Good Company, Okay Experience

Working for MediaKids has been my first experience teaching abroad and I have to say that they've done a great job at providing support for the logistical challenges of working in Thailand. My cultural consultants were very responsive and reassuring whenever I had questions about immigration, visas, work permits, holidays, or needed someone to help represent my interests to the administration at my placement school.

MediaKids has also provided great tools for my classroom. As a first-time teacher it was incredibly helpful to be given an outline for the semester, as well as recommended vocabulary and suggested classroom activities. At the same time, they give teachers room to personalize their lessons and cater to the varying level of students.

One thing I would note is that there seems to be a lot of disparity in people’s experiences working for this company. Some schools are very demanding and strict while others are pretty flexible and low-key. The level of students of the same age also varies from school to school. While my students are mostly polite and eager to learn, I have friends from orientation that have struggled with student behavioral issues and been unable to find support from MediaKids or their placement school. This variety might be unavoidable, due to the number of different schools across the country that use MediaKids ESL teachers, but it is still important to note if you’re considering working for them.

To conclude, it doesn’t seem like MediaKids is above the curve as far as ESL employers in Thailand. The pay and benefits provided by the company seem average for local standards (new teachers at public schools in rural areas). Also, regardless of which company or school you chose to work for, I imagine a lot of your experience living in Thailand will be dependent on your initiative and interests. All that being said, MediaKids is still a solid choice and I would recommend them as my experience being an employee of the company has been a generally good one.