Udon Thani Map, Udon Guide, Udon Thani Magazine - Udon Thani Map

Pattana Panya School Udon Thani is a private primary school, classified as a Bi-lingual education institute fully licensed and sanctioned by the Thai Ministry of Education. They teach English, but this is not a foreign language institute or an "AUA for kids." Classes are offered in English and Thai. Thai subjects are taught in Thai by Thai teachers and English subjects in English by foreign teachers. The goal of the bi-lingual education model is to put the students in an English speaking environment while at the same time not ignoring the need to develop their academic and language skills in Thai. When students are learning English, the language is new and they cannot be expected to learn everything in a second language. Therefore, subjects such as history/social studies, health, and scouting and of course Thai are offered in Thai language. Math and science are offered in both English and Thai and courses such as conversation, phonics, storytelling and general English in English. We recently visited Pattana Panya School so we could see first-hand if this school is in reality different from the other private primary or language schools in the area. We found Pattana Panya School offers a true educational alternative for primary students. The school operates in a less structured environment and since there is currently a small student population, the student to teacher ratio is very low. The first advantage is that teachers truly know their students, not only in name, but as people. In this environment the children go around the school quite freely and this enables learning via discovery and hands-on (there are also monthly field trips). To walk through the school and observe the students in this free form style may be a bit shocking to some parents as they might suspect the school lacks discipline. However, when students are actively learning a new language, a freer environment is most welcome; they shouldn't be restricted by older standards and practices which call for the young learners to be sitting passively in a classroom like good children with their hands folded on the desk waiting for the teacher to direct the next lesson. Learning a new language requires new techniques and strategies. The PPS setting provides opportunities for students to use English spontaneously; an element so often missing from conventional classrooms. The school has five Thai and five foreign teachers (Western, Philippines, China) and the student population is not comprised of Thai children exclusively. This is a population you probably may not find at any other school in Udon. Pattana Panya School director and founder, Mr. Danuch Tanterdtid explained the school was NOT simply conceived as a marketing scheme to grab the farang dollars moving into Udon. Instead the aim was to create and maintain an educational facility that promotes the development of English in an environment in which the students can learn English in a manner more effective than language schools