Learning to Speak Thai in Thailand

During 1993-1994 I spent a year in Bangkok, Thailand. While I was there, I took Thai language classes at a school called AUA (American University Alumni). This turned out to be one of the most engaging school experiences of my life.

Heading to AUA, I'd aim to take the
blue air conditioned bus.

At the time the school offered two methods for learning Thai: a 'traditional' method that was like most other language learning programs (i.e. memorizing vocabulary, learning rote phrases, using worksheets and workbooks) and the 'natural' method, which mimicked the way children learned language and was context and experience based.

The 'natural' method was controversial at the time. It seemed every so often some English speaking Westerner was writing into the opinion section of The Bangkok Post to contest the concept.

I recall the originator of the AUA program, an elder American man with a soft spoken manner, shaking his head at the controversy. He said some people needed the security of a phrase book and a worksheet or they didn't believe they were 'learning'--which was why he continued to offer the traditional method even though, in his opinion, the natural method was a far more effective means of learning a language. His background was in languages (linguistics, if I recall), he was married to a Thai woman, had lived in Thailand for ages, and was fluent in both English and Thai. I spoke to him when I first enrolled and off and on throughout the program.

But sometimes I'd take the red non-air conditioned bus.

He did admit that it took longer before you could start speaking Thai. In fact, with the 'natural' method, you weren't supposed to try saying Thai at all, you were just supposed to listen to the Thai being spoken to you. You first understood what was being said in Thai and you could respond to what was being said using English but you weren't supposed to try speaking in Thai until much later--until you felt like you could do so. This, he told me, mimics what kids do--they soak in the language before they speak in it.

So the 'natural' way took longer-- but not that much longer--it could be accomplished in months rather than years. And it took more time per day --because the more time spent hearing Thai, the more exposure it gave you and the more you would get out of it--but the end results created an organic and fluid understanding of a language. It would be embedded in your brain in a more durable way than rote learning could ever manage. And you could do more with it.

And sometimes I'd walk to AUA to avoid the traffic--
the inside of my nose would become full of
black from the pollution.

In the traditional way, you could start speaking Thai much sooner, though you would be saying very scripted things like 'I want to buy a papaya please'--which was fine if that's what you wanted and that fit your situation. But it wasn't very organic. What if you wanted directions to Lumpini Park instead? Could you ask for that on the spot? Or would you have to dig out your Thai-English dictionary?

I chose the 'natural' method, of course, because I was intrigued by the concept. Plus, I sat in on a class and it looked like enormous fun.

And it was. I was the most fun I've ever had in a 'school' setting...and that's including my favourite literature classes at University, which I loved--but these Thai 'lessons' were way outside the box of what seemed typical to school, any kind of school. The emphasis everyday was on engagement, connection, drama and fun.

One of my favourite places in Bangkok:
Lumpini Park

The teachers were Thai, a mix of male and female, and mostly in their twenties and thirties. They worked in pairs, and would sit or stand at the front of the classroom. Then--they would begin. The interactive storytelling would begin.

In the very first class one teacher role played walking into the class, greeting the other teacher, and then asking their name--all of this was in Thai. They'd act out the scenario for a bit then turn to their 'audience', including us in the action by asking each member of the audience for their name--in Thai--and each person would answer in English. I, of course, said: "My name is Julie".

If anyone was confused by what they were doing, the Thai teachers would switch to English to clarify, but most of the time they kept to Thai--and the Thai was perfectly understandable: straightforward sentences, often repeated and in a context we all shared.

There were no notes. No worksheets. We didn't write anything down. We just listened, watched and participated.

We picked up the phrases and vocab. We picked up the tonal differences. It started simple.

Then it moved on. It grew more sophisticated.

These teachers were gifted orators. Some were real comedians. I recall a funny story about one of them visiting family out in the country, eating too much spicy food, and having gastrointestinal upset. ('Mem'--smelly. I still know that word.) This story was delivered with perfect comedic timing and dramatic emphasis.

A city full of stories...

They shared lots of stories--personal stories of adolescent crushes,  school experiences, family events, shopping, ghosts, first apartments, going to the movies, being sick, home life. And they didn't shy away from challenging topics, either: they addressed aspects of Thai society, the good and the bad, like sexism, the sex trade, and tensions between north and south. Yes, they even addressed the occasional Thai slang and swear word.  They talked about a lot of things: spirit houses, taxis, traffic jams, (stinky) durian. They shared their world, as story tellers do. They shared hopes, dreams, aggravations, opinions.

All of this was communicated in Thai, peppered with questions for us to answer in English. We weren't just 'watching a show', we were part of it. They made it look effortless. It seemed like a skilled improv. Their stories didn't ramble; they had coherence. They were delivered with enthusiasm and we were encouraged to enthusiastically participate. It was a very personal and intimate mode of learning--this sharing of stories--and never, ever dull.

I loved browsing and buying from the street side
markets and food stalls. YUM!

I eventually (after a few months?) started speaking in Thai. I could go shopping at the market and ask and answer questions. I could carry on a conversation! Then I found myself having a very involved, intellectual discussion with a Thai woman about the status of women and women in politics. We were comparing progress between Thailand and Canada. All in Thai, I realized. Suddenly, I was having deep, philosophical conversations...in Thai!

Of course, languages are meant to be used and once I left Thailand, it gradually left me. Now, twenty years on, I remember a few words and phrases and can count from one to twenty...but that's basically it.

The originator of the AUA program once assured me that learning a language 'the natural way' meant that even if I left and 'lost' the ability, if I went back, I'd pick it right up again quickly. The language would seem 'lost' but really it was just in hiding somewhere in my brain. A trip to Bangkok would coax it all out.

Maybe one day I'll return to Thailand and test that theory.