Denver, no offence taken mate. Everyone is entitled to their opinion which is the beauty of the forum.
Like I said I only wanted to help as I am in Patong now and have a fairly good idea of the current situation regarding teaching here. Also I know it can be a big call for people to get out of their comfort zone in Farangland and most people want some idea of what they are getting themselves into.
I do not claim to be a great teacher and am not fully qualified as I do not have a real degree. I would pose the question however - how many fully qualified farang teachers want to give up their career to work here on around 30k baht a month. If you read the Bkk post daily and check
www.ajarn.com you will see they are screaming out for "native english speakers". Some schools dont care too much about how good a teacher you are either. I was hired at my first interview by a reputable company which has branches all over greater BKK even though they knew I had no experience. As far as they were concerned 'attitude' and 'life experience' was more important to them and you know what was most important to the school.... appearance!
Like Stickman says there are some real idiots out there teaching in Thailand and I feel sorry for those students that really want to learn but are subjected to poor teachers who prepare their lessons over beers with mates in Nana Plaza or Soi Cowboy, then turn up to class 20 minutes late, stinking of grog, and sweating all over the place. Personally I used to prepare well for my lessons and restrict my partying to weekends as I dont want to look like a fool in front of my students.
My contract in Phuket town was only 20 - 25 hours a week which meant I could be sitting on the beach with my girl everyday by 3pm and used to spend a couple of hours in the evening preparing my lessons and marking.
Anyway ive crapped on for too long but the point I want to get across is that if you put your mind to it and take it seriously you can do it here in LOS. I know, because I have taken the chance and it has allowed me to spend alot more time in Thailand and Phuket than if I did not have the balls to get out and do it just because I dont have a degree!
Cheers from Patong!