cultural clash in the classroom

Very strict hierarchies is one thing that I personally think screws up not only a students ability to learn, but is a limiting factor in many peoples life in general. That is one of the factors you just have to accept when visiting a new culture, but it is far more frustrating when it has an impact on what you are there to do. In the west, I guess, we are taught critical thinking and questioning authorities as a way of learning and understanding. In Thailand it's pretty much the opposite. What anyone with a uniform, a higher rank or whatever tells you, is the law. And in the classroom teacher is God. That might sound pretty nice, and it was in the beginning, but it made the actual teaching a lot harder since it was almost impossible to get the students to ask if they didn't understand or work independently . There would also always be one or two smart kids who would do all the job and the rest would copy. Happens a lot everywhere, I know, but there it was completely accepted and out in the open. Not even the thai teachers would care, instead they would just openly declare to the rest of the students how stupid they were and that they had to work harder. I heard stories from other volunteers of how teachers sometimes would hit the kids, and I'm glad none of that took place in my school.

It didn't seem to make a difference whether it was a primary school, college or even monk university, asking questions was almost always seen as a sign of weakness and it was much better to just stay silent. One of the monks told me that even during their lessons at the university asking questions was pretty much like asking for trouble. This was one of the things I had most trouble understanding in a country where the people in any other situation always smiles and acts very friendly to one another. I had many long discussions with the monks on this topic and even though they claimed it was good for maintaining discipline and creating structure, which I can agree on, they also felt it was sometimes holding people back. In the end I guess it's one of those differences you just have to deal with and try to be a bit more creative in certain situations.