or because they are bored.

Limiting teacher talk time

Teacher talk time (TTT) is a term used to describe the amount of time that the teacher is talking and everyone else is quiet. In general, your time should only be about 20% of the class time. (This is a general estimate and can differ slightly depending on your students’ English levels.) In my classes in Thailand, that meant I had about 10-15 minutes to ‘deliver the lesson’ and explain the directions for the activity. It can be very easy to go over that limit. Whenever I did, I noticed that my participation would steadily decline the longer I went over. This can be true for any class, not just language classes. Remember you are speaking to the students in a language that is not their first. You don’t want to overload them with too much input that they just zone out.

Create lessons that are at the students’ English level

This is another tip that seems easy but can be difficult when you are teaching students at different levels. It can also be hard to follow if you are told to strictly follow a certain curriculum that is above your student’s English level. However, the first step to this is actually knowing your students’ English level. Make sure that either you or your school gives a quick informal assessment of your students at the beginning of your time teaching that will effectively determine your students’ levels. 

Once you know their level you can then start creating or adapting an already created curriculum/lesson to your students’ needs. You may find you need to adapt up for your higher-level students, adapt down for your struggling students, or do both. (This is the case a lot of the time.) If you want ideas for adapting lessons and activities click here to check out these SIOP activities (they are based on educational research).

Incorporate your students’ interests into your lessons

You will almost always have those students in your classes that just aren’t interested in learning English. So how can you pique these students’ interest and get them involved and participating as well? Find out what interests them and incorporate it into your lesson! This is so important and can be fun for you and your whole class. While teaching in Thailand, a lot of my students liked BTS. So I would try to incorporate surprise appearances of BTS in my activities or my lesson slides. Many of my students also liked Disney. For one of my activities, they played a game where they were a Disney character/reporter and reported on different severe weather conditions around the world. (Their target vocabulary was about severe weather, nothing to do with Disney. However, I was still able to find a way to incorporate their interests into the lesson.) 

Recognize when something isn’t working and be willing to adapt and change

This is also one of the biggest lessons I have learned as a teacher so far. Teaching is an art that constantly needs to be reflected upon and improved. If most of your students are not participating in class, reflect on why that might be and try out new changes one at a time. See what works and what doesn’t; for you and your teaching practice as well as for your students and their classroom as a whole. 

Every teacher is different and every classroom is different. There is no one size fits all way to help your students participate more in class. However, the tips I have listed above are methods that I put into practice in my classroom and they are backed by research as ways to help improve learning and participation in classrooms. Are you teaching in Thailand currently? Have you tried putting these methods into practice in your classroom? Let me know in the comments below!