#  >  > Living And Legal Affairs In Thailand >  >  > Learn Thai Language >  >  Walen School of Thai -- any experiences?

## Khun004

Does anyone have experience at Walen School of Thai?

Yes, they are famous for offering long-stay educational visas, but what about actually learning Thai language there?

They use a teaching method like no other -- apparently a very fast rate of asking questions with lots of repetition.  Is their method really as wonderful as they claim in their advertising?  Anybody have direct experience?

Reason for asking is Walen is about to open a branch in Chiangmai.  I'm tempted, but would appreciate comments -- pro and con -- of anyone who has actually been through their course.

Thank you. 

K-4
Chiangmai

----------


## dirtydog

You could try this one. Its a lot cheaper if your not interested in the visa.
Learn Thai in Chiang Mai - Thai Language Course for Foreigners in Chiang Mai

*Thai Language Course for Foreigners in Chiang Mai  Learn Thai Conversation*

*Chiang Mai English Club (CMEC)* offers a friendly Thai language course at the price that you consider a steal. We are a group of nice and fun-oriented, English-speaking Thai-native speakers who are not only happy to teach you to speak Thai but also keeping you company for those who are very new to the town.
 We provide not only a fun Thai lesson but also befriend and introduce you to the Thai and Chiang Mai cultures and lifestyles. Either one on one or in a group, we are flexible with the study hours.
*Course:  Thai Language for Beginner*

*Description:* -    Consonant sounds, vowels and pronunciation-    Sentence formation (pronoun, verb and basic vocabulary)-    Interrogative and negative sentence formation*Hours:  30 hours*
*Price:* -    4700 baht/person for One on One-    3300 baht/person for Group of 2-3APPLY NOW!

----------


## Khun004

> You could try this one. Its a lot cheaper...


Looks like advertisements in posts are allowed here.

I opened this thread specifically asking for comments from anyone with experience at a Walen School of Thai.

Apparently their teaching method is unique.
They have branches in Bangkok and Pattaya, with a new branch soon to open in Chiangmai, so critique of their method could be useful to many readers of this forum.

Comments -- pro or con -- about Walen School, from anyone who has _actually attended classes there_, would be most appreciated.

Thank you.

-K4
Chiangmai

----------


## dirtydog

The one I posted is about 10 percent of the price of walen, so even if your a slow learner you should be getting a bargain.

----------


## dirtydog

AUA is supposedly the best if you want to pay the big money, are you actually in Chiang mai or Thailand?

----------


## BigRed

> Looks like advertisements in posts are allowed here.


Only if you own the forum, just ask *SoCo MoFo*.  :smiley laughing: 
however, DD's reply seemed pretty much on topic and informative, which is more than you get from 90% of the posters here. In fact it's more than you get from 90% of DDs posts  :Smile: 

You might not be interested in DDs link but others may be, thats how forums work or do you think we are all here just to answer your questions? you're not a Scampy alias are you  :Wink:

----------


## mao say dung

The so-called Callan Method is, to be blunt, crap. 

It involves giving the student a book with call-response dialogues written out in Thai script. The teacher reads out a question in a very artificial manner, reads it out again, then students read an answer. And on and on.

Can't read Thai script? No problem. Just run your finger along the passage as the teacher reads the question and as other students read the answers. You'll absorb Thai script in no time.

And if you believe that, just send me your money and I will teach you the language through psychic com-channels I've developed over the years.

Point is, they guarantee the visa and you don't have to attend classes or perform to any standard when you do in order to keep the paperwork flowing. 

You are paying 30,000 for the paperwork to get you a visa for a year; if you calculate the cost of visa runs etc., if that is your alternative, you can decide on a cost-convenience-benefit basis.

I was lucky enough to have a teacher who didn't/couldn't/wouldn't use _the method_ and a class of folks who resented the occasions when the director came in and tried to bully everyone into it, and bully is the appropriate word. We all just thought he was a rude a-hole and held our noses till he left.

----------


## Khun004

> The so-called Callan Method is, to be blunt, crap. ... I was lucky enough to have a teacher who didn't/couldn't/wouldn't use _the method_ and a class of folks who resented the occasions when the director came in and tried to bully everyone into it, and bully is the appropriate word. We all just thought he was a rude a-hole and held our noses till he left.


Thank you, Mao, for taking the time to write about your observations at Walen.

Indeed, it is the "Callan" method they use. 
The Callan method -- as described at Walen's web site -- seems very impressive.
I'm wondering if it really is.
With the new branch opening soon in Chiangmai, probably others in this area are wondering, too.

Mao clearly votes, "No".
Anyone else with _personal experience_ there?

-- K4
Chiangmai
.

----------


## dirtydog

I think you will find most do it for the visa and aren't actually interested in the classes, if you want to learn Thai it is extremely cheap with other Thai companys, you want that year visa then walen or mythailanguage etc are the places to go, but to learn Thai, just go to a normal teacher.

^I see you have completely edited your post you cnut.

----------


## Khun004

Please CANCEL my request in the OP (for observations about Walen School.)

Just now, on a different forum, I found many posts from people with actual, personal experience attending those classes.
They gave a very clear picture of what's on offer.
No need to continue here.

Thank you.

-- K4
Chiangmai

----------


## BigRed

> No need to continue here.


Good job too  :Smile: 

damn, just realised you didn't mean yourself on this forum.

----------


## Parker Chase

Walen School STOLE over 23,000 Baht from me.
Mac Wallen is an immoral, money hungry scammer!!!

----------


## Davis Knowlton

The thread's seven years old.....

----------


## Headworx

^So is Parker Chase if he was thick enough to be scammed by Walen.

----------


## Parker Chase

That is not very nice. Maybe when something bad happens to you, people will make jokes about it.

----------


## bobo746

^ Great comback,are you 15?

----------


## Neverna

Tell us how they allegedly "STOLE" over 23,000 baht from you, Parker Chase.

----------


## Davis Knowlton

Who cares?

----------


## barrylad66

> ^ Great comback,are you 15?


 :rofl:

----------


## Headworx

> That is not very nice. Maybe when something bad happens to you, people will make jokes about it.


Deservedly so if I was stupid enough to hand someone with such a long and easily reserched history 23,000 Baht. Have you heard about this new invention called Google?.

----------


## David48atTD

Is his schools still operating?

I'm sure the changes to the Visa options would have stifled his clientèle?

What about his Business Classes?

----------


## charleyboy

He's got a place in Cha-Am.

----------


## BaitongBoy

Jing lor?...I'm in Cha Am...You want I go get yer money back, Parker?...Any relation to Richard Parker in the Life of Pi?...Me and Sharkey'll split the commission...

By the way, Welcome to the Buffalo Board, if you do return...

----------


## Dragonfly94

Quite possible as similar happened to me in 2003. Signed up for so many hours and paid, was told had 2 years to do them in by the owner. Had a few lessons that year, when I went back the following year the bitch told me the time had run out and no more lessons, claimed she said one year to do them in, 6.5k down the drain. Nothing in writing unfortunately

----------


## Dragonfly94

> Is his schools still operating?
> 
> I'm sure the changes to the Visa options would have stifled his clientèle?
> 
> What about his Business Classes?


He vacated the offices on the ist floor at times sq and moved to cheaper upstairs. Teachers are not qualified other than to read out of a book

----------


## Dragonfly94

> That is not very nice. Maybe when something bad happens to you, people will make jokes about it.


Probably, this is TD and not the anally retentive TV, we take the piss out of most things

----------


## thaimeme

> Originally Posted by Parker Chase
> 
> 
> That is not very nice. Maybe when something bad happens to you, people will make jokes about it.
> 
> 
> Probably, this is TD and not the anally retentive TV, we take the piss out of most things


Speaking of TVF, wasn't Walden a steady and lucrative underwriter of theirs some time back [dating from the original OP].......or perhaps, still is???

----------


## Dragonfly94

don't know, he made a mint though from the ed visa biz

----------


## toddaniels

> He vacated the offices on the ist floor at times sq and moved to cheaper upstairs.


Little bit of bad info there Dragonfly94.

He closed the 3rd floor of his Time's Square Branch, but he's ALWAYS had half the 24th floor there as a school. (He kept the 24th floor, mostly to meet the square meter per enrolled student requirement).

Surprisingly he does have some qualified teachers BUT they can't do anything in his school except read out of the book. I know a few of them who teach privately as well and they're more than competent once they're not shackled to an asinine methodology.  

At one time, his schools had more foreigners on ED visas than all the other private thai language schools and the students enrolled in international programs at real universities combined!

Mac raked in millions of dollars off his cunning use of the thai ED visa extension system as it used to be. At one time he was the biggest contributing sponsor of the T/V forum (bought the most ad space).. I dunno about now. Not too shabby for a guy with nothing more than a good idea and a degree in welding!

----------


## Dragonfly94

never the third floor ist or 2nd depending how you count the ground floor

----------


## toddaniels

Okay, if you say so, I'm just going by what number you press in the elevator to get to that floor and surprisingly its a number 3.. 

I count the ground floor as floor as the 1st floor. You go up two escalators to get to the floor with access to the sky-bridge to Robinson's the BTS/MTR etc. Any way you count it that's the 3rd floor.. 

You're not another successful learner from walen are you? :Confused:  How's your thai comin' along? Were you in his "earn while you learn program" too? Can you parrot out the sentence, "Did you know Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world?" in thai? Funny in the 9+ years since I've been studying thai I've NEVER had the occasion to say that to a thai! :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic): 

While I rarely mention it, I too attended the walen school 'o thai. It was WAY back when they were still translating the Callan english books into thai. I was in the first group of students who took their thai class. We'd show up for the class and they'd hand out copies of the stuff they'd just finished translating! That's how new the program was back then. 

My hat's off to Mac's business acumen and his ability to downsize without a second thought when the gravy train ended. Super smart business man, who just this last year got his thai Permanent Residency too..

----------

