Be Like Chris: Embrace the Adventure of Teaching in Thailand as an Irishman

“There’s nothing worse in life than getting up in the morning and hating what you do.”

I can attribute that quote to Mr. Moran, my 3rd-year secondary school (high school) metalwork teacher from almost 25 years ago now. I wasn’t a particularly studious or even interested student in his class, but that message from him as he addressed us boys on that morning many moons ago has always stuck with me.

I can now safely say that I do not fall into that objectionable pitfall that he referred to. But before I talk about how and why I have ended up here to teach in Thailand, please allow me to digress.

A Journey of Discovery: From Engineering to Teaching

Being in possession of an inquisitive mind and an insatiable thirst for a new experience, I have always been a keen traveler. After graduating from university in 2011, I did what most people my age did in Ireland at the time—I set sail for new shores, eager and without any of the usual trepidation associated with leaving the land of your birth.

Australia was my port of call, and though it was an enjoyable time and I met lots of interesting people, it was a year with no real direction. I was in my mid-20s, so that was probably fine at the time. I did lots of different odd jobs here and there, from working as a removalist in the suburbs of Sydney to doing the grunt work for a father-and-son tree surgeon team in Perth.

After a year was completed in Australia, I hightailed it to Auckland, New Zealand, where once again I lived the life of a backpacker with no real commitment to anything substantial but got to see lots of that beautiful country and made memories and friends to last a lifetime. 

Returning to Ireland, I started working as an engineer with a very reputable company that provided many perks and benefits. However, after a year or so in the job, I felt unfulfilled, and that gnawing feeling that there was more I could do elsewhere in another environment visited me again. That’s when I seriously started considering teaching as my next adventure.

Diving Headfirst into the World of Teaching

I had flirted with the idea of teaching throughout my 20s. I made some inquiries into how I could go about it with my educational background through friends and associates who had more experience in the field than I did.

I quickly realised that my teaching ambitions would once again see me departing for new pastures. Once I had gained sufficient accreditation, I was on a long-haul flight to central China and to a city I had never heard of before, Hunan. 

Did I know anything substantial about China? Not really. Did I speak any Mandarin or Cantonese? Not a word of either. Was I intrigued? Absolutely. I faced a steep learning curve in China as I was thrown in at the deep end. There were 50+ students per class, 15-17 classes a week, and close to 1,000 different students in total on a weekly basis. I had never been at the top of a classroom before as the one in charge, but this was it.

Sink or swim. In that first year of teaching, I learned a lot, including classroom management, the do’s and don’ts, etc., but it was all largely self-taught. Nonetheless, I had caught the teaching bug and knew this was what I wanted to do, and it reaffirmed to me that I had finally made the right choice. 

Landing in Thailand: A New Chapter Begins

In the end, after many travels inside and outside of China, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic brought my time there to a close after three and a half largely successful years. Returning home with that much-needed teaching experience under my belt, I now felt very confident I could continue my teaching career and wanted to do just that, but in a new location. 

While living and working in China, I spent one of my Chinese New Year holidays in Thailand, particularly Bangkok and the island of Koh Chang. I had some, albeit very limited, understanding of the Thai experience and thought to myself around this time that I’d be happy to return here. 

A little over 3 years after my first visit to Thailand, I would return again, but this time in a working capacity to continue my teaching journey. I was lucky enough to secure employment as a high-school Math teacher in Buriram with BFITS.

As I write this, I can genuinely say it was a great decision I made to come here. I am very grateful for the trust placed in me at the time and for how that trust is still maintained 3 years later. 

A Supportive Teaching Environment Makes All the Difference

I mentioned earlier how, during my first year in China, I was thrown in at the deep end. What I meant by that was that there was no real academic support in terms of how to deliver lessons in a productive and meaningful way, how to deal with unruly or disruptive students, or about the content of what they wanted me to actually teach.

I was an English language teacher in China, and while there was some freedom to enjoy, I did find, particularly during my first year, that my classes sometimes lacked structure or a targeted learning outcome. I put this down to experience, or my lack thereof, and I improved at that over time.

I also want to say that I loved my time in China. I had fantastic colleagues, made great friends, and still keep in touch with many people from my time there to this day. I am eternally grateful for the opportunity I was awarded. I am just retelling my experiences.

Our training Manager and esteemed colleague, Mr. James Tovey, launched a new monthly webinar series in June 2024.

This aims to support teachers in different areas of the role and is essentially for our development as educators. It is also indicative of the steadfast commitment that BFITS has towards education and the support I have always felt I had since I started here.

Now, more than ever before, I am making use of the various teaching resources that have been made available to me. I have discussions with colleagues in my school about their approach to certain aspects of what we encounter daily.

I’m not always right. “I never lose. I either win, or I learn.” Thank you indeed, Mr. Mandela.

Growth Beyond the Classroom

I’ll be 39 in November 2025. I started teaching when I was 29.

Have I grown as a teacher in the intervening years? I would like to think so. Sometimes, when I visit home during summer breaks in China, I teach at summer camps throughout Ireland. These classes are for teenagers from mainland Europe, primarily Spain, France, and Italy, and they are very activity-heavy as opposed to classroom-oriented. I have brought the skills I learned on camps such as these to Thailand and try to use them when appropriate. 

And what have I gained since I made the move to Thailand? Many, many positive things. I’ve gained a clearer understanding of what it means to be a teacher. First and foremost, it is about dealing with 100 different students weekly, their personalities, their strengths and weaknesses, and how different approaches can be beneficial for different students.

I’ve gained the friendship of my colleagues, whom I have the utmost respect for. I see how hard they work each day and how they genuinely care about our students’ well-being. 

I’ve gained a better understanding of myself as a person. What makes me happy is that all these have allowed me to flourish as a teacher, not weighed down by mental baggage over whether I’m in the right profession or doing a good job.

I know I’m in the right place. This allows me the peace of mind to concentrate fully and be the best I can possibly be, both inside and outside the classroom.

The Journey Continues: Embracing New Opportunities

Above all, I confidently say that moving to teach in Thailand has been one of the best decisions of my life. It has given me the opportunity to explore new cultures, grow as an educator, and build meaningful connections with students and colleagues, especially here at Buriram Pitthayakhom (BP) School, a partner school of BFITS Thailand.

As my journey here continues, I look forward to embracing every new experience and challenge that comes my way. There is always more to learn, more to do, and more to discover. There’s always more. In the near future, I plan to share deeper insights into how this experience has shaped me both personally and professionally.

Until then, dear readers—keep on keeping on.