There are some
things we cannot change; the Earth is round, night follows day and the English
language is the international standard. The reasons why the English language
made it to the top of the heap are numerous, largely due to the colonisation
efforts of the British in the 17th and 18th centuries,
and let’s face it, wherever you live in this world, you need to gain a solid
understanding of the English language.
The
International Language of Business Communication
There’s no doubt
that English is the international language used in commerce today, and whether
you are looking for a British
school in Thailand,
or a US international school in Beijing, there are learning institutions where
every subject is taught in the English language. A Thai family, for example,
would have their child at an international school from grade 1, and the child
would become a fluent English speaker by the time they reach the secondary
years, then moving onto a foreign university, where they would study their BA.
Experiential
Learning
When your child
enrols in an international school, they are getting a lot more than the English
language, as top schools have an active learning approach, where the learner
takes responsibility for their learning. The project-based approach empowers
the students, as they must plan their project and work together as a team,
while solving real-life problems as they arise. In this style of learning, the
teacher becomes a facilitator, encouraging and guiding the learners. Here are a
few mistakes to avoid when planning your child’s education, which is a must-read for every parent.
Career
Opportunities
Without a level of
fluency in English, you are very limited with your career choices, indeed the
ability to speak and understand English is very often one of the first
requirements when a position is advertised. If you are applying for a position
with a multi-national company, you would be collaborating with people of different
nationalities, with English as the agreed medium of communication. If you live
in a non-English speaking country, language acquisition can be difficult, and
for children, the best time to introduce a new language is as early as
possible.
Practice Makes
Perfect
Of course, this is
true for just about everything, and language acquisition comes best when the
person is using the language, and when a 5-year-old Thai boy is immersed in an
English-speaking environment, he quickly adjusts and the language is acquired
naturally, building vocab as he goes, and by the time he leaves school, he has
at least an upper-intermediate level of English, which far exceeds the national
average. If a child is listening to English 8 hours per day, it is inevitable
that they will acquire the language very quickly, and such is the ability of a
young child, they can learn a new language while growing up. Click here for
more information on education
in Thailand, from
the Ministry of Education.
If you would like
to know more about international education and discover if there is a suitable
international school near you, a Google search will reveal the whereabouts of
the nearest international school that teaches the UK curriculum.