This has been illegal now in Thailand for over 5 years. Its not whether its right to beat or not to beat its about whether teachers should so openly break the law.

Their website is back now. I am hearing more and more horror stories but the good news is they have been hit where it really hurts them with the mass exodus at the end of last term. With s little luck they will have learned that lying doesn’t pay.

Its fair enough for John to say his daughter is never hit, and I am grateful for that, but the sheer number of incidents we are being told about rather add weight to the fact that it DOES.

My own mind was made up when the head teacher LAUGHED at my protests and told me to my face that as far as he was concerned hitting kids was OK.

Also I would have thought that with the increase in fees they could afford to pay for their web site but it has now been removed!

I am now looking for another school for my children.

Chris

In addition to the stories mentioned here you can also read others on various websites and blogs by simply doing a Google search for Best Burapha School. So many concerned parents cannot be coincidence or mistaken.

My daughter was never smacked but she did tell us it was a common occurrence, usually for getting homework wrong, and always from Thai teachers. We did however have first hand experience of a (Thai) teacher drinking alcohol in the classroom.

The final straw was the huge hike in fees at the end of the year. As she was moving up a level too the fees went from 55,000 a year to 105,000 a year. Her class had 24 pupils and only 6 are returning next year due to this. If that figure of 75% departing is across the board they have clearly shot themselves in the foot badly.

Of the 18 leaving 10 applied to Maryvit and only 2 managed to pass the entrance exam. That is not conclusive in any way but does say a lot to me. The only entrance criteria BEST ever applied was an ability to pay.

I understand several teachers from other local schools, including BEST, have been recruited but I agree that only time will tell.

What is not in doubt is that the Satit school has far better facilities including a car park and sports field which BEST have just lost due to their unwillingness to pay a minimal rental fee for the land behind the school.

Car parks and sports fields don’t educate kids but BESTs reluctance to invest in these speaks volumes for many people – just read the thread about this at Thai Visa. As many parents seem to be leaving over this matter as the one I originally raised.